Topic: Crime & the Media
Question: How realistic is the representation of prison life as portrayed in moving image?
Question: How realistic is the representation of prison life as portrayed in moving image?
www.theguardian.co.uk/film/filmblog/2008/jun/14/ (article is called if only british prison films were as hardhitting as their american counterparts)
*prison life as portrayed by the media,is it realistic - type into google
*prison life portrayed in films/tv, is it realistic - type into google (article on Scum)
*prison life in films, is it realistic
*prison life in films, is it realistic
write summaries of what you can find, record articles etc for bibliography
what are we trying to achieve by using certain pieces of info, what we have achieved, & what we'll do next
(imdb.com scum user comments)
The user comments here, some of whom are from those who have worked inside prisons, state that the representation of prison life in Scum to be very realistic, especially for the time period it was created in (1979). Some have said that Scum displays the abuse of human rights felt back then in prison/borstals.
Scum is seen by many to be one of the most shocking films depicting prison life.
(selfgrowth.com) The 'prison stereotype' of criminals varies: a psycho/sociopath, an intelligent criminal, a criminal with morals, an extremely violent criminal, a gangster, a racist criminal etc. Some of these stereotypes are predominant in prison media such as GoodFellas, though not particularly seen in Scum. The article also states that most people in California are in prison for their part in petty crimes such as theft with violent crime being "practically absent."
The Shawshank Redemption offers a different message to that in Scum. There is no feeling of hope, redemption, change or rehabilitation in Scum, whereas that is the main philosophy in The Shawshank Redemption. From gathering this information I intend to interview those that I know who have been in prison or a young offenders institution and see which film they feel portrays their experiences more realistically. I am also going to research a few other prison media, including prison TV dramas such as Porridge and Prison Break. If possible I will create a questionnaire regarding whether the public agree/disagree that certain films portray prison life accurately, as far as they are aware/in their opinion.
other media to look at
*midnight express
*prison break/porridge
*green mile/goodfellas/natural born killers/clockwork orange?
