Nightmare in Badham County (1976 TV Movie) User Reviews

Well done women in prison flick

[The_Void · 7/10 · 10 September 2008]

Nightmare in Badham County is a 'women in prison' film, but I wouldn't recommend going into it expecting something along the same lines as the sleazy Jess Franco women in prison films as you're liable to be disappointed. That being said, this is still an excellent seventies made for TV movie and while it may be lacking in the sleaze factor; it makes up for that in other areas and John Llewellyn Moxey's film is still well worth a look. Naturally, considering that the film is a TV movie; it's not too violent, but influence was still obviously taken from the 'hicksploitation' genre and we focus on a small town where the legal system doesn't exactly adhere to the national standard. Two young college girls are driving through Badham County when they get a flat tire. After finding someone to help them, they run across the local sheriff and come a cropper when he doesn't take too kindly to them brushing off his advances and making a fool out of him. He then sets up his revenge; by having the girls thrown in a backwater prison for a minor offence.

This film will no doubt get plaudits for the acting, and it's certainly above average considering the type of film. Deborah Raffin and Lynne Moody give good turns in the lead roles, and really do manage to draw you into their characters. Lynne Moody is the standout for me for giving the more realistic performance; Deborah Raffin overacts to quite a large and noticeable extent on several occasions. The film draws in themes of the racial divide as the prison at the centre of the film separates the blacks from the whites. This is probably the most shocking element considering the lack of sleaze. The prison itself doesn't seem as imposing as some of the prisons shown in other films, and it actually never seemed all that difficult to escape from. However, John Llewellyn Moxey creates a great atmosphere of hopelessness that stems from the inmates and surrounds the central location, which ensures the film has the right feel to it. It all boils down to a well worked and memorable ending and while this film may not be one of the best in its field; it's very good and well worth seeing!

tough to watch

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 11 July 2021]

UCLA coeds Cathy Phillips (Deborah Raffin) and Diane Emery (Lynne Moody) are driving around the country before the start of school. They get a flat tire. A black man is willing to help them but that gets the ire of Sheriff Danen (Chuck Connors). The Sheriff arrests the girls for trespassing and rapes Diane in jail. When Diane tries to raise the issue, the Judge adds prostitution to the charges and sends the girls to the prison farm in Badham County. The Judge turns out to be the Sheriff's cousin. The prison is a corrupt racist excuse to provide slave labor for the well-connected. It's run by Dancer (Robert Reed) and his sadistic prisoners-turned-guards.

I can't believe that this was a TV movie. Obviously, the nudity would be cut but it's still a brutal viewing experience. This is a mix of 70's sexploitation and social justice. Parts of this are very hard to watch. It is grindhouse in its nature. The acting ranges from solid professional to amateurish. Sometimes, the sexploitation detracts from the seriousness of the work.

Trashy but enjoyable

[frankfob · 6/10 · 27 February 2003]

Reminiscent of the Roger Corman cycle of "babes-behind-bars" flicks from the late '60s and early '70s, this is an enjoyable little exploitation item. Maybe some think it has pretensions to mask as "social commentary," but don't believe it, and just enjoy it for what it is--a made-for-TV version of those great Corman Filipino "prison-chicks" flicks. Apparently the video version is a lot more explicit than the TV version, but I haven't seen that one yet, so I can't say. Deborah Raffin and Lynne Moody are the two poor souls who get shanghaied into a Southern hellhole, and while Raffin is her usual bland, whitebread self, Moody steals the show from her. She's a much better actress than Raffin, is (IMHO) prettier and far sexier, and has a fresh, approachable, open appeal that Raffin lacks. Robert Reed does a nice turn as the corrupt prison superintendent, and it's fun to watch Tina Louise playing the sadistic prison matron--and Lana Wood is a blast as a lesbian (ahh, where would women-in-prison movies be without them?) prison guard.

All in all, it's a fun watch if you don't take it too seriously--or seriously at all. Check it out.

