''Savage Sisters'' is a 1974

women in prison film The women in prison film (or WiP film) is a subgenre of exploitation film that began in the early 20th century and continues to the present day. Their stories feature imprisoned women who are subjected to sexual and physical abuse, typically by ...

made in the Philippines and directed by

Eddie Romero Edgar Sinco Romero, (July 7, 1924 – May 28, 2013), commonly known as Eddie Romero, was a Filipino film director, film producer and screenwriter. Early life Romero was born on July 7, 1924. His father was José E. Romero, the first Philipp ...

. It was the last and most expensive of several movies actor/producer John Ashley filmed in that country.

Plot

In a revolution-torn country, 1 million US dollars is stolen by a group of revolutionaries, including Mai Ling and Jo Turner. The revolutionaries are betrayed by gang members Malavasi and One Eye, who helped them with the job, and are imprisoned. Policewoman Lynn Jackson busts Mai Ling and Jo out of prison. Captain Morales goes after them. The women deal with a con man, W.P. Billingsley. Everyone chases after the money. Malavasi and One Eye try to get it, but are buried up to their necks in the sand. Billingsley tries to take the money, but is overpowered by the women.

Cast

* Gloria Hendry as Lynn Jackson *

Cheri Caffaro Cheri Caffaro is an American actress who appeared mainly in low-budget exploitation films in the 1970s. A fifteen-year-old Pasadena resident, she won a ''Life''-magazine-reported Brigitte Bardot look-alike contest, beating a twelve-year-old Por ...

as Jo Turner * Rosanna Oritz as Mei Ling * John Ashley as W. P. Billingsley *

Sid Haig Sidney Eddie Mosesian (July 14, 1939 – September 21, 2019), known professionally as Sid Haig, was an American actor, film producer, and musician. He was known for his roles in several of Jack Hill's blaxploitation films from the 1970s, as well ...

as Malavasi *

Eddie Garcia Eduardo Verchez Garcia (; May 2, 1929 – June 20, 2019), known colloquially as Manoy, was a Filipino actor, television personality, film director and producer. With almost 600 film and television roles and a career spanning seven decades, he ...

as Captain Morales * Vic Díaz as "One-Eye" * Rita Gomez as Matron Ortega *

Leopoldo Salcedo Leopoldo Salcedo (March 12, 1912 – June 11, 1998) was a Filipino film actor dubbed as "The Great Profile" who specialized in portraying dramatic heroes. Early life Salcedo was born in Cavite. His father was of Spanish descent whose family i ...

as General Balthazar * Dindo Fernando as Ernesto * Angelo Ventura as Punjab * Romeo Rivera as Raul * Alfonso Carvajal as Ruiz * Robert Rivera as Rocco *

Subas Herrero Ricardo Wright Herrero (April 3, 1943 – March 14, 2013), better known by his stage name Subas Herrero, was a Filipino actor, comedian and singer. Early life Subas Herrero was born on April 3, 1943 as Ricardo Wright Herrero in Manila. Career ...

as Victor

Production

The film's estimated budget was $250,000.Tom Weaver, "Interview with John Ashley", ''Interviews with B Science Fiction and Horror Movie Makers: Writers, Producers, Directors, Actors, Moguls and Makeup'', McFarland 1988 p 42 The film's star, Gloria Hendry, later recalled, "John Ashley was a lot of fun, a very positive individual with a lot of energy. A free spirit. It was the first time I had ever gone to Manila, to the Philippines, to work... I spent three wonderful months there. I learned a lot about the country and their process of doing films." The film was originally called ''Ebony, Ivory and Jade'' and strongly featured

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; a ...

. However, by the time the film was released, several martial arts films had not performed well, so the advertising campaign focused instead on the movie being about a

Patty Hearst Patricia Campbell Hearst (born February 20, 1954) is the granddaughter of American publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst. She first became known for the events following her 1974 kidnapping by the Symbionese Liberation Army. She was found a ...

-type liberation army.

Reception

The ''Chicago Tribune'' said that "only the broadly comic performance of

... breaks the monotony of it all." The ''Los Angeles Times'' called it "one of the better lurid potboilers to come out of the Philippines... Romero's direction is snappy... amusing as a sort of very broad live action cartoon." ''Diabolique'' magazine wrote that Ashley was "especially fun" in the film "as a mustachioed, cigar-smoking conman type figure, doing push ups in leopard print underwear and bedding the three leads, indicating Ashley might have enjoyed a decent career as a character actor in later years had he so chosen."

References

External links

* *
''Savage Sisters''
at Grindhouse Database
Review of film
at Cinema Sentries
Review of film
at

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

{{Eddie Romero 1974 films Philippine drama films Films directed by Eddie Romero Women in prison films Films shot in the Philippines Films scored by Les Baxter American International Pictures films 1970s English-language films