Felon

Year: 2008
Directed By: Ric Roman Waugh
Written By: Ric Roman Waugh

RYAN’S REVIEW

This movie was brought to me one day by a co-worker on a burned disc and I took it without having any idea what it was about. I watched it on my own with little expectations about something I had never heard of and was really surprised at how good the movie turned out to be. This movie has a very real feel to it and the main character is in a situation many of us can see ourselves in if certain circumstances took place. It’s a fascinating movie that offers a look into a world most normal people know nothing about. This movie looks a little low-budget at first but it draws you in and the story hits home on such a personal level. If nothing else, this is an exceptional prison movie because no raping is involved.

When I saw this movie for the first time we were dealing with a lot of break-ins at work and I got to speak to the police regularly during that time. I distinctly remember thinking that Stephen Dorff‘s character should have hit the criminal while he was in his house and not out on the lawn. We have weird laws in this country where people go to jail for defending their homes and criminals are protected. The innocent find themselves defenseless at the hands of criminals when it turns out there is little the police are allowed to do. It’s part of “the pussification of America” no doubt. This movie hits home hard because it is something we can all relate to. Who of us wouldn’t defend our homes and run the risk of accidentally killing the criminal we were victimized by? Then having to face the world of prison that most normal people know nothing about. Prison is a different world all together and most of us can’t even hope to know how to get along inside. There are many little pseudo-societies like this that many of us take for granted. Hobo camps being another example, it must be a different kind of world in that place that most of us can never understand and know nothing about. It’s a place for people that have been forgotten by most and many don’t give them any thought at all.

Part of this movie is loosely based off of actual events that went on in a California prison in the early 90s, but I haven’t done any research into what actually went on there. If any reader does know by all means leave a comment and let me know about it. This movie was written and directed by long time Hollywood stuntman Ric Roman Waugh. Obviously he learned a thing or two about film making during his time working on set, because he put together a great film. Stephen Dorff played his part well but for some reason I keep finding myself just feeling grateful the part went to someone other than Jason Statham. Val Kilmer did extensive research on his role and I think that shows in his performance. I have always like Kilmer, it’s because I grew up idolizing Madmartigan. I was a big 24 fan and for a time Marisol Nichols was part of the show. So when I first saw this film I thought it was cool to see her topless, although it was kind of an uncomfortable scene. That is just the shameless pervert inside talking though, the scene really hits home hard for women that find themselves in that position.

Overall I think this is a movie that is more than worth your time. I took a chance on it and was pleasantly surprised; I doubt I will be alone in that experience.  This is a movie that hits home for all of us and we can all relate to it in one way or another. What I find most interesting about it is that Amber was real reluctant to watch it but when we finally watched it together she got sucked in and seemed to really enjoy it.  This is a good movie and you should check it out if you have the opportunity.

AMBER’S REVIEW

I had never seen this movie and I was a little apprehensive about watching it for some reason. I honestly thought it was going to be a cliche movie about doing jail time. I was wrong and I really actually liked this movie a lot. The key to this movie being good is that we can all relate to it. What sends him to prison could actually happen to all of us. That’s what makes this movie so relatable. For me, when a person does something to be in jail I believe that they deserve to be there, but in this instance the man accidentally killed an intruder in the heat of the moment of trying to catch him. They then send him to prison for three years where he gets caught up in prison politics.

I recommend watching this movie if you have never seen it. It can hold your attention the entire time and give you a sense of what jail might be like for a non criminal type like the majority of us out here.

NEXT MOVIE: Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)