SoTrumpBelieve
Must See Movie...
Curt
Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.
Francene Odetta
It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.
AwokeEnrightened
Isn't it sad when the more interesting films out there are not being released into the theaters, but debut on pay cable channels? While "Against the Wall" is not perfect, I am willing to guarantee it is better than ninety percent of the number one box office movies that have opened in the last year. Kyle MacLachlan, proving he does not need David Lynch to turn in a good performance, plays Michael Smith, a new guard at New York's Attica Correctional Facility. His father, Hal (Harry Dean Stanton), recently retired as a guard there after twenty five years and now runs a bar, but Michael's uncle Ed (Tom Bower) is still a guard. Michael has skipped from job to job and looks to make this his career, ready to support his pregnant wife Sharon (Anne Heche).Things are not good from the beginning. While Michael is no bleeding heart, he can still spot prisoner neglect. The inmates are treated like animals, and Michael's entire orientation and training consist of taking barked orders from guard supervisor Welsbad (Frederic Forrest). Things begin to come to a head, with everything going to hell because of a can of soup.Prisoner Chaka (a scary Clarence Williams III) is cooking soup in his cell with an illegal device, is caught, and throws the food in guard's face. The prison store will sell soup, but no way to heat and eat it. The prisoners revolt and take a cell block, and the ill prepared guards are in their path. One guard is beaten until near death, and the rest of the guards are taken hostage in the yard, where all the inmates have gathered.One of the cooler heads among the inmates is Jamaal X (Samuel L. Jackson, currently my favorite actor working). Jamaal wants to keep the guards alive and use them as bargaining chips to negotiate with. Jamaal has also been the victim of guard cruelty, and his back and forth between intelligent dialogue and a burning anger in his face is the stuff of great acting. Commissioner Oswald (Philip Bosco) is brought in to negotiate with the inmates after convincing New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller not to storm the complex and lose more lives.Hostage Smith begins to refuse needs like shoes and bathroom trips, not wanting to bend to the inmates. The guards begin arguing among themselves, reflecting the the differences between Jamaal and Chaka. Talks break down when amnesty for the prisoners is refused (the injured guard dies). The governor sends in the state police and state troops to take back the facility. It is a fact of history (this happened in the early '70's) that almost forty men were killed in the battle, including ten hostages, all of gunshot wounds fired by the would-be rescuers.John Frankenheimer was a great film maker. He had his share of duds, but at least he made some good, strong films. This ranks up there with many of his successes. My complaints about the film? I wish we could have found out more about Jamaal. While the film is obviously told from Michael's point of view, I wanted more of a balance between these two men. Catch phrases like "power to the people," "getting back to Africa," and "Black Panthers" are tossed around but never come into any sort of context because of this lack of insight into Jamaal.The entire cast is excellent. Anne Heche is given a great role to play, never making Sharon wishy washy nor too strong. Her only concern is her husband William, and Heche is believable. While some of the roles are obvious villains, Frankenheimer keeps everyone reined in and does not let one actor overshadow another. Jackson and MacLachlan's final scenes are strong, but they do step into melodrama with a hand hold.
"Against the Wall" is a brutally violent film. The Attica riot changed some things about prison life in the United States today, but there is always room for improvement, as the closing credits let us know. This is not perfect, but it is eye opening.
Tony
It's well worth watching, it's only failing is it starts with the PC view of a brutal White led prison regime. These men were surrounded by very violent inmates who not only attacked the guards but murdered each other before the take over even happened. A basic truth applies you can't judge people and past events by your modern morals. The finale probably mirrors scenes that have horrified us recently that would automatically shift our perception of bad guys. As for the actual ending, it just portrays how the mightiest nation on Earth can't seem to stop prevaricating on what action to take, let alone doing it right. The real story is hostage lives matter, but political careers mean far more.
theotherbritney
"Against the Wall" is an amazing portrayal of the uprising that took place at the Attica prison in the 1970's New York. It is an important film that shows, that while the uprising caused the loss of life among prisoners, staff, and civilian personnel, it was what reformed the American prison system for the rest of time. It is an important legacy and stepping stone in both American history and in the civil rights movement that needs to be told. The director did a fantastic portrayal of the true life situation to the screen in the HBO made for TV movie, which has since moved to DVD. Prison life was changed because of this one event and because of what these men stood for.
encyclpedia
It's hard to always understand what prison is like, and Attica depicted an old one, but it was still prison, and it was gripping. This was a good movie. The character played by Kyle Maclachlan was a wimpy one, but yet, a way for us to see things through an innocent standpoint. This was a movie about a prison that was not contained to the proper ordinance and showed what could happen if it wasn't. In that result, it played out to be a movie that can keep you at *awe* and utter despair for the prison gaurds. The role played by Samuel L. Jacson was a good one as well. He is always been such a good actor and to me, he shined in this one, to a point. Those were the good things about it, and my only gripes were seeing naked inmates, Mike Smiths' feistiness, and the totally annoying head gaurd. I forget his name, and I don't much want to know anyways. Aside of those little pests, I enjoyed the film to it's fullest. Frankenheimer did a good job directing this one. This was my rating: 8/10
