K-11

I think if Harley Quinn and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's nest had a love child this film would be it! Conceptually it's almost there, some of the events in the dorm can be disturbing to some but this is a sterilised version of 'Let's not really show any detail'

Certainly goes to prove if you want drugs go to this prison as there is bucket loads available to the right people!

The top dog 'Mousey' is not your stereotypical leader as she comes across as being weak at times, shame she wasn't made a bit meaner.

It's still a good time filler if there is nothing else to watch just to see what happens to the lead character.

Is it that the film is depicting the brutality, inhumanity, homophobia, and transphobia of a horrifically and inherently corrupt system, and the power struggles therein? Or is it that the film is itself homophobic and transphobic in how it depicts this specific dormitory, and portrays and refers to those within? The lack of trans and otherwise queer representation in the casting, and indifference to pronouns in the dialogue, don't help to assuage the latter concern. That the narrative is in no small part a story of self-empowerment, and asserting oneself in circumstances where that power has been ripped away, does.

Is it that filmmaker Jules Stewart is incapable, or possibly her cast, resulting in somewhat leaden, passive pacing and an unbothered air? Or is it that the setting and course of events so thoroughly strips its characters of emotion and humanity that any expression thereof, or heightened drama generally, feels overwrought just by comparison? It's a delicate balance being struck here, and I'm unsure if the end result is somehow "just right," or "endlessly teetering on the edge."

Excise the particulars (setting, characters) and recognizable names and faces, and 'K-11' is one prison drama among many. It's not bad, and in light of the course of events that unfolds, ultimately I think it's kind of good. In fact, I'd like to say I like it even more than I do. It's just that the movie's handling of the subject matter struggles to not seem as problematic as the institution at the heart of the feature. Moreover, for most of the length, the lead character Raymond Saxx feels less like a protagonist and more like a bystander, and the content similarly feels less like a plot and more like a detached portrait of "life in the Big House." When within the last third Saxx experiences a turn-around, and thus the narrative as well, it feels a bit unnatural, and even contrived. The picture gradually gathers all its parts and gels into a cohesive, modestly compelling whole, but for perhaps half the runtime the most dominant element is the question of whether the bigotry is only on the inside radiating out, or if it's also on the outside dripping in.

The cast is restricted by writing and direction that consciously hamstrings their contributions in much the same way as the setting constrains its characters. All the same, I think the assembled actors are pretty swell in realizing their characters with emphatic range, personality, and physicality. That especially goes for Kate del Castillo as charismatic Mousey, and Portia Doubleday as troubled Butterfly - though, again, I'm taken aback by the fact that a picture centering LGBTQ+ characters didn't seem especially concerned about centering LGBTQ+ performers. And I should say, too: I keep hammering a little bit on Stewart, but I don't think there's any one thing wrong with her work in 'K-11.' Only, I've already spoken to everything that seems off about the film, and to whatever extent this construction is intentional versus accidental, the finished product just isn't as successful and convincing as it ideally should or could be. A strong effort, incompletely rendered.

I think the contributions of those behind the scenes are just fine - costume design, hair and makeup, editing, blood, set decoration, and so on. 'K-11' is well made from a technical standpoint, and mildly engaging at large. Nonetheless, there are issues here that never feel entirely resolved for me, and despite the work all put in, the dubiousness that pervades the title from one angle or another just holds it down from climbing any higher. Content warnings are necessary for the indicated homophobia and transphobia, as well as violence and drug use, but overall I do think this is a feature reasonably deserving of one's time should you come across it. But don't go out of your way for it, and just keep in mind that in one fashion or another, 'K-11' has caveats attached.

The only way I can safely describe this movie is: Very peculiar.

Someone likely had a good idea in planning this film: place a straight man in a prison cell area reserved for homosexuals and all variations of gender role playing. That concept could prove interesting as an exploration of 'community' among the 'unwanted' of detainees. But as written by Jared Kurt and Jules Stewart and especially as directed by Jules Stewart the film loses all semblance of originality, for one reason - because it casts women in the roles of transsexuals and transvestites so as not to offend the actors or the audience with same sex variations.

But that is only one reason this film sinks. The script is tepid to poor, a story is practically nonexistent, and the characters are tropes played by actors who seem embarrassed by what they are asked to do. What little story there is can be summarized as follows: a wealthy but drug addicted and alcoholic record produced named Raymond Saxx (Goran Visnjic, one of our stronger actors usually) passes out, is arrested for homicide, and thrown into LA County Jail in a unit reserved for Homosexuals and sexual deviants K-11. From there it is a power struggle run by transvestite Mousey (the first female - Kate del Castillo - cast as a male and it doesn't work). Cocaine and other drugs are readily available through the corruption of Ben (Jason Mewes) who works in the office of the deputy Sgt. Johnson (DB Sweeney) who is likewise drug addled and preys on the inmates for sexual favors. Bad things happen, such as the murder of child molester Detroit (Tommy 'Tiny' Lister) by transsexual Butterfly (Portia Doubleday) and Raymond finally comes out of his cloudy drug abused head and figures a way out of this very odd confinement, but not without a series of meaningless circumstances that serve only to point out the depravity of the inmates.

Yes, it is that bad. Try as you may to find a saving grace to this film is without success. Perhaps if the writers and director had had the courage to use an all male cast instead of putting female actors in the roles of men who are range from simply nelly to butch to surgically transformed (in various stages) into transsexuals the film may have had a reason for being made. As it is, it is an embarrassment for Goran Visnjic, and DB Sweeney and the rest of the actors who for some reason signed on to this poorly conceived and made project.

Grady Harp

I had super low expectations going into this film, but I surprisingly liked it.

The characters feel very real and damaged. Raymond Saxx Jr.'s plight is uncomfortable and unfortunate for him.

D.B. Sweeney is solid as the waste of space Lt. Gerald Johnson. Goran Visnjic gives a sympathetic portrayal of record producer Saxx who got too deep into drugs.

Kate Del Castillo as Mousey is not bad. She has flashes of brilliance as the trans-gender. Portia Doubleday is unnerving and heartbreaking as Butterfly.

Obviously, the film is low-budget, but I'm confused why the critics trashed it like they did. I bet some of them never bothered to watch the film. Although, this is not the type of film critics would love. It's not an amazing film, but it's hardly exploitative...so take it for what it is. I enjoyed the ending and I would watch it again if I saw it television. An interesting directorial debut for indie director Jules Stewart.