So says every warden on today’s podcast, Alcatraz was the most secure prison ever constructed. Film directors, of course, took that as a challenge and gave us movies about prisoners with dreams too big for the famous San Francisco jail. This week, Be Reel breaks out with “Birdman of Alcatraz” (1962), “Escape From Alcatraz” (1979), and “The Rock” (1996). The Rock turned 25 at the beginning of the month (June 7, to be exact), and we thought now would be a good time to meditate on prison movies and, specifically, those set in Alcatraz.
Burning questions include:
- Of all the prisons worldwide (with all their human misery), why did Alcatraz have all the Hollywood fun?
- Is Sean Connery’s charm the overriding principle of Michael Bay’s 1996 action smorgasbord? And can anyone truly predict when Cage will Cage?
- Do we underrate Burt Lancaster’s sheer warmth as a movie star? And how does that complicate a movie about an inmate with a conflicted reputation in “Birdman”?
- Is the lack of character development in “Escape From Alcatraz” its secret strength? Its biggest weakness? Can it be both in this Clint-Siegel classic?
Dig into the full podcast discussion below and let us know what you think.
As always, The Playlist Podcast is part of The Playlist Podcast Network—which includes Be Reel, Deep Focus, The Fourth Wall, and more—and can be heard on iTunes, AnchorFM, Soundcloud, Stitcher, and now on Spotify. You can stream the podcast via the AnchorFM embed below or up top to listen on this page. Follow us on iTunes, and you’ll get this podcast as well as our other shows regularly. Be sure to subscribe and drop us a comment or a rating, as we appreciate it. Thank you for listening.