Copyright 27 September 1961 by Associated Producers, Inc. Released through 20th Century-Fox. New York opening at neighborhood cinemas: 31 January 1962. U.S. release: October 1961. U.K. release: March 1962. Australian release: 23 February 1962. 88 minutes. Censored to 85 minutes in Britain and Australia. Location scenes filmed in Hawaii.SYNOPSIS: Grace Ingram (Patricia Owens) is an American member of an Australian scientific expedition in New Guinea in 1942 when the Japanese invade the island. She is captured and imprisoned in a temporary women's compound. A converted missionary school, it serves as a detention center from which the prisoners will be shipped to the permanent Northern camps. Grace is placed in a cell with six other women; Janet Cook (Yvonne Craig), a pregnant American girl whose husband is in the Men's compound nearby; Ann Van Lee (Sylvia Daneel), a young German woman; Mara Shepherd (Margia Dean), a tough American girl of dubious background; Claire Oudry (Denise Darcel), a French waitress; Mai-Lu Ferguson (Pilar Suerat), an oriental nurse; and Regan (Evadne Baker), an American.VIEWERS' GUIDE: Adults.COMMENT: An obvious rip-off of "A Town Like Alice", this episodic women POW film is a turgid melange of ludicrous clichés for the distaff market. Webb's direction is nondescript, despite surprisingly high production values, including Floyd Crosby's fine photography. Miss Owens makes a poor fist of the heroine, but the support cast is not without interest. Some exciting action sequences staged by Lee Zavitz give the film much-needed punch. Pacing throughout is very uneven. Choppy film editing occasioned by numerous censor cuts doesn't help either.OTHER VIEWS:Completely strangled by a potty plot. Cesar Romero's impression of a treacherous planter is only one example of the film's wilder fantasies. The dialogue is memorably absurd, the level of technical accomplishment very low. — Monthly Film Bulletin.Some of the funniest dialogue of the year. — Variety.

This movie starts off with women of different nationalities being captured by the Japanese in New Guinea at the start of World War 2 and sent to a concentration camp in the jungle. While there they are forced to do manual labor and are given very little to eat. When an allied air patrol strafes the compound their rations are cut even further. Then, after a guard tries to rape one of them, six of them escape into the jungle. One woman named "Mara Shepherd" (Margia Dean) is caught almost immediately afterward and is crucified in front of the remaining prisoners as a lesson. The remaining five face imminent danger and possible recapture by the Japanese as they try to find safety. Anyway, rather than disclose what happens next and risk spoiling the movie for those who haven't seen it, I will just say that this is a mediocre film in the "Women in Prison" genre which is watchable enough but isn't quite able to convey the horror and brutality women in this situation surely had to endure. There is no sex, nudity or graphic language and even the violence is toned down to a certain degree. But the acting is sufficient and there are a few attractive women, specifically Patricia Owens (as "Grace Ingram), Yvonne Craig ("Janet Cook") and Pilar Seurat (Mai-Lu Ferguson) to brighten the screen. All things considered then I give this movie a rating of average.

I found this film on a late night Memorial Day WW2 movies marathon. It was vintage female cast film commemorating the atrocities of the Japanese Philipino occupation. The curvy ladies in this film demonstrate all the layers of American society trying to stay free. Richard Loo turns into another villain role. It was fun to see an early Yvonne Craig, TV's Batgirl in a meatier role filled with drama. The other female cast consists of seasoned stage actresses who do well in portraying worried characters. Cesar Romero is a nice treat to this film in his contribution to move the plot along. The film's surprise ending is a nice treat, but somewhat old and tired.

This Fox Cinemascope feature bridges the gap between the women in prison flicks of the 1950s and the AIP Women In Cages cycle of the 70s. There's rape, torture, and large breasts straining against tight tops---but only in moderation. Seven women--most of them looking like refugees from, oh, 1961 rather than the wartime Philippines--find themselves at the mercy of the merciless Imperial Japanese Army and endeavour to escape the clutches of the fiendish Orientals, personified best by Richard Loo in the scenery-chewing role of the ruthless sergeant in charge of the prison camp. Cesar Romero shows up for the final reel in what turns out to be a most unsatisying ending. The film looks good thanks to Floyd Crosby's camera work but is let down by a weak script and incredibly poor costuming, make-up, and (in most cases) acting.