Phyllis Thaxter goes to prison for running over a child. In there, she doesn't adjust, but is an unwilling witness to the brutality of the system. Warden Ida Lupino is a well-manicured, buttoned-up sadist. When Audrey Totter turns up pregnant, it's obvious that her husband, Warren Stevens, has snuck over from the men's side of the prison. He refuses to talk untill Miss Totter is released. Under orders from men's warden Barry Kelly, Miss Lupino tries to beat the information out of Miss Totter, but she doesn't know; she winds up in the infirmary, possibly dying, and the women riot.
Crane Wilbur had a hand in the script, which goes way overboard in terms of exposing the problems of the system, but the performances are terrific, with Jan Sterling a standout and Cleo Moore and Juanita Hansen are very good. It's also good to see Gertrude Michael and Mae Clarke on the screen. But the men's parts are sketches, with Howard Duff as the prison doctor reciting his canned reproaches to his real-life wife adequately to advance the plot.
Still, it's Miss Thaxter who's the real problem. She remains feeble throughout the entire movie, and despite her suffering, never loses the perfection of her permanent wave. Good thing the script only touches in with her occasionally. Or perhaps that's the way it was edited.
Crane Wilbur had a hand in the script, which goes way overboard in terms of exposing the problems of the system, but the performances are terrific, with Jan Sterling a standout and Cleo Moore and Juanita Hansen are very good. It's also good to see Gertrude Michael and Mae Clarke on the screen. But the men's parts are sketches, with Howard Duff as the prison doctor reciting his canned reproaches to his real-life wife adequately to advance the plot.
Still, it's Miss Thaxter who's the real problem. She remains feeble throughout the entire movie, and despite her suffering, never loses the perfection of her permanent wave. Good thing the script only touches in with her occasionally. Or perhaps that's the way it was edited.