Review of The Stanford Prison Experiment (2015) by Charlie L — 02 Jul 2018

When I was in university, I took a Psychology course. During this course I learned about the Stanford Prison Experiment and it caused me to rethink how I saw experiments. I even did a paper on how this changed me and how it changed the world.

When I learned that they were doing a movie based on the experiment and that the original proprietor of the experiment would be working alongside the filmmakers and the script writers, I was all in. When it came to watching the film, it became very clear to me that simply reading about what happened and seeing brief pictures of the hallway did not prepare me for how actors would portray these various characters and just how far they would go in their portrayal of the abuses and the squalor suffered by those involved.

This is not a movie for the faint of heart as it is unapologetic about how it treats the prisoners and how it shows the deterioration of the morals of the guards. Despite knowing from experience with the source material many of the things that were gonna happen, it still shocked me when they happened due to the great acting and superb film making.

Any person that wants to take Psychology in a post-secondary capacity or wish to obtain a job in a correctional facility, this movie is a great way to prepare yourself for what you will see in both instances.