Kitten In A Cage (1968) Bean Town Sexploitation Noir

If you've watched any amount of Exploitation films you'll notice a scattershot variety of production values. It all depends on a story and money, what you do with both, and luck.

In some films the production hits on all cylinders, writing, direction, cinematography, acting, sound, and music. Other films have cinematography and locations that are interesting enough that it trumps the direction and acting. In others the writing is entertaining enough that even if everything else is inept you get the so bad it's good phenomena.

Kitten In A Cage is one of those little heard of films that surprised me. It was a De Lem Films Production.

The Good - It obviously, from all the on location work and unusual number of scenes, had some money behind it. The cinematography and direction by Richard MacLeod was quite adequate. The story (no credation) seems lifted right out pulp paperback novels and Mickey Spillane in particular.

The Bad -The actors all unknown to me except Sexploitation staple June Roberts, are just passable enough. The editing is a bit amateurish and some scenes go on a bit too long.

The Ugly - The sound recording was shit.  The film may have been completely shot without sound and looped badly at a later date.

The film starts off with "The Kitten" Julie (Miriam Eliot) escaping the "Cage" a New England sanatorium called The Guardian Retreat a Psychiatric Home for the Emotionally Disturbed. In an obvious nod to Kiss Me Deadly, Julie is running through the woods and fields wearing (like Cloris Leachman) just a trenchcoat. Only this time the trenchcoat is black and the escape is in daylight. She follows a river eventually hitting a two lane. Julie hides and waits by a stop sign. A 1965 Chevy Impala convertible approaches and  she flags down the driver. She at first tells him she's running away from an abusive boyfriend and gets a ride into to Boston. As they cross the  Mystic River on the Tobin Bridge in Boston, we get the opening credits.

Julie's Escape

Julie (Miriam Eliot)

security

The driver, I believe he was called David, takes her to his apartment, Julie asks David to go to her apartment to get her some of her clothes. She tells him where the spare key is. David does so but finds the place ransacked. Somebody tossed the place looking for something.

David

David comes back and tells her what he found. Julie even more anxious uses Davids phone and calls her boss and former lover, the owner of a fleet of fishing boats. Julie and tells him she was abducted and woke up in a sanatorium. They framed her as an alcoholic and a drug user and checked her in to dry out. She tells him that her apartment was searched and she doesn't know what's going on.

Julie's Boss

fishing fleet

Her boss tells her that he'll send over a driver to take her up to his estate. She can stay there while he tries to find out what is going on. Julie's boss calls his housekeeper and tells him to expect Julie.

recruiting a driver for Julie

the estate

the housekeeper

So Julie arrives at the estate and settles in.

However the house was under surveillance. During the night the house/grounds keeper is knocked out in his gate house. The prowler heads to the big house and breaks in



Julie still nervous and sleeping lightly is awakened by a strange noise. She gets up and hurries down stairs.

 
Julie runs out towards the gatehouse. The prowler follows.

At the gatehouse she is cornered by the prowler and knocked out. We see the man prepares a hypodermic, and just as he is about to inject Judy he is interrupted by Julies boss who walks in on the scene.

WTF is going on?

The boss tells Julie he'll take her back to Boston. He'll take her to the Strip Club he used to own with his partner and see if she can hide out with one of the strippers at her place.

The Strip Club

The first stripper, a blonde, is obviously a pro in traditional garb, a gown, jewel encrusted bra, panties, and finally pasties and g-string.

One of the spectators is Kelly (Julie Roberts), she is another of the strippers awaiting her set.

Kelly (June Roberts)

The second dancer is a topless hippy chick

Kelly next takes the stage as a topless gogo girl white boots and all.

Poor Kelly has to put up with a drunk heckler who keeps yelling for her to take it all off.

Kelly takes off her pasties....

And then her bottoms.....

Which she throws at him.

While the stripping is going on, Julie's boss is telling his former business partner about Julie's abduction and the need to hide her out with one of his strippers.

The club owner

It's decided that Julie will shack up with Kelly while Julie's boss tries to figure out who would kidnap Julie and what could they possibly want. Kelly brings Julie to her pad.

Kelly's place.

Kelly makes a few cocktails then Julie asks if she could take a shower.

It's an opportunity for what else, more sexploitation. Julie takes a shower, followed by Kelly, then the two girls sit around in their towels.

Kelly lights some candles and asks Julie if she'd like a soothing massage to take her mind off her troubles,

Julie's boss's investigation discovers that back when he and his partner still owned the club together (and Julie was working there also as his secretary) a former employee of theirs was involved in a jewel theft. The jewels were never recovered. That former employee was recently released from prison. The club was recently broken into also. It's deduced that the jewels must have been stashed at the club, that they are not there now and that the thief thinks Julie knowns where they are ar.

Julie's boss looks through the police crime scene photos of their initial investigation/search of the club he shows the photos to Julie. Julie thinks she knows what he's looking for.

Noirsville

Tail Fins

 

The films second nod to Spillane is it's variation on the plot to My Gun Is Quick.

Starring Miriam Eliot as Julie, June Roberts as Kelly (as June Morgan) John Dunham, Tony Warren,

Guido Conte, Richard Woods, Jacques Lyon, Charles Stanton, Robert Marshall, and Marcia Morea

Here is a film with a bit more money, some better talent. and more polished writing might have
been more noticed and remembered. Even the Boston accents are tolerable, 5-6/10 mostly for the
effort. You can watch it for a dollar on Amazon Prime.