Friday Night Movie: The Stanford Prison Experiment

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"Twenty-four male students out of seventy-five were selected to take on randomly assigned roles of prisoners and guards in a mock prison situated in the basement of the Stanford psychology building." (IMDb)

One of the most controversial psychological studies from the 1970s will be coming our way to the big screen. The study has already seen two film adaptations and a reality series on BBC.

Now, we have director Kyle Patrick Alvarez taking on the story. This film is aiming to have the most authentic take on what really happened.

For those of you who have no clue what all this is about, here goes. The 1971 experiment involved students assigned to be prisoners or guards in a fake prison. Psychology professor Philip Zimbardo intended on using this research to determine whether or not prison abuse was related to personality traits within the two groups. The experiment soon unravels and the students become against one another, as the guards subject the prisoners to psychological abuse. After only six days, the experiment came to an end.

The film which stars Bill Crudup as Philip Zimbardo and Ezra Miller (Perks of Being a Wallflower) and Tye Sheridan (Mud) as two of the prisoners, saw positive reviews at Sundance this year.

The Stanford Prison Experiment opens in theaters July 17. You can check out the trailer below. What do you think?


Sources: IMDb, The Guardian