A great little exploitation shocker

[Vince-5 · 7 May 2001]

Combining horror and women-in-chains elements, this little gem is quite scary indeed. The star-studded cast is in great form, with many effectively cast against type--Della Reese as a prisoner with an almost-broken spirit, Robert Reed as a perverted rapist, and especially Tina Louise as a sadistic trustee. Deborah Raffin and Lynne Moody--two highly underrated actresses--are very sympathetic, and the film has a cheap, seedy atmosphere reminscent of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Last House on the Left.

Nightmare in Badham County was shown theatrically, in a much more explicit version, outside of the U.S. This version is available on videotape and is the one I've seen. It's memorably depraved, with brutality and full-frontal nudity abounding. One skin-crawling scene in this version has a naked, repulsive lesbian guard (Lana Wood, I think) exchanging food for sex with a terrified inmate. Another has Louise pawing and whipping a naked girl. Still another has a large group of women wrestling in a field until a hose is turned on them; clothes are ripped, and one woman's panties fall down as she stands up. This version could've been a big drive-in hit in the States, but alas, it was shown here only as an ABC movie of the week.

Whichever version you get, this oppressively grim torture epic is worth watching if you're an exploitation fan. An obscure cult classic with a very powerful ending.

Pristine exploitation

[ctomvelu1 · 6/10 · 7 October 2012]

Seriously good women-in-chains exploitation flick that was an ABC Movie of the Week. Deb Raffin and Lynne Moody star as coeds on summer break who pick the wrong backwoods town to have car trouble in. The town is run by a demented sheriff (Chuck Connors, much more effective as a baddie here than he was in "Tourist Trap"). When the girls spurn his advances, he jails them and rapes Moody, and then arranges to have them shipped off to the local prison farm. There, they are abused by the sadistic guards (among them Tina Louise) and brutal warden (Robert Reed). They soon discover not everyone gets out of the place alive, either. Della Reese plays one of their fellow inmates. The film is harrowing and believable, even if all the guards are shapely if not beautiful women. Guards in this type of film tend to come in all shapes and sizes, the better to intimidate and beat up on the inmates. The film is all the more frightening because this stuff happens in real life, or used to. Some decent nudity and whipping and cruelty, obviously added to the video release and for the overseas market.

Horrible reality of false imprisonment

[Irishchatter · 7/10 · 28 March 2015]

I can't tell you how angry I am that this movie caused me to be. I was like what kind of law would not notice this prison and not shut it down. It is such a cruel place to be in, I don't know how these poor women put up with this?!

Racism, abuse,self harm, murder,torture and rape were amongst these things involved in the movie that would bring awareness to people that this is still happening! It shows us we have to put in an end to this type of crime that people are up against. It does break your heart, our society doesn't know how to lift this and the only way to stop this is to fight for your human rights.

This movie really gives a good example on how any type of people can be treated, not just black people but white people too.

Surprisingly very good

[ofumalow · 7/10 · 26 March 2013]

This TV movie borders thematically on rank sensationalism, but in fact it remains disturbing and effective. Deborah Raffin and Lynne Moody are very good as privileged middle-class California college girls who make the mistake of taking a driving vacation through the South, and a much worse mistake in ticking off corrupt smalltown sheriff Chuck Conners. They end up basically on a chain gang, with no chance to alert friends or family to their plight.

The cast is starry but they really disappear into their roles--as a cruel prison wardress Tina Louise is so completely de-glammed, I didn't recognize her, while as a pederast politician "Mr. Brady Bunch" Robert Reed is convincingly sleazy. It's a notably grim, well-crafted TVM for the era that doesn't cop out.

It was interesting to catch on YouTube the theatrical version that was shown abroad--it definitely has language and full-frontal nudity that wasn't in the American TV version, notably a crudely pasted-in lesbian scene between characters we haven't seen before or since. (But otherwise the film avoids a sleazy sexploitation feel.)

While this is hardly a "ripped from headlines" movie, the issue of (mostly black) people being abducted and convicted of imaginary crimes in order to generate virtual "slave labor" really existed for many long decades to fill in the South's free-labor gap after the Emancipation Proclamation rendered official slavery illegal.

Just another "babe in prison" movie...

