Reform School Girls (1986) – A Wild, Campy Ride Through Exploitation Cinema
Genre: Exploitation / Comedy / Crime
Director: Tom DeSimone
Starring: Wendy O. Williams, Pat Ast, Sybil Danning, Sherri Stoner, Linda Carol
Reform School Girls (1986) is a no-holds-barred satire of the women-in-prison genre, revved up with punk attitude, over-the-top characters, and a wink at every B-movie trope it can find. Directed by Tom DeSimone (known for Hell Night), the film embraces its grindhouse roots while delivering a chaotic blend of comedy, rebellion, and stylized cruelty.
The story centers on Jenny (Linda Carol), a teenager sent to a brutal reform school after a botched robbery. Inside the institution, she finds herself at the mercy of sadistic guards, corrupt wardens, and a power-hungry inmate gang led by the unhinged Charlie (played with wild energy by punk icon Wendy O. Williams). Amidst the violence and absurdity, Jenny must toughen up, survive, and maybe even fight back.
What sets Reform School Girls apart is its outrageous tone. The film knows exactly what it is: a hyper-stylized, deliberately exploitative romp, filled with exaggerated performances and dialogue that leans hard into parody. Sybil Danning chews the scenery as the dominatrix-like Warden Sutter, while Pat Ast plays the monstrous matron Edna with snarling glee.
The soundtrack, anchored by Wendy O. Williams and her band the Plasmatics, amplifies the anarchic energy. Music and attitude fuse into a rebellious aesthetic that gives the film its punk backbone and cult appeal.
Though it plays fast and loose with logic and taste, Reform School Girls is often celebrated for how it turns the exploitation formula on its head. It’s not about realism or nuance—it’s about turning everything up to eleven: the violence, the outfits, the melodrama, and the mayhem. It mocks the system while
