Caged!

There are only a select few movies out of the many hundreds of film noir pictures that have an Academy Awards pedigree. Even fewer have multiple nominations. Film noir is generally considered B-movie fodder without the lofty ambitions of Oscar gold. There are exceptions, of course, just as there are exceptions to every generality. Caged is one of those. It not only received a nomination for its story and screenplay, but also for the lead actress and one of the supporting actresses. Watching it today, it is no surprise, either. While this is still a B-picture, it elevates itself in a number of ways, including those powerful performances, and not just the two nominees, either. A lot of the women here could have been nominated.

Caged is about a subject that is not exactly new. The prison environment builds more criminals than it rehabilitates them. When people enter the general population they are forced to interact with hardened career criminals and that rubs off on them, especially in a world where an ex-con cannot find legitimate work on the outside and is forced back into a life of crime. On top of that, the prison environment changes a person, toughens them, and shows them the harsh realities of the criminal world as well as the realities of their current and future life. 

We see this through the eyes of 19-year-old Marie Allen (Eleanor Parker), who has been sentenced to 1-15 years for her part in a botched robbery attempt with her husband, who was killed in the act. When she enters the prison, she has trouble acclimating to the life behind bars, but soon she is befriended by some of the other inmates, including Kitty Stark (Betty Garde), a murderous shoplifter who offers Marie work as a thief once she is released. While Marie looks forward to parole, the harsh reality is that unless work and a home can be found for her, even paroled she would not be allowed to leave. It’s a system rigged against women wishing to make a go at an honest life after serving their time. On top of that, Marie is pregnant and, when the baby comes, unless she can find someone on the outside to care for it, the baby will be sent to an orphanage. That’s exactly what happens, too, when her step-father refuses to allow the child in their house. 

Further complicating things is a conflict brewing between a sadistic matron, Evelyn Harper (Hope Emerson), and prison superintendent Ruth Benton (Agnes Moorehead). Ruth has progressive ideals that clash with Evelyn’s harsh discipline but Evelyn has connections that keep her protected against termination or discipline. This comes to a head when Marie is sentenced to solitary confinement for her role in a prison riot and Evelyn, against orders, has her head shaved, symbolically stripping her of the last of her innocence. 

Throughout the course of this film we see Marie change from the timid woman overwhelmed by it all to a hardened person, set on a life that will guarantee she will be back in prison again in the near future. Prison is meant to punish and rehabilitate individuals, but so often the opposite happens. 

This is a powerful depiction of life on the inside and what it does to people. In some ways, it shares a bit of its DNA with The Snake Pit, shedding light on conditions inside and where reforms need to take place. It’s stark and depressing, but it also is eye-opening, especially back in the day when these kinds of dramas were not as prevalent. This film would be a lot less effective though if we didn’t believe the transformation Marie goes through in her time there. That falls squarely on the shoulders of Eleanor Parker who is transformative here. We believe she is an innocent young girl who got caught up in the bad decisions of her husband. By the end, when she is cold and dismissive, ready to take up a life of crime on the outside, we believe that too. Her words to Benton, “Thanks for the haircut”, say a lot, as do Benton’s final words in response to what they should do with Marie’s file after she leaves. “Keep it active. She’ll be back.” 1950 - 96 minutes