[Senor TJ · 3/10 · 9 March 1999]

Supposedly a "social commentary" on racism and prison conditions in the rural South of the 1970's, "Nightmare" is full of bad Southern stereotypes, complete with phoney accents. Not only would it be offensive to the sensibilities of most American Southerners, this tawdry piece of work comes off as just a thinly-disguised "babe in prison" movie--especially in its uncut original version. Nevertheless, acting is generally above average and the late Chuck Connors, in particular, does a good job of making viewers hate him--even though he looks somewhat uncomfortable in several scenes. There's also a change-of-pace role for the late Robert Reed, who appears as the lecherous warden, and Tina Louise (previously Ginger of "Gilligan's Island") made a rather believable sadistic prison guard. My grade: D.

Badham County Has a Farm ... Ee-I-Ee-I-Ooo

[Coventry · 9/10 · 22 February 2009]

Usually I try and avoid watching TV-movies because I keep thinking they hold back on shocking content and grisly images, but lately I've encountered several titles that actually proved my way of thinking is entirely incorrect and even quite shallow. "Nightmare in Badham County" is one of them examples, because the themes featuring in this movie are definitely not what you would call "soft". Perhaps the depicted violence isn't as graphical and the sleaze isn't as explicit, but the suggestive material and insinuations here are far more shocking than the gratuitous footage in most other contemporary flicks. This undeservedly and sadly obscure made-for-TV 70's thriller successfully combines elements and ambiances from two of the most commonly used and popular horror sub genres of the mid 70's, namely the so-called "Women in Prison" films and "Hicksploitation" movies. The former is pretty self-explaining and handles about defenseless girls being locked away in corrupt and filthy jails where they are confronted with perverted guards and aggressive prisoner gangs. The latter is probably my personal favorite sub genre of horror and like no other one it truly reflects the essence of 70's horror film-making. "Hicksploitation" routinely revolves on civilized people getting stuck, for whatever reason, in isolated backwoods villages inhabited by primitive and exaggeratedly hostile people with horrible dental hygiene. Combinations of the two genres aren't manifold, but "Nightmare in Badham County" illustrates that it's perfectly possible and even almost logical to amalgamate the characteristics of both.

But this is also more than just a shocking exploitation hybrid. "Nightmare in Badham County" is a genuinely moving drama with identifiable lead characters, a disturbing portrait about the abuse of authority and generally speaking also a professionally directed and astoundingly shot but modest film. Whilst on a road trip through the South, interracial college girlfriends Cathy and Diane are forced to make a stop in a small community in Badham County due to car trouble. The liberated and free-spirited girls they are, they quickly offend and publicly humiliate the chauvinistic pig Sheriff Danen. So badly even that he finds a cheap excuse to place them under arrest and then, at night, sneak into Diane's cell to rape her. A trial follows, but seeing that in this Southern part of the nation everyone is related to everyone, the girls are sentenced to 30 days in Badham County's women prison – called "The Farm" – and that's where the nightmare truly begins. The girls become separated because of their skin color and are prohibited to contact the outside world. They are subjected to hard labor and the harsh and often perverted commands of the guards, while the slightest sign of disobedience results in an increase of their punishment. Several courageous attempts to escape or reach out to the outside world fail because everybody in Badham County appears to be corrupt and/or petrified of the local "legal" system. "Nightmare in Badham County" is, without exaggerating, at least a dozen times more involving and approximately 99% of the other 'Women-in-Prison" movies out there, principally because the two leading ladies are so innocent and defenseless whereas the townsfolk and prison guards are so infuriatingly nefarious! This is one of the rare movies where you literally want to dive into the screen and reach out to help the protagonists because everything that happens to them is so damn unfair and saddening. When you accomplish this level of entanglements among your viewers, I think you can safely say you did a great job as a director. Speaking of which, I actually expected no less from John Llewellyn Moxey as he already demonstrated his craftsmanship numerous of times, for example with "Horror Hotel", "The Night Stalker" and "Where have all the People gone?". Moxey marvelously creates a moodily grim and unsettling rural atmosphere, through fitting music and extended shots of lonely country tableaux, but he also owes a lot to his terrific ensemble cast. Deborah Raffin and Lynne Moody are exceptional as the ladies in distress, but the people portraying the local yokels are near perfect as well – particularly the almost naturally sleazy looking Chuck Connors as the Sheriff. The ending will make you feel left behind as helpless and frustrated as Cathy and Diane themselves, but realism and hard truth are also two main trumps of this overall fantastic cult movie accomplishment. In case you're a truly devoted fan of good shock-cinema and you need a break from all the trashy but dumb 'Women-in-Prison' movies, I wholeheartedly recommend tracking this baby down!

