Brubaker (1980)

Brubaker is one of those underseen hidden gems I had no idea existed until I began researching little-known movies that might peak my interest. I adore prison dramas no matter how ordinary or clichéd they may be. This movie is abundant of prison movie clichés, but it is the political nature of the story that fascinated me, as well as the strong cast. Let's get the bitter stuff out of the way first. What do I mean by a clichéd story? It is all about the characters and who they represent. We got the idealistic reformer, the tough-as-nails colored guard, the rotten person on the prison board, and the psycho prisoner. These type of characters pop up in nearly all prison movies, but at least we have a very talented cast playing these roles with near perfection.Before I can delve in with what fascinated me the most, we need to discuss the plot. There is a new prison warden at Wakefield Prison. Henry Brubaker (Robert Redford) decides to begin his new position in an unorthodox way-disguised as an inmate. He looks, thinks, and pays attention to what the situation is at the prison. After having enough of the corruption, he reveals himself as the new warden. His agenda is ending the corruption once and for all. When the local business community led by John Deach (Murray Hamilton), whom benefits from the corruption begins to fight back, Brubaker is going to have plenty of trouble on his hands Now we got that out of the way, I will talk about what truly fascinated me about the movie: the corruption of the prison system and the attempted overhaul of the system. One thing that struck out to me immediately is that there are no prison guards. Instead, there are prisoner trustees that get promotions if they shoot any escaping prisoners. The first thirty or so minutes of the film highlights the brutality such as the beatings, the sexual assaults, the bribery, and so forth. The way Brubaker revealed himself to his prisoners is very genius and it gives him a sense of all the corruption happening around him. But then the underlying theme that change is hard for some people happens. We get a sense of how big this corruption scam is. How all the people in the local community are benefiting from this scam. The movie does a great job highlighting the events in the movies.Because the story is moved forward though events, the characterization of the people in the movie is an afterthought. It did not bother me as it may have bothered other people, mainly because the story intrigued me. That being said, the cast did a terrific job. The one character that was fleshened out was Robert Redford's Brubaker. Redford is a really talented actor and his performance kept you riveted, although I kept thinking he seems too nice to be a prison warden. We all know Murray Hamilton gets through by being a slimeball, and that is no difference here. We get an early Morgan Freeman performance as one of the deranged prisoners spent too much time under solitary confinement. There are also notable supporting character performances from the likes of Yaphet Kotto (from Alien fame) and Jane Alexander. There characters were not written well, but the actual performances were solid.Overall, Brubaker is an underrated gem. It is a drama that highlights the corruption in the prison system and what makes this film more interesting is that it is based on the true life events of warden Thomas Murton who was hired by Arkansas governor Winthrop Rockefeller to reform one of the prisons, but was let go after one year due to bad publicity. W.D Richter's screenplay does manage to convey how Brubaker's methods created bad press for the town. More care could have been given to the characters, but it is the story that truly moved me. As a fan of prison dramas, I added one more prison drama to my list.My Grade: A-

In the opening scene of Brubaker, a group of convicts are on a bus on the way to prison. Among the prisoners is Robert Redford, with a perfectly windswept 'do and a very innocent looking face. In jail, Robert Redford—and the audience—is exposed to some very upsetting goings-on, including senseless beatings for no reason other than to warn the other prisoners, knife fights, rape, inedible food, and corrupt officials. But it isn't until Morgan Freeman, a man in solitary confinement, throws a fit that Robert Redford steps forward. Turns out, he's been undercover the whole time. He's the new warden.While it's got a fantastic premise, most of the film just doesn't work. Everyone knows Robert Redford is passionate about his causes, but in this movie, he's just too handsome and glamorous to pull off the role. Wouldn't he have a love interest, or any other kind of connection in his life that might take his attention away from the prison? The first several years I saw Robert Redford in films, I really didn't like him because I found him cold, with a chip on his shoulder. Then, of course, he won me over in The Great Gatsby, but in Brubaker he's a little cold and has a pretty large chip on his shoulder. If you like him best in All the President's Men and similar films, you'll probably feel differently than I did about Brubaker.To be fair, there's one really great scene in the movie, the Morgan Freeman scene. The two usually understated actors throw caution to the wind and lose their tempers, and it's terrific to watch. So, my advice is to enjoy the opening sequence and after Robert Redford says the fantastic line, "Any f***ing color he wants," then turn it off. Trust me, it doesn't get any better than that.Kiddy warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, due to extreme violence, I wouldn't let my kids watch it.

Good story and excellently directed and acted out from all points of view. It is worthy to mention that there is so much real life here as to what is going in prisons today especially the ones run in the south where no one do anything about them without tremendous efforts. Rape, harsh punishments, and threats are all driven by fear and promotes the survival of the fittest concept followed closely by dog eat dog. The real life story took courage to come out and the man behind it all can claim that his life and his work amounted to something decent based on the end results and changes. May we all bring about good change, make the world a better place, and then hand-off to the next fellow prompting him to do the same. Good snack movie, tasty drink and no cell phone, texting etc. Go potty before hand too. Let the movie unfold without interruptions so that it can activate all your emotions thus pulling you into the film. Isn't that what good entertainment does? Enjoy and note: I have seen this movie so many times and will see it again & again. Its a sure thing

I first saw this movie in 1980 when it came out. Growing up this was one of my very favorite movies. In the beginning when Brubaker sneaks into the prison as an inmate - this is the stuff that kids dream of. Nothing could be more exciting. Slowed down a bit in the middle but picks up towards the end.I thought it was a great movie then & after watching it again in 2012 still think it is awesome. Redford is great. Keith is great. Morgan Freeman is great. Well acted by all.I don't comment on movies much because all I have to really say is - I like it.