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Kathrine Selvage
Prison stories are marvelousentertainment because they take place on a great isolated, enclosedset in which writers can spin any number of human dramas, one betterthan the last. The stories use exotic and dangerous characters,macabre back stories and highlight good and evil in many ways.
They also tell us a lot abouthistory over nearly 100 years of American life and that historyreflects not just the history of the prisons and their inmates, butof the country and its people and the problem we encountered in lawenforcement and criminal justice. And penal facilities are always inthe news. There is always a riot or protest somewhere and sometelevision station is always deep into an investigative report on oneof them.
The orisons are good homes fordramas. Prisons are parallel universes to our own, where anythingcan, and does, happen. One of the major reasons why prison movies,television series and plays have worked so well over the years isthat hundreds of prisoners have been recently released because DNAtests proved their innocence. This means that there are probablyhundreds of other prisoners behind bars who are innocent, too, andmany innocent men who were imprisoned or executed throughout history.Americans love stories of innocent men, righteous victims, whostruggle to be free and hate oppressive wardens and guards whoexecute and hold men behind bars who may be not guilty..
Many follow thestructure of Shawsank Redemption (my favorite). A clean cutman whom all the inmates admire is found to be innocent and yet thewarden will not let him go free. The inmate then sabotages thecorrupt, greedy warden, gets him arrested and, the night before,flees to Mexico with all the money he stole from the warden. Gooddefeats evil, as it does in most prison films. And then, of course,there was Angels with Dirty Faces, starring tough guy JamesCagney. In it, ruthless crook Rocky Sullivan fakes an emotionalbreakdown as he goes to the electric chair in order to be a cowardand dissuade the kids who admire him from a life of crime.
In most genrefilms, it is easy to compare what you see on the screen to real life.Lawyer movies? We all know lawyers. Politician movies? We all knowpoliticians. Sports? We know athletes. Romances? We know them, too.But we do not have any idea what life is like in prison. So we trustthe directors, actors and writers in those movies to give us areasonably accurate picture of what life in jail is like. Now, weknow that the stories are going to be dramatized and exaggerated forthe screen. The real Robert Stroud, the lovable Birdman ofAlcatraz, was a psychotic, his guards said. But we depend on themfor some truth. They are not like normal films. They are special.
Make no mistake,prisons are necessary. There are a lot of men who deserve to be inprison and should never be released because of the crimes theycommitted. There are also a lot of men in jail who are serving timefor just doing something stupid. There are men in jail because theyhad poor lawyers and men out of jail because they had good ones.
Step into the world behind bars with our expertly curated list of the best prison movies of all time. These films offer a captivating glimpse into the lives of convicts, often exploring themes of redemption, hope, and the human will to survive against all odds. From modern masterpieces to timeless classics, all of the films on this list have either earned critical praise, won the hearts of audiences worldwide, or have left an indelible mark on the world of cinema.
We haven't just tossed together a bunch of random movies about prisons. These are films that are great, not just good movies about prison, but truly great films that happen to be set in prisons or revolve around convicts. They cover various genres, from hard-hitting dramas like The Shawshank Redemption to intense thrillers like Escape Plan. All the entries have been painstakingly selected for their ability to evoke powerful emotions, create robust, memorable characters, and depict the harsh realities of prison life in compelling narrative arcs.
Each entry in our list provides you with an accessible streaming option that varies from Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Apple TV+, to HBO Max, Paramount+, and Hulu. So, you can conveniently dive straight into these fascinating stories with a simple click. Whether you're looking for a heartfelt journey of redemption or a tense nail-biter featuring a daring escape, these films promise to deliver an immersive viewing experience.
Our assembly of the best movies about convicts and prison life ranges from depictions of historical realities to fictional narratives with profound thematic depth. To ensure we are presenting the best of the best, we invite you, our reader, to actively participate in shaping this list. We encourage you to cast your vote and move films up the list, ensuring that the creme de la crme of prison films get the recognition they deserve. Join us in this exciting cinematic journey exploring life behind bars through the lens of the most acclaimed directors and screenwriters in the industry.