Entertaining but relentlessly downbeat .......

[merklekranz · 6/10 · 14 January 2013]

This television exploitation movie is certainly entertaining, but relentlessly downbeat. Exploring, how two college coeds are thrown in a Southern prison farm on trumped up charges, the film has many fine qualities. The acting by a largely recognizable cast is solid and character development is totally acceptable, but there are problems relating to the film's resolution. Unfortunately, there is absolutely no payoff for the audience. "Nightmare in Badham County" is loaded with reprehensible characters, along with two heroines who elicit tremendous sympathy. With that setup, a more upbeat conclusion might have been better. - MERK

Repulsive

[preppy-3 · 3/10 · 29 April 2004]

Originally aired as an ABC Movie of the Week. This involves two young innocent female college students who are railroaded into a prison camp in a little Southern town. They aren't allowed phone calls and nobody knows they're there. What follows is rape, torture, beatings, humiliation and degradation leading to a very disturbing conclusion.

The TV version was (for its time) grim. No nudity and the beatings were pretty tame but the overall feeling of sleaziness wore one down. The unrated version is even worse--there's plentiful nudity, the violence is extreme and, in one particularly disgusting sequence, we see a crying female prisoner forced to strip while a lesbian guard "uses" her. YUCK! There's nothing wrong with exploitation films but this one just goes over the brink. You get the feeling that the filmmakers enjoy having these poor women being tortured and degraded--all this is shoved in your face like you're supposed to enjoy it. The needlessly downbeat ending doesn't help.

I'm giving it a 3 because the acting is good--but that actually makes the movie harder to watch. A sick, sleazy film. Not recommended.

The reason why you should never take a road trip through the rural south.

[jeff-150 · 10/10 · 14 January 1999]

One of those movies they used to show late at night or on Saturday afternoons on tv in the 80's. Scarred my little mind, with scenes of violence, rape, and racism. Like your worst nightmare come true. I refused to get out of the car in Georgia when driving to Florida every year after seeing this one.

Robert Reed - not the fatherly figure if you know what I mean

[safenoe · 7/10 · 9 September 2016]

I saw this awhile ago and if you're expecting Robert Reed to be the fatherly Brady type, then go watch the Brady Bunch. He really relishes his malevolent prison warden role big time where all the prisoners are female. Interestingly, when I revisited this movie in Wikipedia recently, I didn't realize the lead star Deborah Raffin passed away in 2012 at the young age of 59.

There's a sense of foreboding in this movie and there are several deaths. I think there should be a remake/reboot. I think Michael Douglas would be amazing in the role of the prison warden, and maybe in an act of innovative casting have say Sharon Stone, Glenn Close, Kathleen Turner, and Demi Moore, play the prisoners.

This movie will leave an impact

[aftercareforiowa · 4/10 · 2 October 2006]

This movie forever left an impression on me. I watched it as a Freshman in High School and was home alone that night. I think I lost all respect for Robert Reed as an actor having been a huge fan of the "Brady Bunch". I also thought the role of Chuck Connor was horrendous and evil. However, this movie made such an impact on me that I am now a volunteer in the women's state prison doing bible studies and church services and trying to change womens lives, one at a time. What fascinates me is that so few people actually watched this movie. None of my friends watched it and my family is clueless to this day when I discuss this movie because they didn't see it.

Sherwood Schwartz sitcom actors in a sleazy WIP flick--oohh yeah!

[lazarillo · 13 April 2010]

Being a fan of 1970's made-for-TV movies AND women-in-prison films, I just couldn't miss this 1970's made-for-TV woman-in-prison flick. And as bonus, unlike other made made-for-TV WIP films like "Jackson County Jail", this was released overseas in a much sleazier version than the one that appeared on American network TV. Thus you have fairly respectable American TV actors (at least if you consider "Mike Brady" from "The Brady Bunch"and "Ginger" from "Gilligan's Island" to be "respectable") appearing in a typically sleazy WIP flick.

