Attica

Open my eyes on the brutality by correction. Which their job was care custody and control. Me being a retired correction officer l know people do crazy stuff in a group. Alot of correction believe their family member could never go to prison. The President at that time condone this.

There are extensive interviews with all sides here, except for politicans like Rockefeller and Nixon. The ones complaining about "one sided" or "bias" are simply either lying or have faulty memories. There's extensive interviews with guards and especially the families of guards and administration. The warden also, he shows up in the film every few minutes.

And what were they insisting on? "Let's give equal weight to abuse and racism." Give equal weight to little medical care, denying right to practice religion, even petty abuse like one roll of toilet paper a month. Give equal weight to the fact that all guard deaths were by friendly fire by incompetently planned attacks.

Some of it is remarkable, white prisoners admitting they got favored treatment. This is the most insightful of the Attica documentaries or films based on the hostage crisis.

The last 25/30 minutes of this really elevates this doc to a different level, even if it's as painful as revolting.

Yes, I was mostly ignorant about this. I'm not American and I was only born almost 20 years after. This was shocking as hell, I knew there were some deaths, but never thought it was a cold bloody massacre. How come not a single one of those racist pigs were prosecuted for the killings?

I can't even analyse this as a film. Yeah, the sound is good, the editing too and the testimonies are great to hear. But this is such an emotional journey that I think that it is what it will stay with me, more than any technical achievements.

"Attica! Attica!" That quote by Al Pacino in a scene from Sidney Lumet's brilliant 1975 DOG DAY AFTERNOON is probably all that most people know about the 1971 Prison uprising in New York state (if they get the reference at all).

Stanley Nelson and Traci Curry's exemplary documentary does a thorough job of telling the full story. It's not just a recitation of facts, either, the filmmakers do excellent work in showing how the small upper state New York that housed the prison was a true 'company town' - the corporation being the state pen. Current day interviews are presented from many who participated (including multiple prisoners) and the families of those who aren't here to tell their story (especially the guards).

Fortunately for the filmmakers there is ample footage, not just from newsreels, but, quite a bit from inside the prison. The prisoners made the wise P. R. choice to allow the media inside the prison walls in order for their side of the story to be told. The most chilling footage is from Attica's security cameras. They sit silently capturing all of the events without moving or editing. Just observing.

What's most striking about the early part of the Documentary is how articulate the prisoners were (and are). Their pleas for fair treatment by officials is passionate and well thought out (one of their number, nicknamed 'Jerry the Jew', was an actual lawyer). The sense that they were finally being heard is palpable. There was even some optimism.

All of this, adds to how painful the final act plays out. Even with some hope expressed early on, one knows how it all turned out. The villains here are then Governor Nelson Rockefeller and President Nixon (who not only expresses support for Rockefeller's actions, but goads him on). The surveillance footage is truly horrific. The police's repeated exhortations to the prisoners to surrender and "you'll all be safe" are just as heartbreaking five decades later.

Nelson and Curry do mention that some reform did come out it, but, it took far too long, as did any king of recognition and compensation to the guards who became the pawns in the tug of war. ATTICA isn't just a 'history lesson' - it's a vital document that resonates.

This is a tough, but necessary, watch. Even though the horrific display of state sanctioned violence and killing towards Black inmates at Attica prison in NY happened 50 years ago, it unfortunately feels contemporary. The scary thing is that not much has changed regarding police brutality, prison conditions, or racism over the past 50 years. The footage included is remarkable. You'd be hard pressed to find this kind of all access media regarding a similar event in 2021. As I said, this is necessary viewing for anyone interested in racial and social justice and abolition. Remarkably well done documentary.