Prison stuff. In prison movies.
Comparisons between this and A Prophet (2009) are inevitable; for a while, the trajectories of the main protagonists in both movies, two young men introduced into hostile new prisons, are almost identical.
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Posted on September 18th, 2012 at 9:18 pm. Updated on September 18th, 2012 at 9:18 pm.
It’s a bit hard to separate any movie involving Mel Gibson from the ranting, wife-beating, homophobic anti-Semite that the star (and writer) of Get the Gringo has shown himself to be. Allegedly. As a result, I wasn’t much looking forward to this film. Nor am I a fan of the action genre, as I may have said previously; ad infinitum. But this is surprisingly watchable. Enjoyable, even. (more…)
Posted on August 28th, 2012 at 10:01 pm. Updated on August 28th, 2012 at 10:01 pm.
This is a cold, cold film. An escapee is returned to the prison, barefoot in the snow. Young men shiver in the forest, huddling together in the freezing rain, unable to find shelter. It is the unrelenting cold, as much as anything, that serves to remind us of how estranged these boys are from the warmth of people who care for them – and which constantly underscores the brutality of their existence. The cold… and the practice of referring to the boys only by their number, not their names.
Posted on June 4th, 2012 at 10:39 pm. Updated on August 29th, 2019 at 8:49 pm.
“I have one rule in my prison: There are no rules.” So says Warden Preston (Derek McGrath), but he’s not telling the truth; there are quite a few rules, including one which says that if you are in a fight-to-the-death you are not permitted to refuse to kill your opponent. (more…)
Posted on May 27th, 2012 at 8:11 pm. Updated on May 27th, 2012 at 8:12 pm.
Sheriff Joe Arpaio achieved way too much notoriety by requiring his prisoners to wear pink underwear. Why, then, is the boss of this Thai jail, in which prisoners are all dressed in pink, not seen to out-tough America’s Toughest Sheriff? I suppose it could be just that one red sock got missed in the wash. (more…)
Posted on May 12th, 2012 at 9:27 pm. Updated on May 12th, 2012 at 9:27 pm.
The storyline of VIP is apparently borrowed from a real-life Guatemalan corruption case. Which one, I don’t know. Based on the depiction of Guatemalan life in this film, there could be a large number from which to choose. (more…)
Posted on March 28th, 2012 at 9:06 pm. Updated on April 23rd, 2020 at 8:22 pm.
This is a heartwarming tale – full of stabbings, rape, murder, drug dealing, slash-ups, suicide and corruption. But heartwarming nonetheless. (more…)
Posted on January 28th, 2012 at 10:02 pm. Updated on February 3rd, 2012 at 10:29 pm.
You would think that a film about a young prisoner fighting for the right to keep her child with her in custody would have no trouble in having you cheering her on from the sidelines. And no doubt many people have… but she’s so unsympathetically drawn, it’s possible to be quite indifferent to whether she wins or loses. (more…)
Posted on November 16th, 2011 at 9:55 pm. Updated on November 16th, 2011 at 9:55 pm.
There aren’t many prison movies like this one, where the action is seen from the point of view of a Prison Officer, or even where a humble correctional officer is at the centre of the story: The Quare Fellow (1962), Against the Wall (1993), Fast-Walking (1982), Cell 211 (2009) and not many more… Having said that, it seems unlikely that the British Prison Service will use this one as the centrepiece of its recruitment campaigns. (more…)
Posted on November 7th, 2011 at 9:47 pm. Updated on November 7th, 2011 at 10:02 pm.
Having cringed through Men of San Quentin (1942), an unabashed tribute to Warden Clinton T Duffy, I prepared myself for an even greater festival of self-aggrandisement in this flick – particularly as this one was based on the Warden’s own reflections and released just two years following his retirement after 12-odd years in the job. (more…)
Posted on October 30th, 2011 at 6:35 pm. Updated on October 30th, 2011 at 6:35 pm.