99 Women

99 Women

99 mins | Drama, Thriller | March 5, 1969

Jesus Franco's campy women's prison film is worthwhile for genre devotees primarily due to an outstanding cast. Mercedes McCambridge is unintentionally hilarious as sadistic lesbian warden Thelma Diaz, spitting tacky dialogue with exuberant venom in a performance so overbearing that it verges on classic. The plot is standard for the genre, as three women (Maria Rohm, Elisa Montes, Luciana Paluzzi) are sentenced to an island prison off the Panamanian coast, only to encounter torture, rape, and lesbianism. When sympathetic Warden Caroll (Maria Schell) replaces Diaz, the prisoners assume that conditions will improve, but their agony only worsens until they decide to escape. Rosalba Neri co-stars, and Herbert Lom runs the corrupt men's prison nearby. 99 Mujeres was heavily censored in various prints, with versions running anywhere between 70 and 108 minutes. Edits running 84, 86, and 94 minutes are most commonly available.

99 Women

99 mins | Drama, Thriller | March 5, 1969

99 Women
Jesus Franco's campy women's prison film is worthwhile for genre devotees primarily due to an outstanding cast. Mercedes McCambridge is unintentionally hilarious as sadistic lesbian warden Thelma Diaz, spitting tacky dialogue with exuberant venom in a performance so overbearing that it verges on classic. The plot is standard for the genre, as three women (Maria Rohm, Elisa Montes, Luciana Paluzzi) are sentenced to an island prison off the Panamanian coast, only to encounter torture, rape, and lesbianism. When sympathetic Warden Caroll (Maria Schell) replaces Diaz, the prisoners assume that conditions will improve, but their agony only worsens until they decide to escape. Rosalba Neri co-stars, and Herbert Lom runs the corrupt men's prison nearby. 99 Mujeres was heavily censored in various prints, with versions running anywhere between 70 and 108 minutes. Edits running 84, 86, and 94 minutes are most commonly available.
IMDb rating 4.7
Producers Hesperia Films S.A.
Original title Der heiße Tod
Directors Jesús Franco
Writers Javier Peres Grober, Anya Corvin, Carlo Fadda, Milo G. Cuccia, Ornella Zanelli, Manfred R. Köhler, Jesús Franco, Harry Alan Towers

Cast

Maria Schell

as Leonie Caroll

Herbert Lom

as Governor Santos

Mercedes McCambridge

as Thelma Diaz

Luciana Paluzzi

as Natalie Mendoza

Maria Rohm

as Marie

Rosalba Neri

as Zoe

Elisa Montés

as Helga

Valentina Godoy

as Rosalie

Jesús Franco

as Official

Ana Lucarella

as Marta

Juan Antonio Riquelme

as Juan Diego