 | The Great Escape
Buy new: $10.49 / Used from: $1.98 Definitely my favorite. McQueen and James Garner. Great music theme too. 1963
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 | The Defiant Ones
Buy new: $12.99 / Used from: $4.44 Tony Curtis and Sidney Poitier at their peak(1958). Nominated for Best Picture Oscar and deservedly so. Technically maybe not a prison movie since they spend most of their time on the lam. My favorite 'race relations' movie.
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 | Sullivan's Travels
Buy used from: $13.09 1940's Preston Sturges comedy/drama. Very good.
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 | The Hurricane
Buy new: $8.99 / Used from: $1.60 The true story of the efforts to free middleweight boxing contender Ruben Hurricane Carter, supposedly unfairly imprisoned(now freed). An Oscar nomination for Denzel, well deserved.
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 | Cool Hand Luke
Buy new: $8.99 / Used from: $8.44 Paul Newman got an Oscar nomination(1967).Despite overstated 'Jesus Christ story' symbolism, this is a very entertaining film with a number of memorable scenes.
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 | Primal Fear
Buy new: $6.99 / Used from: $3.45 MAYBE this qualifies as a jailhouse movie. It boasts a phenomenal performance by Edward Norton, one of our finest actors these days.
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 | Redemption - The Stan "Tookie" Williams Story
Buy new: $9.99 / Used from: $0.99 Jamie Foxx does a good job here. True and controversial case of a supposedly reformed(writer of positive kids' books) death row prisoner. He was executed after this film was made.
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 | The Green Mile
Buy used from: $1.05 Nominated for Best Picture Oscar.
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 | American History X
Buy new: $6.99 / Used from: $3.24 Another terrific acting performance by Edward Norton, one of the best actors these days.Can't say I enjoyed the movie much though. His other great performance is in Primal Fear with Richard Gere.
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 | Papillon
Buy new: $14.99 / Used from: $11.69 Two megastars at the time(1973 or so). Long.
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 | The Shawshank Redemption (Single Disc Edition)
Buy new: $9.49 / Used from: $3.85 Many people think this ranks among the great films. Don't get it, myself. Maybe I need to give it another chance.
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 | Birdman of Alcatraz
Buy new: $10.99 / Used from: $3.97 (1962 or thereabouts)Best Oscar nomination for Lancaster. Best Picture nomination too. Slow.
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 | Stalag 17 (Special Collector's Edition)
Buy new: $14.99 / Used from: $10.38 Americans in a POW camp. William Holden had Oscar nomination, maybe a win
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 | I Want to Live!
Buy new: $12.99 / Used from: $6.74 Best Actress nomination for Ms. Hayward.(1958)
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 | Lock Up
Buy new: $9.98 / Used from: $1.70 The usual formula for a prison movie, but it's better than most.
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 | The Longest Yard (Lockdown Edition)
Buy new: $9.98 / Used from: $0.55 A movie very popular with guys especially. I thought it was formulistic, predictable, heavyhanded and sometimes juvenile. I'm a big fan of Reynolds as a personality, though I don't like hardly any of his movies except maybe Deliverance.
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 | Escape From Alcatraz
Buy new: $8.49 / Used from: $4.38 |
 | Brubaker
Buy new: $12.99 / Used from: $6.49 Pretty standard formula prison movie. Saw it but can't remember anything much.
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 | Midnight Express
Buy new: $14.49 / Used from: $9.05 Gruesome tale of an American imprisoned in a brutal Turkish
prison after being caught travelling with marijuana. Any sympathy for the stupid?
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 | In the Name of the Father
Buy new: $10.99 / Used from: $6.69 I haven't seen it, but it definitely belongs on the list because of its theme and reputation.
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 | Dead Man Walking
Buy new: $7.99 / Used from: $1.48 A polemic against capital punishment. It has to be included on this list despite my disagreement with its point of view.
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 | The Last Castle
Buy new: $7.99 / Used from: $0.72 Robert Redford vs James Gandolfini
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Listmania!
