Prisons & Sing Sing

This week on Bad Dads Film Review, it is prison week — although with Riggs and Chris missing, Sidey and Dan are doing hard time as a two-man crew.Before the main feature, we look at memorable prisons and prison stories from film, TV and music. That means everything from miscarriage-of-justice anger to escape-movie comfort food, brutal borstal drama, wizard prisons, sitcom prisons and, naturally, George Clooney being offensively cool in Out of Sight.Along the way we discuss:In the Name of the Father and the fury of the Guildford Four injusticeThe Shawshank Redemption, new fish, Red, Andy Dufresne and the power of endless TV rewatchabilityThe Green Mile as another Stephen King prison classicBirdman of Alcatraz, Escape from Alcatraz and The Rockwhy Pete is missed whenever a Sean Connery impression is requiredBrubaker, with Robert Redford discovering prison corruption from the insidethe glorious stupidity of Prison Break and its tattooed escape-plan premiseScum, Midnight Express, Azkaban and The Great EscapeFolsom Prison Blues, Jailhouse Rock, I Fought the Law and John Lennon’s Attica StatePorridge, HMP Slade and Fletcher trying to survive the system by wisecrackingEscape from Sobibor and the power of stories about people walking out through horrorOut of Sight, Glades Correctional Institution and the possibly illegal hotness of George ClooneyThen we review Sing Sing, directed by Greg Kwedar and starring Colman Domingo as John “Divine G” Whitfield. Inspired by the real Rehabilitation Through the Arts programme at Sing Sing Correctional Facility, the film follows a group of incarcerated men who use theatre to build community, process emotion and make something together in a place designed to strip people of freedom.The film opens with Divine G performing on stage. For a moment, it could be Broadway. Then the prison reality returns: standing to attention, routines, walls, control. That contrast becomes the film’s central power. Inside the rehearsal room, the men are not reduced to their crimes or their sentences. They are actors, writers, collaborators, comedians and friends.A big part of the film’s authenticity comes from the cast. Alongside professional actors like Domingo and Paul Raci, many performers are real RTA alumni and formerly incarcerated men playing versions of themselves. Sidey and Dan both pick up on how much that matters. The film feels lived-in because many of the faces on screen have lived some version of this world.The main dramatic spark comes when Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin joins the theatre group. He is guarded, tough and suspicious of vulnerability, but he is also the person who suggests the troupe should make a comedy instead of another serious drama. That choice leads to Breakin’ the Mummy’s Code, a real RTA production full of time travel, ancient Egypt, Hamlet and absolute chaos.Sidey had not heard of Sing Sing before this week and might not have watched it without the nomination, but he is very glad he did. Dan is just as positive. The dads admire the film’s warmth, pace and humanity, and the way it avoids becoming either a grim prison misery parade or a simplistic “art fixes everything” story.It is moving, funny, generous and grounded — a prison film about performance, friendship, grief, justice and purpose.Strong recommend from both dads.You can now text us anonymously to leave feedback, suggest future content or simply hurl abuse at us. We'll read out any texts we receive on the show. Click here to try it out!We love to hear from our listeners! By which I mean we tolerate it. If it hasn't been completely destroyed yet you can usually find us on twitter @dads_film, on Facebook Bad Dads Film Review, on email at [email protected] or on our website baddadsfilm.com. Until next time, we remain... Bad Dads