Against the Wall (1994 TV Movie) User Reviews

Above Average prison thriller

[Vedder13 · 7/10 · 21 December 2001]

Against the Wall is another one of those movies that just slipped away. Its about the true story of the take-over of Attica Prison by the in-mates in 1971 and is seen through the eyes of a novice prison warden (Kyle MacLachlan).

Although made for cable, what make this brilliant movie different from the others are the incredibly brutal prison scenes and unsettling violence (one scene has an unlucky wardens' head slammed between two iron doors) and the brutality of the film, along with the nudity, may turn off some viewers.

The acting is some of the best I've ever seen. The characters are not stereotyped and are actually quite believable. Samuel L Jackson, in particular is a highlight as a black inmate while Kyle MacLachlan is just as good as a sympathetic warden. These performances give the film a lot of depth and the bonding between these two is very powerful.

John Frankenheimer direction is incredibly good and that sets the mood for this powerful and sad movie. Check it out but be aware that this is not a happy movie. ***/****

John Frankenheimer was great.

[Avice728 · 8/10 · 4 March 2009]

I was an extra in this movie and I was just amazed by John Frankenheimer. We just filled seats in the bar as guards' wives, but he came over and explained who we were and told us about the lives of these people. He told us that the average guard's salary was $13,000. He told me he loved my face (which believe me is not lovable), probably because the part called for us to be bored and disgusted and I was very good at that. I just could not believe that the director went into such detail with us. I was just there one day but my husband was in several scenes, working every day, and he was likewise impressed with Mr. Frankenheimer.

And as for the comment about the people of Nashville deserving better--Nashville and its people suck. I was never so glad to get out of anywhere. If, as one comment put it, Mr. Frankenheimer was a bear, maybe it was because he expected people to WORK.

Powerfully disturbing, incredibly thrilling, and unfairly overlooked.

[lostonthehighway · 8/10 · 30 June 2021]

Against the Wall walked so that Trial of the Chicago 7 could run. But the latter had a big Netflix release. This was made for TV and subsequently flew under the radar, and as a result is one of the most criminally underrated things I have ever seen.

This movie is really something else. Something else for sure. I went into this not knowing anything about the Attica riot, but still being more or less aware of the situation at the time after watching Trial of the Chicago 7. And I was expecting something akin to the Shawshank Redemption - a slow-burn drama with a nice ending. But Against the Wall was neither of those things.

This movie had my heart pounding so fast that I could hear blood in my ears the entire way through. The sheer brutality of it, not one dash of blood sanitised, really opened my eyes to how horrific the riot - no, the massacre - was. This movie feels ahead of its time, almost - ever since its 1994 release the incarceration problem in the US has only gotten more and more dire, and just as it was when it first came out, Against the Wall is a startling and sudden wake-me-up to all of the problems that are just as relevant today as they were in 1971.

Everything about this movie was mind-blowing excellence. The chaos of the riot was conveyed perfectly, and it all felt real, raw and terrifyingly true. And the acting - Kyle MacLachlan and Samuel L. Jackson were both absolutely mind-blowing. Hands-down two of the most powerful performances I've ever seen on screen. And the supporting cast was also great - they extended the story past the riot itself and had me caring so much more about what was happening.

A powerful movie that shows the messy side of America, but it will not leave your mind for days to come.

-Sasha.

Gripping and disturbing

[Renaldo Matlin · 19 November 2002]

Legendary filmmaker John Frankenheimer made an impact as perhaps televisions greatest director in the 1990's (after directing several big-screen classics earlier in his career). With "Against the Wall" he shatters all our illusions about America. The United States really is the land of opportunities, but the government has also branded it's reputation with some ugly events through the years. The Attica riot of 1971 (or should I say "the Attica massacre") certainly is one of it's ugliest moments.

This shocking dramatization shows us everything that's wrong with America in a way that almost sent me reaching for a vomit-bag in disbelief. A great job by Frankenheimer and it's actors, particularly worth mentioning: Kyle MacLachlan, Samuel L. Jackson, Frederic Forrest, Clarence Williams III, Harry Dean Stanton, a young Steve Harris (The Practice) and Danny Trejo.

This really made me yearn for some American on-screen heroism. At times like these I'm sure glad I have the Die Hard-trilogy in my DVD-collection :)

When the Bough Breaks

[view_and_review · 6/10 · 20 July 2020]

The first time I can even remember hearing the word Attica was in the movie "Dog Day Afternoon." I had no idea what Al Pacino meant when he was repeatedly shouting "Attica! Attica! Attica!" I later found out that Attica was a prison in New York, and last year I read the Pulitzer Prize winning book "Blood in the Water" about the Attica uprising and retaking.

"Against the Wall" focuses a lot on one guard, Michael Smith (Kyle MacLachlan) and one prisoner, Jamaal X (Samuel L. Jackson) aka Richard X Clark. Attica prison was a powder keg ready to blow and only needed the right situation to detonate. That situation came and what started as a small fracas from a few dozen inmates quickly became a prison-wide takeover.