The plot is actually fairly serious--two UCLA co-eds, one white and one black, are traveling through the Deep South. They have car trouble and are arrested for vagrancy by a racist sheriff (Bo Hopkins) the black girl earlier insulted. After a brutal (off-screen) rape they are sentenced to a work farm where they are kept segregated and cut off from the outside world and brutalized by sadistic "honorees" (prisoners acting as guards), one of whom is Tina "Ginger" Louise. Robert "Mike Brady" Reed plays the warden who takes sexual advantage of the women (again, off-screen, thank god). There is brutality, suicide, homicide, multiple escape attempts, and--in the "European" version--graphic lesbianism and a nude whipping. In typical 70's fashion the end is not unambiguously happy.

The "respectable" actors stay out of the sleaze scenes (but Tina Louise does do some of her guarding in a halter top and hot pants). Former Bond girl (and the much less talented sister of Natalie) Lana Wood appears in a lesbian scene with a naked inmate. And fans of 70's sleaze cinema will be gratified to know the nude whip-ee is Denise Dillaway from "The Cheerleaders".(Regrettably, her scenes probably didn't make the broadcast TV version). Nor is this quite the collision of Sherwood Schwartz sitcom actors and softcore porn that myself and others might have fantasized about (i.e. there's no three-way lesbian shower scene with "Mary Ann", "Marcia Brady" and "Laurie Partridge"). Still, I would certainly recommend this (especially the uncut version) to fans of both 70's made-for-TV and WIP movies.

Only Good for the T&A

[arfdawg-1 · 4/10 · 13 February 2020]

Back in the mid-late 70's commercial TV (especially ABC) started to get rather racy, with some decidedly adult made for TV movies. This was one of them. However, the film became such a huge hit in China the producers decided to edit back in the nudity and release it theatrically.

It's an odd mix of obvious TV direction and sleazoid grind house fare. It's also sort of silly. Whites are segregated from the blacks and the whole field element sounds like they are all slave laborers.

Debra Raffin was obe hot POA back in the day.

Tina Louise is one of the guards but she's already looking a bit used up.

Three quarters of the film makes no sense. Random cat fights that require nudity and hosing downs reminding us that 70's women didnt know how to groom.

Natalie Woods' super hot sister Lana is also one of the guards. What the hell happened to her? Time was not kind. After about 30 minutes you will be sort of bored. It's a dumb movie overall.

A nightmare in either version...

[aldo-renato50 · 9/10 · 20 March 2010]

I first saw this (like most of the other reviewers) as an made-for-TV movie in 1976. It was a typical Friday night diversion...put the brain in neutral, sit down and watch. Deborah Raffin (model-turned-actress famous for her looong hair) and Lynne Moody (nice lady later on Soap and Hill Street Blues) play two college coeds driving through the South when the car breaks down. They run afoul of the local law and end up in the county work farm for 30 days. Things only get worse and worse until a mixed ending (good news and bad news...I won't spoil it...some others already did). A great supporting cast including a lot of "good guy/girl" actors/actresses in "bad guy/girl" roles (Chuck Connors as the sheriff; Ralph Bellamy as the judge; Robert Reed as the warden; Tina Louise, Fionnula Flanagan, Lana Wood and Della Reese as guards/prisoners/trusties; etc.). This movie was an emotional experience in 1976 and the impact stayed with me for quite a while (ABC ran an advisory saying it might not be for all viewers and it may give a bad image of Southern justice). Fast forward to the early 1990s...my now ex-wife was working in a video store and brought this film home as one of her "victim movies" (she liked women-in-peril movies). What a difference 14 years makes!! This movie had all the added features described elsewhere (lesbian love scenes, nudity, strong language, etc.)...it amplified the movie I saw in 1976. Another reviewer was right...this would've made a good drive-in movie. If rediscovered, it could be set next to "Caged Heat" and "Chained Heat" as a great movie of its genre. The "9" is for both versions blended together. Leonard Maltin gave this a "below average" rating...it's much better than that. It's the type of film parents could watch with their children and say (sarcastically) "look what can happen to bad girls."

