Directed by:
Kyle Patrick AlvarezScreenplay:
Tim TalbottCinematography:
Jas SheltonComposer:
Andrew HewittCast:
Billy Crudup, Michael Angarano, Ezra Miller, Moises Arias, Olivia Thirlby, Callan McAuliffe, Tye Sheridan, Johnny Simmons, Chris Sheffield, Thomas Mann (more)VOD (4)
Plots(1)
What happens when a college psych study goes shockingly wrong? In this tense, psychological thriller based on the notorious true story, Billy Crudup stars as Stanford University professor Dr. Philip Zimbardo, who, in 1971, cast 24 student volunteers as prisoners and guards in a simulated jail to examine the source of abusive behavior in the prison system. The results astonished the world, as participants went from middle-class undergrads to drunk-with-power sadists and submissive victims in just a few days. Winner of two awards at the Sundance Film Festival, including Best Screenplay, and created with the close participation of Dr. Zimbardo himself, 'The Stanford Prison Experiment' is a chilling, edge-of-your-seat thriller about the dark side of power and the effects of imprisonment. (IFC Films)
(more)Reviews (2)
The excellent screenplay precisely conveys the growing tension and seriousness of the events from all points of view of the participants – the humiliation of the suffering “prisoners”, the abuse of power on the part of the guards and the remorse of the concerned observers, or rather organizers of the experiment. At the right moment, a female, more empathetic element enters the scene and describes the situation in the most accurate and human way. The directing and acting are also superb; Billy Crudup excels. This is a better film than I had expected, with practically no weak points.
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I was quite afraid that it wouldn't be believable how the experiment escalated, but the creators managed it very well, just as they managed to capture the motivations of each character excellently. In the end, however, you will still wonder if it all had any deeper meaning. And it didn't, just like some experiments simply don't.
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