What's SO special?

Rating: 7/10 (21 September 2006)

This is a good movie, and surely is right up there among the finest prison/concentration camp depictions which almost ALWAYS have at least competent quality. In my mind I compare this genre to "submarine"-films: confined space, lots of guys under constant threat, therefore drama and tension easily created without much sweat (ha ha). But also with obvious problems in providing something new. The same situations and characters are presented just from here to eternity, and I rest my case with this movie in question as follows: despotic warden, sadistic guard/s, evil fellow inmates who want to kill/rape you but also few trusted friends (along with that one old timer and his inevitable sad ending) and finally escape by the main protagonist who of course has been convicted in the first place based on false accusations or at least something not-so-bad crime.
So what's so special here? 9.1/10, come on... Maybe the same tricks worked here as in that other Stephen King's hit-penitentiary-drama "The Green Mile", i.e. manipulative scenes and quickly identified cardboard characters. Or maybe the majority of movie-goers consider what they're watching at face value and never mind that "I've seen this all before"-feel. Or maybe they haven't or just have a lousy memory? Yes I admit, I'm something of a cynic. But I also believe I'm able to spot an truly honest effort when I see one. Probably that's the reason why I consider the grandpa of them all, Mervyn LeRoy's 1932 "I'm A Fugitive From A Chain Gang" as the all-time best prison-flick. No film-snobbery here, as I hope you'll agree when you see this true classic.