Nightmare in Badham County

[Prismark10 · 5/10 · 1 February 2020]

Nightmare in Badham County is a women's prison exploitation movie. The surprise is that is a network American television movie. It was spiced up for its European release with some gratuitous nudity and lesbianism.

Cathy Phillips (Deborah Raffin) and Diane Emery (Lynne Moody) are California college students driving in the deep south. After having some car trouble they upset redneck Sheriff Danen (Chuck Connors) by rejecting his amorous advances.

The sheriff has them locked up in jail for 30 days thanks to his cousin, the judge. In prison they are used as slave labour. Other women are used as playthings by the prison guards and the warden. If you step out of line you are severely spanked.

Cathy and Diane need to escape as their families are unaware of their predicament.

The movie covers the main elements of this type of genre. Racism also has a part to play as Cathy and Diane find themselves segregated with black prisoners being treated worse. As this was originally made for television, the exploitation part is toned down. The acting is a lot better with a cast that includes Della Reese, Robert Reed and Fionnula Flanagan.

It is not a great movie, a bit silly, camp and downbeat. The film ends with a drama documentary caption about the commercial exploitation of prisoners hoping that would justify is sleazy underpinnings.

Abused

[r_jayy_dylan · 9/10 · 6 January 2006]

I saw this movie a month ago and I loved it. The story is about two young college girls passing through a town and get a flat. A African-American helps them before being shooed by the evil cop (Chuck Connors). They stop at the local gas station to get help and they are told that it'll be done in the morning. They camp out in the woods and are awaken by the cop and arrested for trespassing. They are sent to the Ladies Prison in which they find out the true horrors of Badham County. They cannot contact their family and they cannot leave the prison without being killed. This movie is a must see so I recommend this movie to anyone. Few nude scene. Lesbian action and a thriller chase scene. Go and see it!

Don't let the poster fool you, it's not even close to an explotation flick

[jordondave-28085 · 1/10 · 28 April 2023]

(1976) Nightmare in Badham County DRAMA/ SUSPENSE

Initially made for TV, but now available for rental with extra scenes that can give this film a "R" rating. Stars Deborah Raffin and Lynne Moody as college Co-eds Cathy Phillips and Diane Emery going on a road trip. They're then stopped, confronted and then harassed by a monstrous racist sheriff named Danen (Chuck Conners) who happens to be related to the judge and mayor which anyone with a brain would know that anyone family who have that much authority and connections of any city are going expect total abuse of proper authority. The atrocities depicted in this movie is reminiscent of many sleazy and cheap 'women in prison' films except that when viewers watch this, they're thinking they're going to see the two best looking actresses naked at some point and are going to see other girls naked instead, which is nothing wrong with that except that their not as good looking as Raffin and Moody which an obvious body double was being used on scene. The acting is quite atrocious with inconsistencies involving the amount of women outnumbering the sadistic guards and wardens which they could've taken over with a protest. And the ending was totally uncalled for too, giving viewers the assumption that it was based on fact which the idea may have derived from an actual incident, but that the actual infliction's are totally fiction.

scary and sad

[triple8 · 13 November 2003]

I saw this so long ago I really cannot remember it scene by scene but would like to see it again. The plot has already been gone over but really quickly-this concerns two young girls traveling together unfairly thrown into the local woman's prison and the movie focuses on their plight.

This I remember being as a low budget or relatively so type of movie but very well done and well acted. Not your typical "girls in prison" movie(meaning this doesn't play like a porno flcik). This movie actually focuses on these two girls as human beings and how they try to survive the brutality of their experience. It is Extremely well acted and the girls come across as so likable and so truly horrifed by their circumstances that you ache for them.

I truly hope this wasn't based on a true story. In any event-the drama is in this movie despite the low budget and that is due primarily to the wonderful acting of all involved-I would recommend this movie quite a bit over the trash that's mostly out there about women in prison. Don't even know if the movie still plays anymore I saw it so long ago.

It's a nightmare all right...

