Friday, August 7, 2015

The Stanford Prison Experiment

I feel like all I've done this summer is watch movies (and pack) but, since I love movies, it's kind of a good thing!  Last night I went to The Stanford Prison Experiment which is a film that I tried, unsuccessfully, to see at Sundance this year.  It is absolutely riveting in an intense and disturbing sort of way but I still can't stop thinking about it!  Based on an actual experiment conducted at Stanford University in 1971 by psychology professor Philip Zimbardo, it tells the story of a simulation in which college students act as prisoners and guards to determine the cause of abusive behavior.   At first the students randomly selected to be guards are self-conscious and read from a provided script while stifling their laughter but they quickly become very abusive to the prisoners and take delight in humiliating them, especially a guard (Michael Angarano) who adopts the persona of a character from the movie Cool Hand Luke.  The prisoners, after a few attempts at rebellion by 8612 (Ezra Miller), eventually become docile and perform any degrading task required of them without question.  It is difficult to watch, particularly when Zimbardo (Billy Crudup) takes pleasure in what he is seeing on his monitors and refuses to intervene for the sake of his research.  His girlfriend Christina (Olivia Thirlby) accuses him of losing perspective and he eventually calls an end to the experiment after only six days.  The set of the make-shift prison in the hallway of the psychology building is extremely claustrophobic as are the tight steadicam shots which make you feel as if you are a part of the action.  The young and relatively unknown cast of guards and prisoners is excellent but, while the dehumanization of the students is the point of the experiment, I found it difficult to keep track of the characters because the prisoners are only referred to by number and the guards are all dressed the same.  The score is incredibly ominous and heightens the tension so much that it almost becomes unbearable to watch.  It is exhausting and uncomfortable but it is one of the most provocative films I've seen in a long time.  It certainly led to some interesting discussions in the lobby after my screening!  I definitely wouldn't recommend it for everyone but I found it to be fascinating.

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