Directed by Barak Epstein
Review By David Carter


Released by Shock-O-Rama Cinema
Running Time: 175 minutes
Year of Release: 2005
Rating: R
Color format: Color
Audio/Subtitles: Stereo
Region Code: 1, NTSC
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
16:9 Enhanced?: No
Special Features: Interviews w/Director, Auditions, Behind-the-scenes featurette
Trailer Online?: Yes

At this point in cinematic history every genre of film has some clichés. There are certain aspects of a comedy, a horror film, or a drama that have an immediately recognizable ability to define a film. It is these obligatory elements that are such prime targets for satire. That's where "spoof" films come in. The "spoof" movie was popularized by the Zucker Brothers films AIRPLANE and the NAKED GUN series. More recently the horror genre was satirized in the Wayans Brother's SCARY MOVIE series. Taking a page from these duos, writers Barak Epstein and Mike Wiebe go after the most cliché type of exploitation film: the Women in Prison movie.

Janie has a big problem. Her sister Callista has been abducted by the insane Dr. Hurtrider and taken to his lab, conveniently located in an all female prison in the Philippines. After committing a brutal murder to be sent to the prison, Janie finds that locating her sister is not going to be easy. She learns the ropes quickly through the help of her seductive cellmate, Jackpot (Rhonda Shear of USA UP! All Night fame). Despite her confusion over the steady stream of porcupines, ninjas, and frequent showers, Janie eventually develops a plan to get her and her sister freed from the prison.

PRISON A-GO-GO is a well-made film. Though it isn't exactly a big-budget blockbuster, the film quality and presentation on DVD are excellent. Where the film really shines however is the comedy. Laurie Walton as Janie and writer Mike Wiebe as the new warden, Wilber Thorn, are particularly good in their roles. They both bring the appropriate comedic timing and characterization to the film. The majority of the other characters are wildly over-the-top, but fortunately, most of the time it's more humorous than annoying. Most humorous was the decision to include a "Shower Clock" in the lower left hand corner of the screen. Women in prison films are notorious for their frequent overuse of the gratuitous nudity in shower scenes, so the filmmakers have graciously given the viewers a countdown to the next time the girls will be hitting the showers.

As with any comedy, not all of the jokes are winners. Fortunately the gags come fast enough that no one bad joke really has time to completely derail the comedy. I would have preferred to see a greater focus on sticking to a straight spoof of women in prison films though. There are several running gags involving the concept, but they are far too overused. That's not to say the film isn't funny, it is just that it too often resembles a straight comedy, not a women in prison spoof. All in all, viewers will be able to enjoy PRISON A-GO-GO regardless if they are familiar with the genre or not. It’s a surprisingly funny comedy and worth checking out.