Riot in Cell Block 11

www.noiroftheweek.com

Coming as a big surprise to me, the forgotten gem Riot in Cell Block 11 is being released by Criterion on DVD soon.

The film is a semi-documentary noir released in the early 1950s. The film documents a fictional riot at the famous California prison, Folsom.

The film has none of the dramatic shadows found in classic noir. It's shot like a documentary. No showy camera angles. But don't let the films look -- or its lack of stars keep you from seeing it. It's one of a kind.

Directer Don Siegel was still years away from becoming Eastwood's mentor and the director of slick 70s and 80s big-budget productions. Some film historians will tell you he made his mark in the 70s while learning his craft in the 40s and ...

This begins with a television interview given by real-life prison reformer Richard McGee who reacts to a well documented spate of prison riots by informing the audience that they, too, must bear their share of responsibility for the conditions endured by the inmates. We are then taken to Block 11 where it does prove remarkably easy - especially given the prevailing tensions across the system - to nobble a guard, take his three colleagues hostage and then within a few hours take control of their entire prison. It's "Dunn" (Neville Brand) who came up with their plan, and escape isn't his intention. He wants both the prison governor (Emile Meyer) and the state one (Thomas Browne Henry) to agree to a series of demands that will ensure a more hu...