In this iconic film, a wrongly convicted banker finds himself in a high-stakes game of espionage battling against the corrupt prison authorities. With a blend of clever wit and heart-wrenching emotion, it's hard not to fall for the well-drawn characters and their unconventional tactics. It just goes to show that sometimes the best spies don't come from an academy, but from the depths of despair.
Set in the 1930s, this masterpiece combines supernatural elements with top-notch humor, proving that even death row inmates can have a knack for espionage. As guards and prisoners alike find themselves embroiled in a race against time to uncover hidden secrets, comic moments provide unexpected relief amid the tension. A moving, thought-provoking tale, with just the right amount of spy comedy to keep audiences entertained.
An intense, gritty examination of the extent to which spying and deception can infiltrate the lives of ordinary people. The film delves into the world of white supremacy and showcases how humor can emerge from the darkest of circumstances. A rollercoaster of emotions, this movie proves that espionage isn't just reserved for secret agents, but can also be found in the most unexpected places.
This thrilling classic follows a group of inmates as they plot a daring escape from the notorious island prison. Along the way, they become entangled in a deadly game of wits and subterfuge against their captors, with brilliant comedic timing and a healthy dose of irony. This film perfectly illustrates that escaping from the rock is just the first step; surviving the conspiracies on the outside is another challenge altogether.
This powerful tale of rebellion and resilience effortlessly blends laughter with nail-biting suspense. Set in a brutal Southern prison, it follows the life of a sarcastic convict forced to navigate the murky world of espionage. As he battles against the ruthless warden, our anti-hero proves that a little humor can go a long way in even the direst of situations.
With its gritty realism and dark comic undertones, this film explores the hidden world of prison gangs and their criminal enterprises. When a seemingly mild-mannered man is thrust into the heart of a dangerous power struggle, his surprising flair for subterfuge and manipulation brings levity to an otherwise tense atmosphere. A gripping exploration of the lengths people will go to in order to survive.
An enjoyable cinematic depiction of a prison escape never gets old, with classic prison escape movies remaining iconic, and more recent prison escape movies still being made. The prison-break movie has gone out of fashion a little in recent years. In looking at the best the sub-genre has to offer, most come from decades past, and it's hard to understand why. There might be a certain formulaic aspect to watching a team of prisoners plan an escape, execute it, and then succeed or fail in escaping the authorities, but it's such a fun formula.
These classic prison movies are among the best. These are not the objective best, and they're also not the best prison movies, generally speaking, as there are great prison movies like The Green Mile that aren't as concerned with the idea of escaping. It's clear the sub-genre of prison break movies isn't going anywhere anytime soon, with the following titles being some of the best prison escape movies out there.
The Great Escape, in a word, is great. It's perhaps the quintessential prison escape movie, being a nearly three-hour epic centering on a team of prisoners and their plan to break out of a heavily guarded prisoner of war camp in Germany during WW2.
Steve McQueen might be the most memorable member of the cast, but everyone else is fantastic too. The characters being so likable makes you root for their escape, and almost the entire film is focused on that titular escape, making for a consistently engaging watch. Plus, there's plenty of suspense and excitement, and it holds up very well after almost 60 years.
An underrated modern classic from the 2010s, The Old Man & the Gun is admittedly more of a heist movie, but prison escape factors into the plot, too. It centers on an aging thief played by Robert Redford, and takes a generally relaxed and oftentimes comedic look at how he continues his criminal lifestyle even in his old age.
He plans robberies and prison escapes, and though there are some more serious moments, it's quite breezy by the standards of most heist and/or prison escape movies. It's also a very fitting cinematic send-off to Redford, given that it still stands as his last starring performance as of 2023.
There are plenty of prison escape movies set during World War II that have German forces as the captors, and Allied forces as the escapees, but The McKenzie Break shakes things up. Here, the characters trying to escape are all members of the German army, with the prisoner-of-war camp being in Scotland.
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