Sort by Popularity - Most Popular Movies and TV Shows tagged with keyword "american-prison"
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1. Orange Is the New Black (2013–2019)
TV-MA | 59 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
Convicted of a decade-old crime of transporting drug money, ordinarily law-abiding Piper Chapman is sentenced to 18 months behind bars and quickly discovers the realities of life-changing prison time.
Stars: Taylor Schilling, Danielle Brooks, Taryn Manning, Emma Myles
Votes: 320,859
2. Cool Hand Luke (1967)
GP | 127 min | Crime, Drama
A laid-back Southern man is sentenced to two years in a rural prison, but refuses to conform.
Director: Stuart Rosenberg | Stars: Paul Newman, George Kennedy, Strother Martin, J.D. Cannon
Votes: 189,110 | Gross: $16.22M
3. Brubaker (1980)
R | 131 min | Crime, Drama
The new warden of a small prison farm in Arkansas tries to clean it up of corruption after initially posing as an inmate.
Director: Stuart Rosenberg | Stars: Robert Redford, Yaphet Kotto, Morgan Freeman, Jane Alexander
Votes: 19,493 | Gross: $37.12M
4. The Getaway (1972)
PG | 123 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A recently-released ex-con and his loyal wife go on the run after a heist goes awry.
Director: Sam Peckinpah | Stars: Steve McQueen, Ali MacGraw, Ben Johnson, Sally Struthers
Votes: 35,806 | Gross: $36.73M
5. Murder in the First (1995)
R | 122 min | Drama, Thriller
An eager and idealistic young attorney defends an Alcatraz prisoner accused of murdering a fellow inmate. The extenuating circumstances: his client had just spent over three years in solitary confinement.
Director: Marc Rocco | Stars: Christian Slater, Kevin Bacon, Gary Oldman, Embeth Davidtz
Votes: 30,761 | Gross: $17.38M
6. Birdman of Alcatraz (1962)
Not Rated | 147 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
A surly convicted murderer held in permanent isolation redeems himself when he becomes a renowned bird expert.
Director: John Frankenheimer | Stars: Burt Lancaster, Karl Malden, Thelma Ritter, Neville Brand
Votes: 19,375
7. Brute Force (1947)
Passed | 98 min | Crime, Drama, Film-Noir
At a tough penitentiary, prisoner Joe Collins plans to rebel against Captain Munsey, the power-mad chief guard.
Director: Jules Dassin | Stars: Burt Lancaster, Hume Cronyn, Charles Bickford, Yvonne De Carlo
Votes: 11,593
8. Baby the Rain Must Fall (1965)
Not Rated | 100 min | Drama
In Texas, a woman and her young daughter head down to another town where the girl's irresponsible, hotheaded and immature father has just been released from prison on parole.
Director: Robert Mulligan | Stars: Lee Remick, Steve McQueen, Don Murray, Paul Fix
Votes: 2,033
9. Black Tuesday (1954)
Approved | 80 min | Crime, Drama, Film-Noir
Gangster Vincent Canelli and bank robber Peter Manning escape from Death Row minutes before their execution by electric chair.
Director: Hugo Fregonese | Stars: Edward G. Robinson, Jean Parker, Peter Graves, Milburn Stone
Votes: 681
10. Inside the Walls of Folsom Prison (1951)
Approved | 87 min | Crime, Drama, Film-Noir
At California's Folsom Prison, escape attempts and riots are on the rise due to the old-school sadistic style of management of a brutal warden.
Director: Crane Wilbur | Stars: Steve Cochran, David Brian, Philip Carey, Ted de Corsia
Votes: 428
11. Caged (I) (2021)
Not Rated | 81 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
An African American male is imprisoned and placed in solitary confinement after being found guilty of murdering his wife, as he's haunted by internal demons and his dead wife, and pushed to the breaking point by an abusive female guard.
Director: Aaron Fjellman | Stars: Edi Gathegi, Melora Hardin, Angela Sarafyan, Tony Amendola
Votes: 583
12. Outside the Wall (1950)
Passed | 80 min | Crime, Drama, Film-Noir
A paroled convict's infatuation with a gold-digger nurse working at a sanitarium leads him to crime.
Director: Crane Wilbur | Stars: Richard Basehart, Marilyn Maxwell, Signe Hasso, Dorothy Hart
Votes: 422
13. Riot in Cell Block 11 (1954)
Not Rated | 80 min | Crime, Drama, Film-Noir
Fed up with the inhumane prison living conditions, a general prison riot breaks out, leading to hostage-taking, a stand-off with the guards and eventual negotiations with the prison administration officials.
Director: Don Siegel | Stars: Neville Brand, Emile Meyer, Frank Faylen, Leo Gordon
Votes: 2,453
14. Convicted (1950)
Passed | 91 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A D.A. becomes the prison warden where he tries to help an inmate he prosecuted, because he believes his sentence was excessive.
Director: Henry Levin | Stars: Glenn Ford, Broderick Crawford, Millard Mitchell, Dorothy Malone
Votes: 1,498
15. Big House, U.S.A. (1955)
Approved | 83 min | Crime, Drama, Film-Noir
Gerry Barker finds a lost boy whose rich father is extorted into paying a ransom for his return but the boy accidentally dies and Gerry goes to prison.
Director: Howard W. Koch | Stars: Broderick Crawford, Ralph Meeker, Reed Hadley, William Talman
Votes: 1,165
16. Crazywise (2016)
Not Rated | 82 min | Documentary
What can we learn from those who have turned their psychological crisis into a positive transformative experience? During a quarter-century documenting indigenous cultures, human-rights ... See full summary »
Directors: Phil Borges, Kevin Tomlinson | Stars: Angeles Arrien, Phil Borges, Laura Delano, Carroll Dunham
Votes: 151
17. Belly of the Beast (I) (2020)
TV-14 | 82 min | Documentary
When an unlikely duo discovers a pattern of illegal sterilizations in women's prisons, they wage a near impossible battle against the Department of Corrections.
Director: Erika Cohn | Stars: Lynn Acosta, Pamela Baker, Teresa Brown, Cynthia Chandler
Votes: 103
18. The Haunting of Alcatraz (2020)
86 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
Alcatraz. 1937. A young prison guard working the night shift experiences a string of chilling disturbances culminating in the bizarre death of an inmate at the most famous prison in the world
Director: Steve Lawson | Stars: Tom Hendryk, Helen Crevel, Chris Lines, Marcus Langford
Votes: 254
19. Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison (2008)
90 min | Documentary
Cash performs a concert for the inmates of California's Folsom Prison, and the show was recorded for a live album.
Director: Bestor Cram | Stars: Gene Beley, Jim Brown, June Carter Cash, John Carter Cash
Votes: 241
20. Eastern State: Living Behind the Walls (2008)
76 min | Documentary
Eastern State: Living Behind the Walls is a chilling exploration of one of America's most notorious prisons. It opened it's doors in 1829 and operated for 142 years, closing in 1972. This ... See full summary »
Director: Tony Alosi
21. The Feminist on Cellblock Y (2018)
75 min | Documentary
The Feminist on Cellblock Y is an American documentary directed by Contessa Gayles and co-produced with Emma Lacey-Bordeaux for CNN. The titular subject is Richie Reseda, an inmate at a ... See full summary »
Director: Contessa Gayles
Votes: 28
22. Rock Secret: Surviving Alcatraz (2011 Video)
Not Rated | 55 min | Documentary
After fifty-one years protecting his 'Rock Secret', former convict Robert Luke has returned to Alcatraz.
Director: Ian C. Craig | Star: Robert Luke