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The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

The acting in this movie is really good.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

Women in prison movies have never been a favorite of mine for some reason, so maybe I approached this one with some prejudice. But I have a feeling that fans of this particular genre will be quite bewildered by this effort. If you are looking for standard women in prison films, you'll likely be disappointed. Most of the "R" rated material in the movie comes from language. There is only ONE brief scene of nudity (performed by a male, not a female), and a rape scene takes place off-screen. Actually, there seems to be more missing from the movie than just sexual elements, such as a key car crash that takes place out of camera range. Several times it seems that linking footage was either edited out or simply not filmed at all, leaving some plot points simply not in the finished movie. I will admit that the acting actually isn't too bad by the (mostly) no name cast, and the movie actually got to shoot in a real prison, with both things actually managing to build some authentic prison atmosphere. But if you know how dire real life prison must be like, you'll probably correctly guess that this authentic atmosphere doesn't add to too much "fun". At best, this women in prison movie is just a mild curio, and I suspect that fans of the genre will label this as a decidedly weaker than average effort.

You've seen this basic idea before. A beautiful woman going to jail although she's innocent. In this case for being together with her boyfriend, as he robs a jewelery store. And of course when the police catches her, she's just so good-hearted (or something) that she takes the blame. Inside the prison you get most of what you expect EXCEPT for nudity. There's actually a quick shower scene that's pretty funny (you'll know what I mean when you see it) but NOTHING is revealed. If you don't consider bare shoulders being of interest. There are however a few interesting, unusual turns in the intrigue. Nothing great but at least someone tried. Don't pay too much money for this, but it's OK to watch the film if it airs on TV.

Recently aired in widescreen on the Flix cable channel, Hotel Oklahoma is a flawed but intriguing entry in the women behind bars genre. An interesting if unbelievable plot device half way through the proceedings will keep your attention, and the cast is obviously trying hard. Unfortunately, the film can't decide whether its a caper film, a serious prison expose, or just another exploitation flick, leaving me ultimately unsatisfied. Lead Kristen Cloke provides most of the highlights as, erm, Kristen, a working class gal who takes the fall for her clueless but generally good hearted criminal boyfriend (David Keith). Karen Black is completely wasted in a small role as a loony prisoner who, er, relieves herself on Kristen before getting off the prison bus, and Ray Sharkey doesn't have much to do other than help set up the aforementioned plot device. This is an interesting but inessential effort from director Robert Houston, who kicked off his film career as one of the victims in Wes Craven's The Hills Have Eyes.

David Keith plays Tommy, an ex-convict who violates terms of his parole when he crosses a state line to woo his former girl friend Kristen (Kristen Cloke), and so effectively that they decide to marry; however, when they visit a jewelry store to select her ring Tommy, shy of the required funds, robs the establishment and when, following the holdup, Kristin is arrested for failing to confirm Tommy's part in the affair, off she goes to prison. This first section of the film garners one's interest by dint of creative camera-work and some realistic dialogue, but following Kristin's incarceration it becomes simply another Women in Prison film, replete with that rightfully scorned genre's accessory clichés, with a generous addition of plot elements so silly that one can only presume that the excessive number of continuity flawed episodic scenes either lack for direction or anything resembling post-production supervision.