Pénitencier

Original title: Penitentiary

1979
R
1h 39m

IMDb RATING

5.7/10

1.3K

YOUR RATING

Leon Isaac Kennedy in Pénitencier (1979)

A hitchhiker named Martel Gordone gets in a fight with two bikers over a prostitute, and one of the bikers is killed. Gordone is arrested and sent to prison, where he joins the prison's boxing team in an effort to secure an early parole and to establish his dominance over the prison's toughest gang.

Play trailer4:12

1 Video

49 Photos

Crime Drama Sport

A hitchhiker gets arrested after a biker dies in a fight over a prostitute. In prison, he joins the boxing team to gain dominance and secure early parole from the toughest gang.A hitchhiker gets arrested after a biker dies in a fight over a prostitute. In prison, he joins the boxing team to gain dominance and secure early parole from the toughest gang.A hitchhiker gets arrested after a biker dies in a fight over a prostitute. In prison, he joins the boxing team to gain dominance and secure early parole from the toughest gang.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

5.7/10

1.3K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Videos1

Trailer 4:12

Trailer

Photos49

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
Writer/director Jamaa Fanaka was still a student at UCLA when he made this film. The prison yard scenes were shot at the UCLA cinema department quadrangle.

Quotes
'Half Dead' Johnson: You box?
Martel 'Too Sweet' Gordone: Not really. Why?
'Half Dead' Johnson: Boxing tournament coming up. Big fun. They bring the lady trustees from across the way. You ought to see them fools showin' off for them slutty broads.
Martel 'Too Sweet' Gordone: You box?
'Half Dead' Johnson: Hell no. Half Dead don't box. I kill.

Connections
Featured in Sneak Previews: The Life and Death of the Black Movie (1981)

Soundtracks
Kissy Face
Written, Produced and Performed by Mark Gaillard and the Slim and Trim Band

User reviews23

Featured review

8/10

The Penitentiary Trilogy: Penitentiary

Penitentiary (1979) follows the life of Too Sweet, a young man who's life is has taken a very wrong turn. A very tragic and unlucky event lands the dude in prison. Looking at a long stretch in the jug, Too Sweet looks for any opportunity to get out of the joint. Finally a big break comes along, boxing. But like all good guys, he makes a very nasty enemy in the guise of Half Dead, a cruel sadistic inmate who doesn't take a liking to our young hero. How did Too Sweet get in Prison? Can Too Sweet fight is way out of prison? Why does Half Dead want Too Sweet's head? Who in the hell is Peaches? All your questions will be answered when you watch Penitentiary!

Highly recommended for fans of low budget films.