In a tragic story of a family man (Dorff) who goes to prison for protecting his family and home… then just tries to survive amoung the inmates, Val Kilmer reluctantly… and triumphantly comes to the rescue!

“Felon” tackles 2 tough issues – defending yourself against an invader and the often brutal and twisted world inside prisons… and does it with eye-opening intensity.

“Felon” (on DVD)

(2008) (rated: R for brutal violence, pervasive language and brief nudity) (1 hr, 40 min)

Starring: Val Kilmer, Stephen Dorff, Marisol Nichols, Harold Perrineau, Sam Shepard 

Genre: Drama/Crime/Prison

The Plot: A family man convicted of killing an intruder must cope with life afterward in the violent penal system.

MY TAKE (spoiler free):

Through Dorff’s character, we are put right in the middle of it all… as he goes through the justice system and lockups to the gripping and de-humanizing scenes inside the walls of the state prison.

In the lead role, Dorff is very good in one of his best roles (that I’ve seen) since “Blade”… taking himself and the audience through a transformation as the story unfolds.

It was no surprise that Kilmer was solid, with an excellent turn as a smart, but slightly delusional convicted murderer and veteran of the prison system, guiding Dorff’s “prison rookie” character…. ultimately going through a personality and belief transformation as Dorff’s character does… just in a different way.

Marisol Nichols (“24″, “Blind Justice”) shines with an emotional supporting role as Dorff’s wife, while Harold Perrineau’s hardline prison guard is good, but much different from his role on ABC’s “Lost”.

In a twist of character development, the movie keeps you guessing on who to like and who not to like… as the lines between good and bad become blurred between prisoners and prison guards.

The cinematography and editing were a good blend of set shots and handheld cameras give you an “unbalanced” feeling whenever the filmmakers switch to the handheld during the scenes through the eyes of the prisoners… the tight, confined spaces felt telt and confined and often humiliating.

THE BOTTOM LINE: 

“Felon” is intelligent, tough and uncomfortable… but it also gets my respect for not pulling punches to sugarcoat life in prison.. or to make a happy Hollywood ending…. I give it 7.9 out of 10…. the intensity is great, but parts of the movie lacked the *umph*… to put it into the “8.0″ category!!

So what did you think?  Please post a comment!

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