[moonspinner55 · 3/10 · 1 September 2015]

Women's prison films are a dime a dozen. Hollywood has been churning them out for years...and they continue to get made, proving there's a built-in audience for this low-brow genre, which inevitably includes catfights, rape behind bars, lesbian guards, women used for sex and that old standby, prisoner inspection time! Two mouthy-but-innocent college girls from UCLA, joyriding across America, get railroaded into a prison work farm in the south by a sadistic sheriff. TV-made potboiler (spiced up with nudity, an extra touch of sadism and clumsily dubbed-in foul language for its overseas release) benefits from a surprisingly decent cast, including Chuck Connors, Robert Reed, Tina Louise, Della Reese, as well as Deborah Raffin and Lynne Moody as the central twosome who eventually plot their escape after being pawed at endlessly. Raffin is especially good begging a frightened waitress for help, but this is ungainly, unpleasant material, exploitation at its most sleazy.

A satisfyingly sleazy 70's hicksploitation outing

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 11 December 2008]

Sweet Cathy Phillips (well played by the lovely Deborah Raffin) and her sassy best gal pal Diane Emery (a winningly brash and spirited performance by the fetching Lynne Moody) are a couple of California college students who experience car trouble while driving cross country in the deep rural south. The pair run afoul of evil small town Sheriff Danen (a deliciously nasty portrayal by Chuck Connors), who gets the ladies sentenced to thirty days time on a harsh prison work farm where the conditions are positively hellish and inhumane. Director John Llewellyn Moxey does an expert job of relating the grim, yet gripping story at a constant brisk pace, effectively creates a dark, bleak, gritty downbeat atmosphere, and stays true to the uncompromisingly sordid and depressing tone to the literal bitter end. The trashy script by Jo Heims offers a neat and engrossing blend of elements from both the women-in-prison and "don't go down to Dixie" redneck exploitation sub-genres. Better still, the seamy plot covers all the essential scuzzy grindhouse bases: we've got rape, lesbianism, a handy helping of tasty female nudity, savage whippings, pedophilia, and racism. The sound acting from a top-drawer cast constitutes as another significant asset: Raffin and Moody make for excellent and engaging leads, Connors has an absolute ball as a supremely slimy and hateful no-count crooked lawman, plus there's fine supporting turns by Ralph Bellamy as a kindly, but corrupt judge, Tina Louise as mean prison guard captain Greer, Robert Reed as smarmy pervert Superintendent Dancer, Della Reese as wise, hard-bitten veteran con Sarah, Lana Wood as wicked guard Smitty, Fionnula Flanagan as the equally vicious guard Dulcie, and Kim Wilson as scared, vulnerable teenage inmate Emiline. Charles Bernstein's twangy, flavorsome countryish score hits the harmonic spot. Frank Stanley's slick cinematography likewise does the trick. A nice'n'grimy slice of Southern-fried sleaze.

Nightmare a reality down south...

[manfromplanetx · 8/10 · 2 August 2019]

I was surprised to enjoy so much this made for TV American film, initially it was my interest in Deborah Raffin, that led me to Badham County. An exceptionally made little film from John Llewellyn Moxey & without repeating I fully agree with all the praises given by the enthusiastic reviewers here; outstanding cast, great direction, music and story.... Adding an extra chilling dimension to this Southern tale is a bit of trivia I discovered when looking into the background of the film. The fictional town setting of Badham County was no studio backlot facade and surely not a coincidence that the director chose as the filming location Carrolton, Mississippi. The close-knit community has an infamous past history of brutal intolerance. The courthouse featured as the girls drive into town has itself a terrifying nightmare tale to tell ...

Moving WiP flick.

[HumanoidOfFlesh · 8/10 · 5 December 2010]

This delightfully sleazy and moving WiP film has a pair of co-eds traveling through a small town,where they are arrested by a sleazy sheriff and sent to a work-farm.The usual sadistic goings-on result including rape,murder,white slavery and forced lesbianism."Nightmare in Badham County" features a splendid cast for example Deborah Raffin and Lynne Moody as the innocent college girls,Chuck Connors as a sadistic sheriff and Fionnula Flanagan as a prisoner.The TV-version is pretty tame without scenes of rape and full-frontal nudity shown in European theatrical version.So if you are into American grindhouse cinema of 70's "Nightmare in Badham County" is an obvious must-see.8 prisoners out of 10.