Female Prisoner Scorpion: Jailhouse 41

This gratuitously mean-spirited Japanese revenge flick follows a small team of vile female prisoners who escape from a corrupt warden, slaughter teems of malicious guards, run afoul of a twisted shaman woman and assault a busload of heinous civilians once they’re finally out. Nearly everyone is terrible, and nearly everyone ultimately gets what’s coming to them. Brutality with an extra side of gore, that is, and a few dashes of crazy hallucinatory vision for added flavor. Although the subject matter of _Jailhouse 41_ can make for unpleasant viewing, it earns points for style and symbolism. Extremely experimental, sometimes excessively so, it routinely pairs repellent subjects with striking visual motifs. We may be put off by the harshly exploitative story elements, but the moody color tones, inspired camerawork and lyrical symbolism, together, ensure we aren't likely to tear our eyes from the screen. Still, this probably works better as a collection of wild and crazy film school ideas than a cohesive, fully-functioning movie.