WiseRatFlames
An unexpected masterpiece
Casey Duggan
It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny
Kinley
This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows
Curt
Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.
ravingbulll
I look at the negative reviews of this movie and I have to ask myself: what did these people think they were going to see? "Titanic"?" "Gone With The Wind?" "Driving Miss Daisy?" I judge movies by how much I enjoy them, and - honestly, I can't think of a movie that has more entertainment crammed into it than this movie. It has everything you could possibly think of...and more. At first you enjoy the cheesy aspect of the movie and laugh, but then you start caring about the characters...and you HAVE to see how it ends. Oh and while I'm talking about this picture I want to say something about Roberta Collins: even though most people you talk to won't even recognize her name, she was a talented and underrated actress...a natural comedienne. This film, along with the Jonathan Demme helmed "Caged Heat," show what she was capable of. I highly recommend both of these films if you enjoy movies under the heading of "Exploitation." ROGER CORMAN RULES!!!
Michael_Elliott
Big Doll House, The (1971) ** (out of 4) Beautiful women, catfights, food fights, torture, lesbianism, mud wrestling and nudity are the highlights of this cult classic Women in Prison film from Jack Hill. There's always a slight bit of sleaze that makes this interesting but overall it's pretty dull without enough story and the dramatic moments don't work. Judy Brown and Pam Grier star.It should also be noted that I prefer the rougher women in prison films by the likes of Jess Franco. Franco started this genre with 99 Women but I prefer his darker WIP films like Barbed Wire Dolls, Women in Cell Block 9 and Sadomania.
Markmainwaring
For some reason I was expecting more from this films. I don't know why.It began well enough with opening credits that stylishly zoom in and Pam Grier singing 99 years (which also featured in the film Jackie Brown).For the first hour this Corman produced Women in Prison film was a great slice of exploitation cinema. It was surprisingly well made, with good characters and above average acting. Pam Grier and Sid Haig standing out above the rest of the cast.Then after about an hour the film becomes repetitive and boring. The same things happening over and over again. Still its good while it lasts, maybe just turn it off when it starts too get boring.For a better Women in Prison film try maybe Ilsa: She-wolf of the SS.
Goredog
Jack Hill has always been a master of turning such a controversial subject (especially at that time) into a fine film. The Big Doll House stars Judy Brown, who is taken to a prison on some remote island where she is accompanied by other jailbirds: Pam Grier, Brooke Mills, and Roberta Collins. Grier and Collins are driving forces throughout the film and seem to double-handedly run the entire joint. While Mills plays everybody's favorite psycho junkie, making an art out of hallucinating. Sid Haig is the dominating warden who uses poisonous local snakes to torture the prisoners. The movie ends with Grier, Mills, and Collins dying and Brown being captured and taken back to prison. Definitely an acquired taste and compulsory for fans of old skool "Women Torture and Revenge Tales!"
