Cage Without a Key

Back in the 1970s, TV was a lot cleaner and nicer than TV today. Cursing was allowed, finally, but only just a bit. And many topics still were very taboo in this decade. However, "Cage Without a Key" managed to push these boundaries about as much as the network would allow...perhaps even a bit more. There's cursing...but also more than the typical amount of violence and even an attempted lesbian rape scene. Amazingly saucy stuff for the time. Now this is NOT to say this is just some cheap exploitation film...it is an awfully good made for TV film.

The film stars Susan Dey of "The Partridge Family". This was an excellent choice because she had such a girl next door look--and seeing her going to a tough juvenile prison was pretty shocking! When the film begins, Valerie (Dey) accepts a ride from a guy who ends up being a sociopathic drug user. He's crazed and dangerous and soon kills someone during a holdup...and says Valerie was his willing participant. In reality, she was scared to death of the guy and he threatened her....but the judge believes his story...that she was his partner in crime. So, she's sent to prison. While they don't call it prison and it has nice trappings, the place is still a prison--with some very dangerous and horrible inmates who are intent on destroying Valerie. Can she somehow be saved before it's too late?

The film is a great plea for change in reform schools. Many of the folks running the place are idiots and no real attempt is made to weed out the rehabilitatable from the scum of the earth. Well worth seeing, very well written and quite convincing.

I remember Cage Without A Key, being broadcast as a CBS prime-time movie in the 70s. This was when there was a sudden explosion of TV movies about troubled teens, from suburbia.

Doe-eyed, fresh-faced Susan Dey, plays Valerie Smith. Valerie is a very naive teen. She gets involved in a robbery/murder, after accepting a ride from a strange boy. He forces Valerie to help him rob a store at gunpoint, and he winds-up killing someone in the process.

Even though she was unwillingly involved in the crime, Valerie gets sentenced to a stretch in a Juvenile prison facility. The severity of her sentence is absurd, considering that Valerie had no prior criminal history. I thought that this seriously undermined the credibility, of the film's whole storyline.

Once inside the Juvenile facility, Valerie is engaged in a bewildering struggle to adjust to her new surroundings. Valerie's told from the get-go by the other inmates, that she must choose which clique to belong to. This is to ensure her survival in the 'joint'.

The inmates are a motley crew of tough, hardened young women. The members of the 'good' clique, take Valerie under their wing, showing her the 'ropes' of prison life. They also offer Valerie protection from the clique rivalries, that sometimes result in violence. A member of Valerie's clique, even rescues her from being unwillingly ravished, by an intensely amorous lesbian inmate.

The prison staff, don't seem to be able to control the chaotic environment. Valerie and her fellow inmates, are forced to rely solely on the support of their cliques, to negotiate prison life. The lawyers procured by Valerie's parents, are amazingly inept at helping make a case to free Valerie. Unable to depend on being proved innocent, Valerie becomes ever-deeply entrenched in the violent prison culture, which results in senseless tragedy.

Cage Without A Key is a powerful film. I was surprised to see such a raw, hard-hitting drama, on network TV during the 70s. It is at times, rather melodramatic. Overall though, it has some strong performances. Especially Susan Dey, as the hapless Valerie Smith. If you liked those 70s movie-of-the-week films about teens in jeopardy, then I'd recommend seeing Cage Without a Key.

I just now "found" this film after looking for it for years. For some reason, it made a great impression on me, even though I wouldn't call myself a huge Susan Dey fan. I was surprised to see that it was made so long ago, which makes me wonder whether I saw it on a re-run. Anyway, the characters were fairly well drawn -- maybe they are stock/cliché characters that I'm simply too naive to recognize as such, not being a devotee of women-in-prison films -- but I recall the basic plot, characters and even some of the dialogue, even now. I thought there was a good ethnic mix, which strikes me as fairly forward-thinking for that time period, especially. And I liked that the squeaky-clean-imaged actress of Partridge Family fame would end up in a picture like this, albeit as the stereotypical "good girl" who doesn't truly deserve to be there.

TYPICAL 1970'S MADE FOR T.V. YOUTH / CRIME FILM. A YOUNG GIRL IS KIDNAPPED BY A MALE CLASSMATE AND FORCED TO PARTICIPATE IN A ROBBERY ATTEMPT.PROSECUTORS PORTRAY HER AS GIRLFRIEND AND WILLING ACCOMPLICE OF THE DERANGED BOY,WHICH LANDS HER IN A "REFORM SCHOOL FOR GIRLS" UNTIL ADULTHOOD.ONCE INSIDE, SHE ENCOUNTERS THE USUAL STEREOTYPES DEPICTED AS INHABITANTS OF THESE "HOMES"-"THE MILITANT BLACK GIRL","UNWED UNEDUCATED EXPECTANT TEEN","TROUBLEMAKING LEADER OF THE LESBIAN GANG"AND "THE SYMPATHETIC TEACHER". OF COURSE,CONFLICTS ARISE BETWEEN ALL

OF THESE PEOPLE AND WHAT FOLLOWS IS A HIGHLY ENTERTAINING LOOK AT HOLLYWOOD'S TAKE ON TEENS IN THE 70'S.

OTHER RECOMMENDED FILMS OF THE GENRE- --BORN INNOCENT --OVER THE EDGE --THE GIRLS OF HUNTINGTON HOUSE --SWITCHBLADE SISTERS {A.K.A. THE JEZEBELS}

I would like to see this movie again, but don't feel like buying it. Some interesting points of this film are the lesbian connections, and that is why I probably remember having a liking toward it. As a 35 yr. old male now, why not? At the time, I was just 7 yrs. old, and equate it to "Jenny-portrait of a teenage runaway" with Eve Plum from the Brady Bunch. Mybe I can find it at a good video store. Yesterday I went therem, and found out they carry "Trilogy of Terror". I hope I like this just as I did back in 1975.