jadavix I watched this back-to-back with Horror Hospital. It seems Brits in the '70s had a thing for movies in which young people are locked up and punished for the indulgent swinging hippie lifestyles the media loved to portray them all as having.The movie begins with a tongue in cheek dedication to those who wish for the return of capital and corporal punishment. The movie then gives you a bunch of such people as the bad guys - a retired judge and his underlings who believe the law has become too lax and as such seek to deliver their own brand of ultra-right wing justice, along the lines of flogging and death by hanging for crimes as slight as a model being photographed in the nude.For a Pete Walker-helmed exploitation shocker, there is actually a lack of nudity or full-on violence; most of the movie shows the plight of the young girl who is abducted and forced to live in the demented Judge's makeshift prison. We never really get to know or care about her or any of the other characters - this is an exploitation movie, after all. But then again, there's barely any exploitation either. The movie is therefore not entertaining and hard to sit through. The performances of the bad guys are certainly chillingly effective, but the same can't be said for those on the side of good. That doesn't leave us with much to work with. Perhaps those tired of the drivel in the '70s papers from moral crusaders like Mary Whitehouse (parodied in this movie as, who else? one of the bad guys) found there point of view nicely summed up in this simple tale, but modern viewers might wonder what the point is.

gavin6942 An old man that lives in an old house conducts a correctional institute for girls.Robert Firsching wrote, "Many viewers will be offended by the film's repressive right-wing tone, but its genuine scares and creepy atmosphere will outweigh its philosophical offenses for most horror fans." I guess I never noticed this right-wing tone at all. If anything, it seemed to be skewering that position. But what do I know?I have not seen many of Pete Walker's films, so I cannot put this one in context, and cannot rightly say if it is one of his better or worse films. I suppose I liked it in a general sense, though it did not hold my attention as well as I wish it would have.

Scott LeBrun The tongue-in-cheek opening text definitely lets us know what we're in for right off the bat. This is incredibly grim, very pointed, and packs a wallop. Lovely Penny Irving plays Ann-Marie, a dim & naive French model who'd been fined for public nudity. At a party she meets a mystery man named Mark E. De Sade (subtle, huh?) played by the striking Robert Tayman. Well, as it turns out Mark is a "procurer", a man who collects supposed moral degenerates such as Ann-Marie and transports them to a hellish prison located in the English countryside. It comes complete with stone faced guards, played by Dorothy Gordon and Walker regular Sheila Keith, a warden (Barbara Markham) and a presiding judge (Patrick Barr) who's gone fairly senile but who is not too far gone. The atmosphere in this thing is simply overwhelming; admittedly, this production could have been lit a little better, but as it is, it maintains a constantly gloomy mood, also enhanced by sinister music composed by Stanley Myers. As this plays out, we do get little doses of the kinds of things we come to expect in W.I.P. cinema, namely nudity and at least one shower scene, as well as assorted scenes of sadism. For one thing, the guards in this place do tend to favour flogging as a punishment. Yet, dwelling on these matters is never Walkers' principal aim. Walker creates an interesting dynamic here in that the view comes across as rather anti-feminist, even as the female characters are mostly the entire show. The acting is generally very good; Irving is convincing as a none-too-bright but more or less innocent type, while the equally ravishing Ann Michelle (who fans of low budget horror can also see in the American production "Haunted") is credible as Ann-Maries' friend who in a subplot tries to track her down. If you're a fan of Keith, she's in typically fine form, and is genuinely intimidating. (Be on the lookout for Walkers' cameo as the man riding his bike in the rain.) Overall, "House of Whipcord" is the kind of thing that succeeds in its intensity. It may not be to all tastes, but is quite compelling in the way it portrays a certain mindset. If the viewer is looking for a W.I.P. flick that provides more than titillation, they may find it to be a rewarding experience. Eight out of 10.

The_Void I didn't go into this film with very high expectations because I didn't like Pete Walker's Frightmare very much; but House of Whipcord is a vastly superior film and, to be honest, I'm shocked that this doesn't get mentioned more often! Pete Walker's film is both a sleazy seventies exploitation classic and a striking indictment of the justice system. The film serves as a warning against what would happen if private institutions were given the power to decide what is apt punishment for certain crimes, and the dedication of the film to all those who believe in capital punishment shows Pete Walker's love for controversy. The plot takes place in an old house, which doubles up as a private institution ran by a senile judge, his unforgiving partner; the female warden of the prison and two equally vile female orderlies. They punish girls for crimes committed that weren't, in their eyes, properly punished by the corrupt British courts. We pick the story up when a young French girl is inducted into the institution.The atmosphere of the film is brilliant; Pete Walker always ensures that the action is sleazy, and yet oddly erotic at the same time. The film is very matriarchal, and it's the female characters that are the protagonists while the men exist in background roles. However, the film isn't feminist; and, in fact, is the exact opposite; as the director ensures that none of the women are portrayed in a favourable light. The film benefits from a handful of great performances; the best of which coming from Barbara Markham, who gives a powerhouse performance in the role of the head of the institution. Frightmare star Sheila Keith, and Dorothy Gordon are the orderlies, while Patrick Barr is brilliantly understated in his role as the ineffective Justice of the prison. Penny Irving is the young French victim at the centre of the story; but her performance is brought down by her ridiculous French accent! The story is another major strong point for this film, as Pete Walker ensures that it always moves well and although you wouldn't expect it from a Euroshock movie like this - he also makes it easy to care about the characters and what happens to them. On the whole, this is a vastly underrated and under seen seventies gem that must be seen by anyone who gets the chance to see it!