Cage Without a Key

Teenage girls in a state-run detention center--addicts, thieves and criminals of the more hardened kind--welcome a new 'bride' to the cottage: polite, fresh-faced Susan Dey, a recent high school graduate who has been implicated as an accomplice in a homicide committed by a fellow student she accepted a ride from. Despite some strong scenes, this cautionary TV movie-of-the-week is similar to the glut of teen-traumas churned out in the 1970s: well-meaning examinations of social problems that were also somewhat exploitative (the networks wanted big ratings, after all). Written by Joanna Lee, who is heavy on character exposition and statistics, we're privy to rough justice and incarcerated young women who lie, cheat and kill to get their way--but all in a melodramatic vacuum. Dey's predicament, while not entirely improbable, is presented in a sensational way--the first ingredient in a potboiler. The queen bee of the cell block is a black girl who declares herself "the Papa"; there's also an Asian girl who harbors a psychotic side, a white lesbian with glasses and a Hispanic girl who writes angry poetry. Juvie is apparently an equal opportunity snake pit.

Susan Dey plays an incredibly naive teenager who hitches a ride with a disturbed boy she barely knows and ends up in a girls' reform school after a botched robbery. As her parents and her lawyer fight to free her, she resists joining either of the two main gangs, but gravitates toward the "good" gang led by Edith Diaz. She incurs the wrath of the other gang led by Suzie Elene, a seemingly sweet Asian girl, who besides being an inveterate brown-noser and snitch, is also a vicious killer. A ridiculous number of the young inmates are killed and maimed before the authorities finally take notice of what is going on.

This is made-for-TV women-in-prison (WIP) movie, so naturally it is not as sleazy as the theatrical women-in-prison flicks--there are no shower scenes or lesbian scenes and the cat-fights all have fully-clothed combatants. This is not even as sleazy as the contemporary Linda Blair made-for-TV WIP movie "Born Innocent" (where Blair infamously gets assaulted by a toilet brush). Of course, some of these American made-for-TV movies like "Nightmare in Badham County" were released in a somewhat stronger version in Europe, so I'm still looking for a lost "European version" of this where Dey gets thrown naked into the "hole" with special guest star "Marcia Brady" and they have to drink the sweat off each others bodies just to stay hydrated. . .

Seriously though, this movie does have several things going for it. Dey was never known for lighting up the screen with her acting, but she was about the prettiest girl on American TV in early 70's (I suspect she was cast on "The Partridge Family" mainly because she was one of the few girls around prettier than David Cassidy) and she makes an appealing heroine. Suzie Elene is also a very nice surprise, considering she is mostly known for a particularly sleazy appearance in the sleazy 70's sexploitation flick "Revenge of the Cheerleaders". And the supporting cast includes the ill-fated Lani O'Grady ("Eight Is Enough") and future comedienne Anne Bloom. This definitely worth seeing if you like WIP and/or 70's made-for TV movies.

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 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.

"Cage without a Key" attempts to tell a rather worn-out,innocent-teenaged girl-behind bars story with a surprisingly effective disguise as a commentary on our nation's indifference towards it's troubled youth!Nonetheless "Cage without a key" reveals some heavy moments of genuine drama within it's shell of a story that we've all seen before!

The story concerns 17-year-old Valerie Smith.During her summer vacation she accepts a ride from a boy she barely knows and finds herself forced (at gunpoint) to participate in a botched robbery and charged as an accessory to a murder!Sent to the state reformatory for girls,young and naive Valerie is wrongly surrounded by the usual circle of tough lesbians,half-crazed druggies,warring gangs(called"families") and the panel of efficient and uncaring professionals who exclaim pride in their "school" and it's "rehabilitation" program!Of course young Valerie gradually becomes just like the others and even loses all hope of any eventual "release".But all in all,the movie is rather smoothly done!With some excellent and believable performances and scenery."Cage without a Key" does a good job of making us believe that we haven't seen it all before!