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Your tax dollars are paying to lock up entire city blocks. Still think the system works?
TMDB
80
Watch(US)

Prison State (2014)

unflinching journalismsystemic rageintimate devastation

Overview

Documentary

From PBS and Frontline: With unprecedented access, FRONTLINE investigates the impact of mass incarceration in America, focusing on a troubled housing project in Louisville, Kentucky, and a statewide effort to reverse the trend. There are some 2.3 million people behind bars in the U.S. today, but a disproportionate number come from a few city neighborhoods, and in some places the concentration is so dense that states are spending millions of dollars a year to lock up residents of single blocks. "Prison State" examines one community, Louisville's Beecher Terrace housing project, and follows the lives of four residents as they move in and out of custody, while Kentucky tries break that cycle and shrink its prison state.

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Content warning

Standout Aspects

Direction

Daniel Edge's unflinching four-year longitudinal access.

Editing

Juxtaposing state budgets against single mothers' grief.

Production

Beecher Terrace access unprecedented for incarcerated subjects.

Best for:Solo: When you're ready to get angry at your government.·Streaming: PBS app, obviously. Support public media.·Rewatch: After policy debates when you need receipts.
Heads up:Disturbing: Graphic depiction of solitary confinement psychological damage.·Emotional: Children witnessing parental arrests and cyclical hopelessness.
D

Director

Daniel Edge

ReleasedApr 29, 2014
Runtime1h 30m
StatusReleased

Vibe

Pacesteady
Intensityhigh
Tonedark
Feelheavy
GBH

Top Cast

Will Lyman

Will Lyman

Himself - Narrator (Voice)

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Opens AI chat

Deep Dive

Trivia, insights & behind the scenes

Trivia

Kentucky's 2011 sentencing reforms, featured prominently, were later partially rolled back after political pressure—making the film's hopeful ending tragically dated.

1 item hidden due to spoilers
YouTube

Frontline: Prison State

Frontline: Prison State

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