In August 1971, Stanford psychology professor Philip Zimbardo transformed a small underground corridor and some empty offices into a "jail" . His intention was to conduct an experiment which would monitor the effects of unearned authority, depersonalisation and how institutionalisation can effect people who could be considered "normal". Whether the students would fill the role of prisoner or guard was determined with a coin flip, and just six days into the planned two week experiment, it was cancelled due to the alarming way in which the students (mainly the guards) filled their roles.
The events that took place have long been used as a case study to educate psychology students the world over, and have already inspired at least two other films; German film "Das Experiment" and 2010's "The Experiment," starring Adrien Brody and Forest Whitaker. Although neither of these films follow the real life events as closely as Alvarez's vision, it gained largely very positive reviews as well as two Sundance film festival awards.
The cast includes well-known young actor Ezra Miller, who I have to say played his relatively short part the least convincingly. Michael Angarano and Nicholas Braun, stars of 2011's "Red State", (an incredibly claustrophobic, fast paced and intense film which I would also like to highly recommend) also star in the film. It is Angarano's performance as a John Wayne inspired brutal correctional officer which I enjoyed the most, and is the main aspect of the film that I am sure will stick with me. Billy Crudup plays the role of Zimbardo very well, showing the professor's inner turmoil due to the nature of the experiment and the toll it is taking on the characters but also his unwillingness to stop it from progressing due to the fascinating results.
Before the film hits the ten minute mark it has outlined the ideology behind the experiment and introduced the audience to all of the key characters. And for anyone who was familiar with the events that took place during the experiment, no matter how vague the familiarity is, the plot of the film is not going to be too surprising.
Initially, the idea of being a guard and having power over other people is amusing for the characters and the audience alike, seeing the smirks on their faces as they give their peers instructions is understandable and entertaining. But the tension begins to build almost immediately, as the mild amusement becomes something the guards want to enhance, causing things to get out of hand relatively quickly. Alvarez does a faultless job of demonstrating that although the characters know that what is happening is not "real" when things begin to deteriorate it doesn't make their emotions and feelings any less genuine.
As an audience member you start to forget that these characters are not in a real prison and that they can leave at any moment they choose. The fact that they are deprived of any sort of time or date measurement and are kept in a basement with no windows only adds to the distressful vibe of the film.
The use of close ups and long shots in contrast makes the film seem extremely claustrophobic, showing the emotional expressions on the characters faces as well as the confined hallway and windowless rooms they're contained in. This is accompanied by a very strategic use of score, convincing set pieces and acting, as well as exceptional cinematography, particularly in the few scenes that are set outside the confines of the basement. When this is all combined, Alvarez communicates his character's journey from giggling, relatively disinterested teenagers to almost entirely psychologically broken people in a very intriguing and entertaining manner.
You can watch the trailer for the film here.
If you'd like to read more about the real events that are depicted in the film, visit: http://www.prisonexp.org/
Words: Liam Navey.
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