Captured on Film

Prison has long fascinated film makers and audiences alike. The author explores the dark enclosed world of prisons on film from light-hearted comedies to the deeper implications of people imprisoned for their political and religious beliefs. The book covers the whole spectrum of prison life - gangster movies such as "Riot in Cell Block Eleven"; the particular fascination of Alcatraz, including the memorable "Birdman of Alcatraz"; prisoners of war featured in "The Great Escape" and "The Colditz Story"; the complex psychological themes of prisoners of conscience in "Kiss of the Spiderwoman"; women in "Yield to the Night"; and the ultimate sanction of society against its transgressors, the death penalty in "I Want to Live". While many of the films are simple adventure stories using prison as a backdrop, others consider the social issues sensitively. Occasionally a movie has stirred a nation to change its way of thinking about its wrong-doers.