The Alabama Solution - Dans l'enfer de la prison

This is what a correctional officer (CO) shouted to prisoners! I kid you not! And this is just the tip of the iceberg. Because this HBO documentary show that the Alabama Department of Corrections (DOC) is one that is rife of abuse, assault and even murder. And that at the hands of CO's!

A famous author once said: "The degree of civilization of a society can be judged by entering its prisons". The difficulty however is to get an unbiased and fair view of the prison system. As a fan of content that is about jails and prisons - both in written and video format - I have consumed much of this content in the past. From books about famous prison riots and popular shows like "MSNBC Lockup", there is a great abundance of material available. But the issue is that much of it is curated in some sort or way. This whereby a "gatekeeper" like a prison official was involved or looking over the shoulders of the ones making the content.

Well, this HBO documentary is different in all of its aspects. This thanks to (1) the proliferation of advanced smartphones having video streaming capability supported by a camera; (2) access to high bandwidth data connections in prisons; and (3) a systematic understaffing in the Alabama's DOC. As a consequence, prisoners are able to show the conditions they are living in. In a way that no curation or gatekeeping by prison officials is taking place. As such, HBO is able to show the real conditions that prisoners in the Alabama DOC are living in. And mind you, this documentary is not for the faint of heart, since it even shows photos of an inmates face after he was beaten to death by a lieutenant in the Alabama DOC. A lieutenant that is in a gang-like group of correctional officers called "The Wrecking Crew". A lieutenant that you will see go to an official deposition clearly showing a controversial "thin blue line"-bracelet, that is banned in several police departments law.

This documentary is a great piece of journalistic work that again shows the impact that HBO can have. In my opinion, this documentary is a great example of what HBO has done so often in the past, but which we regrettable fail to see in the past few years. And that is to cause discussion! And this not by joining the easy bandwagon of joining discussions on gender, but instead by exploring avenues that few have done so before. By kicking the dangerous beehive that is the multibillion dollar industry of the DOC - which supports any abusive officer in any way - HBO surely has taken a risk. But as a result, we get to see an awesome and unique piece of journalism.

In my opinion, this documentary easily get a score if 9/10. Just short of the best IMDB scores that have ever been obtained . This by fictional accounts of the prison system like "The Shawshank Redemption" (#1 IMDb ever) or "The Green Mile" (#25 IMDb ever). But the latter two are of course romanticized views, instead of the real world.

This documentary shows the perspectives of people imprisoned in the violently corrupt American prison system in Alabama. It is so important to amplify the voices of those who have been disappeared and deemed worthless and expendable by society. If being labeled a "criminal" justifies any and all violence against you, what rights do any of us have? Are prisons really something beneficial in any way to anyone other than the abusive people running them and profiting off them? Do they help protect us? Or do they just allow truly violent people the ability to murder and harm with impunity?

As an example of documentary film making, 'The Alabama Solution' is a top-notch effort, containing excellent first-hand accounts and well-researched material, culminating in a cogent narrative allowing the viewer to draw their own conclusions. An expose of the American penal system within the eponymous state, its devastating portrayal of the frequently discompassionate, hypocritical actions of the Alabama government (and the squalid, violent, sorely ineffectual penal institutions they operate) will leave your jaw agape. BE WARNED: This is not an easy watch, as several authentic, unredacted documents and images depicting powerful beatings and disgusting living conditions abound. Still, it's a necessary watch for anyone hoping to garner a better understanding of such institutions and just how far short of the mark our well-intentioned (if ignorant) leaders fall, even with an ostensibly moral mandate and billions of dollars at their disposal.

In short, this is a harsh, gut-wrenching look at the atrocities within the American prison system, one that serious documentary aficionados will find edifying and satisfying essential viewing. Watch and be painfully enlightened.

This film is the result of a unique series of communications over years with several prisoners in the Alabama prison system. Through contraband audio and video dispatches, among other recordings, we learn of conditions and events that filmmakers and journalists would otherwise be prevented from investigating and reporting. The harrowing story reveals corruption endemic to Alabama prisons, and prisons all over the United States. "The Alabama Solution" shows what so many states work hard to conceal.

Ultimately, the filmmakers, and especially the prisoners who appear in the film, may not be rewarded for the courage it took to tell this story. Perhaps what really matters is that Americans see what happens behind the prison walls and in the corridors of state government, at all costs. Maybe by seeing it, we can move closer to accountability for it.

As "The Alabama Solution" (2025 release; 115 min.) opens, we are in "Alabama, 2019", specifically at the Easterling state prison. Inmates are complaining about the heat and the horrendous living conditions in general. Along the way we learn that the 14 Alabama state prisons are occupied at 200% occupation, with only 1/3 of the required staff. We are introduced to Robert Earl Council, who has been in prison over 30 years, the 5 last of which in solitary confinement. At this point we are 10 minutes into the documentary.

Couple of comments: this is the latest from award-winning Andrew Jarecki ("Capturing the Friedmans", "The Jinx: The Life and Death of Robert Durst"). He co-directed, co-wrote and co-produced it with Charlotte Kaufman. This documentary is the result of about a decade's worth of collecting footage that the inmates have secretly caught on their cell phones (even though cell phone are prohibited--as are drugs, equally amply available). The central case of the documentary centers on Steven Davis, who was beaten, bludgeoned and stomped to death by prison guards, after which the authorities covered it up as best as they could (and as they always did with many other such "incidents"). When the US Department of Justice starts an investigation, the Alabama Republican machinery works overtime to delay, deny and impede the investigation with every means available, insisting instead that "an Alabama problem calls for an Alabama Solution". And what problem are they referring to? Just watch! Please note that this makes for difficult viewing at times, not to mention that it will make your blood boil, as the Alabama so-called "Christian" political leaders behave in a way that is anything but "Christian". For shame.

"The Alabama Solution" premiered at this year's Sundance Film Festival to immediate and widespread critical acclaim. It is currently rated 100% Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. The documentary started airing on HBO this weekend, and it's also streaming on HBO Max, where I watched it last night. If you are interested in understanding what is going on in the Alabama prison system, yes, right here in the United States of America, I'd readily suggest you check this out, and draw your own conclusion.