THE PRISON WITHIN plays as part of the ‘Documentaries For Change’ Section of the Paris International Film Festival 2021, running online until 14th February 2021
Passes and Tickets available at: https://www.parisintlfest.com/
Where does the line between forthright anger and forgiveness lie? Anybody who has been the victim directly or indirectly of a criminal act that has changed – and ended – lives knows that sometimes the moral high-ground from sympathisers and support groups towards those who have been imprisoned and deserve some level of compassion and support can be a hazy one when the anger and resentment kicks in.
Katherin Hervey’s documentary THE PRISON WITHIN attempts to focus on the faces behind the faceless, 2.3 million of which who are currently incarcerated in prisons across the continental United States. We are taken to San Quentin Prison where we meet a number of individuals who have been convicted with significant sentences by the State and learn of reform programmes that are attempting to provide a sense of belonging and self-worth to those who have done wrong.
Key figures keen to help the process are also interviewed and are themselves part of a dark experience in the past and try and place some context in the overview to ensure that something could become an action in the future. One such figure, Dionne, is the widow of a police officer killed in the line of duty, who wants to get answers for her loss and decides to take action for her emotional needs.
As the film progresses, we begin to learn about the tragedy equated with the trauma and the inherent legacy from these people and their own backgrounds, as well as the potential to expand the reform programmes that are used in San Quentin.
It’s not an easy argument in terms of what the film attempts to resolve in its’ message and inevitably there is going to be some resistance as to whether some of those imprisoned deserve a reform programme, preferring detachment and isolation as a suitable fate for them. Think of any number of notorious habitual criminals and killers and names that make your blood boil and chill and perhaps there isn’t a case to answer. Still, the film does provide an interesting conundrum-cum-dilemma for moralists and human rights organisations globally.
The film could also be a useful point of reference for older teenagers keen to find some sense of self-worth and educational establishments coupled with psychologists who could use it as a valuable and viable source of reference.
For more on the film, please go to:
Follow THE PRISON WITHIN on Social Media as follows:
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/theprisonwithin
TWITTER:
INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/prisonwithinfilm/
