review for Cage Without a Key on AllMovie

Cage Without A Key is a good example of what the average t.v. movie was like during the mid-1970's. It's neither as good nor as daring as some of the better-known t.v. movies from this era but still manages to deliver a good bit of fun for the schlock-minded viewer. The script plays like a b-movie, opening with a deliciously pulpy setup that gets doe-eyed Susan Dey into juvenile hall on rather implausible grounds and then proceeds to blaze through every women's-prison movie cliché that the t.v. censors will allow. Buzz Kulik's direction gives it an energetic treatment that never allows the viewer to linger too long on the story's questionable elements. He also gets appropriately over-the-top performances from his cast: Dey seems a little overwhelmed early on but grows into her role while the real scene-stealers are Susie Elene as the bitchy queen-bee of the juvie facility and Sam Bottoms' feverish turn as the psycho whose actions cause Dey to be imprisoned. In short, Cage Without A Key isn't quite classic fare but offers a trashy good time for the b-movie-minded.