let's go to prison

an early prison break film. robert montgomery is completely overshadowed by the now forgotten actor chester morris. i'm afraid montgomery would be everyone's bitch at prison. wallace beery is fun and this film made him a huge star. frances marion became the first woman to win an oscar for screenwriting. it's a little hokey at times. i'd like to see what warner bros could've done with it. interesting to note that prison overcrowding was already an issue in 1930

it's pretty melodramatic but i'd forgotten how really touching it is too. i love lancaster and thelma ritter and r.i.p. karl malden. according to people who knew the real stroud, his character in the film is highly fictionalized.

gritty drama about a prison break. burt lancaster is outstanding in only his second film after a great debut in the killers and hume cronyn plays against type as a sadistic guard. there's some sappy melodrama in the flashback scenes but overall pretty damn good

the story of a bloody riot in the largest jail in latin america begins with interesting back stories on many of the prisoners. we're drawn in by the characters and the inevitable climax is pretty shattering. manipulative but watchable

good gritty prison drama. cagney plays a reporter who goes in on a false charge and teams up with george raft to clear his name, ending, of course, in a full scale riot.

it's the mother of all prison escape films!

damn good prison film; brutally portrays the methods used by the military to break the individual spirit almost as well as kubrick's full metal jacket would 20 years later. harry andrews is outstanding as the commandant. hilarious turn by ossie davis too. a very british film coming from lumet, really powerful and sadly mostly forgotten

a stunning prison drama, based on the memoirs of a french pow who escaped the nazis and a sentence of death. we witness every painstaking detail of his plan and it's execution. i must say i greatly admire bresson's directing style, using untrained actors and a minimalist approach with riveting results.

very good film; bale continues to impress and steve zahn isn't too annoying. for more of this incredible story i highly recommend the source documentary 'little dieter needs to fly'

what's there to say about white heat? ten years out of the genre and cagney hasn't missed a step. how'd ya like that, ma?

somewhat melodramatic but still the best film adaptation of dumas' classic, a childhood fave of mine. <3 robert donat

an extremely stylish end to the revenge saga with a lovely soundtrack. truly disturbing and def cool if not as startling as oldboy. very black and white tho it's in beautiful technicolor.

i don't want to alarm anyone but this is being remade. by stephen spielberg. with will smith. believe it.

it's not terrible; i love the whole gothic look and fincher got some interesting shots. the major problem seems to be with the script; there just aren't enough interesting characters! it's looong. also the score is oddly uneven compared with the first two. and the ending of the director's cut is better. on to resurrection!

really good irish drama starring patrick mcgoohan of the prisoner. he plays a new guard who becomes involved with the wife of a condemned man and is led to question his views on capital punishment

becker's final film and it's fantastic. every bit as good and a great counterpoint to bresson's masterpiece, a man escaped. completely nerve wracking

i've got to find this :)

this was pretty entertaining. ida lupino is a raving bitch as the boss of a women's prison. the 'psychology' is kinda wack tho

it's like reefer madness for atheists :P ok, to be fair it's very well made and entertaining, if terribly predictable