Prison Films: Justice, Punishment and Reform

What happens behind prison doors?

Who is in our prisons? Who deserves to be set free?

For nearly a century Hollywood has been putting cells on celluloid and exploring such questions.

Professor Kevin Kehrwald, Director of the Film Studies Program at Frostburg State University and author of Prison Movies: Cinema Behind Bars, addresses the origins of prison films and how they have shaped public perceptions of justice, mercy and redemption.

The talk will include short clips from relevant prison movies dating from the early days of sound to the present era of mass incarceration.  Films discussed include I AM A FUGITIVE FROM A CHAIN GAING, THE DEFIANT ONES, HOUSE OF WOMEN, THE LONGEST YARD, ESCAPE  FROM ALCATRAZ, THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION and THE GREEN MILE.