Girls in Prison

Set in the 1950s, John McNaughton's campy Showtime original focuses on three sexy, sassy, and slightly deranged women in the Big House. One commits a politically motivated murder to avenge her brother's death in the Korean War, while another, a scriptwriter (Ione Skye), kills a man in a bar. And then there's Aggie, a young musician framed for the murder of her Hollywood agent, who must dodge a hitwoman hired "on the inside" to kill her. The first half-hour's acting is so bad and its sequences so kitschy that viewers can almost delight in its poor quality, but as the film progresses, the ridiculous storyline, along with the shower and fight scenes, becomes tedious. Anne Heche is particularly tiresome as the conniving sexpot secretary out for blood. Of course, at 82 minutes, Girls in Prison unravels so quickly there's barely time to say, "Thank god, it's almost over." Not recommended. (A. Glover)