Because the movie focuses so much on two individuals, we don't get a firm sense of the overall atmosphere--in America, in the prisons, in New York, or even in the city of Attica. Of course, a movie is limited in its ability to be encompassing, which is a bit of a drawback. And what movies in general also suffer from is dramatizations. In this case, "Against the Wall" makes the entire ordeal a lot bloodier than it really was. One only need to watch the documentary titled: "Attica" (1974). Although a few hostages were harmed, the more intelligent prisoners realized immediately that the hostages were their only bargaining chips and should they be harmed--or worse, killed--then the prisoners lost all leverage. For that reason they treated the hostages better than themselves.

I knew ahead of time what the end result would be in this movie, it was just a matter of how it would all be portrayed. Writer, Ron Hutchinson, and director, John Frankenheimer, did an OK portrayal from what I've read and seen elsewhere. The bottom line is that the Attica uprising and takeover was an ugly spot in American history, but it's one we shouldn't forget.

Typical made-for-tv exploitation fare.

[=G= · 6/10 · 16 July 2001]

"Against the Wall" is a journeyman tv docudrama (with the emphasis on "drama") which tells of the Attica prison riot of 1971. Okay as a gritty and violent prison drama, "ATW" fails to crystalize prison issues or make significant social commentary. Pretty much your usual run-of-the-mill Hollywood exploitaition flick fraught with inconsistencies and a poor sense of direction though, perhaps, there's no more to be found in the Attica story.

UNDERRATED!

[Analog_Devotee · 9/10 · 4 January 2021]

HBO was really kicking some ass during this time. It's a shame this one isn't more known; Kyle MacLachlan and Samuel L. Jackson really acted their hearts out in this sad, mind-blowing true story about Attica Prison. Highly underrated and by all means should've been a hit.

One of the better prison movies

[pkzeewiz · 5/10 · 14 May 2010]

This movie is about the truths of prison where guards and wardens turn their back to the prisoners needs and treat them like dirt and treat their fellow guards worse if they show pity. A riot breaks out and prisoners take over the yards holding the guards prisoner and they demand many changes and many rights in the prison system. Things like more than 1 shower a week, the right to wash clothes more, to have Spanish speaking guards and many other things. The outside world is taken in between wanting to kill the prisoners and the other half wanting to give them what they want because its fair.

This was a really intense movie. I loved it and agreed with the prisoners and their motives, and disagreed big time with how the authorities handled it. When you do something wrong you are punished, but there is a limit to the punishment and prison is the punishment, you don't deserve any more punishment than that. This film touched on many subjects that occur in prison and it was done very well.

John Frankenheimer is a great director and did so good here with this prison flick shot in Nashville. This movie was also chocked full of great actors Kyle Maclachlan, Samuel L. Jackson, Clarence Williams III, Danny Trejo, Tiny Lister, Harry Dean Staton, Peter Murnick, Anne Heche and so many more rounded out a great cast.

I thought it was a good movie and anyone that likes prison movies should love it and if you HATE prison movies you should know that this movie takes place mostly in the yard and is almost like a war movie in many aspects...great film 5/10 stars

True story captured on film

[pepper-43 · 8/10 · 4 November 1999]

"Against the Wall" reveals a reality everyone knows is there and yet is afraid to look at. Our Correctional System not only doesn't help any in the ressocialization of the inmate, but also generates more violence. What makes this movie a great movie it the fact that you won't stop thinking about it the moment it's over. This is real life, this is true. And you'll think of it over and over when you lay down to sleep.

A good thriller. An exemplary TV movie.

[Stu-5 · 31 January 1999]

For a TV movie, this is quite good. It's the true story of the Attaca prison break, which caused a hell of a ruckus back in the seventies and started all sorts of prison rights and liberation talk. The film is a tautly trimmed, suspenseful and well acted production with a good cast including Sam L. Jackson and Kyle MacLachlan.

A rookie prison guard at Attaca finds himself immersed in the awful treatment of the prisoners, and has a hard time reprimanding the prisoners. He's then unwittingly slung into a violent prison break, and held hostage by the prisoners.

There are some unnecessarily offensive and crude moments in the film, which are not relevant and are entirely superfluous. The violence is quite impactful, and the film deserves a high rating.

Six out of ten.

Rare Masterpiece

[Orgbd02 · 10/10 · 12 November 2010]

Not that this matters with regard to the quality of the movie but this was one of the first original movies made for HBO where they didn't have to sell their soul to a movie studio.

Enough preaching, this is on the level of Shawshank. In my opinion better but different. Prison is hell for the guards and the inmates. Sometimes the inmates need to revolt and this movie does a good job taking a real situation and presents both sides of the story perfectly. You feel for the inmates, you feel for the guards. The problem is the system.

The acting is great and this isn't a politically correct movie or a movie with a political agenda with the exception of an anti government theme.

I would recommend this film to anybody with a sense of personal freedom or revolt against the system. I am surprised this isn't a cult movie on the lines of A Clockwork Orange.

A serious prison film

[encyclpedia · 8/10 · 30 March 2002]

It's hard to always understand what prison is like, and Attica depicted an old one, but it was still prison, and it was gripping. This was a good movie. The character played by Kyle Maclachlan was a wimpy one, but yet, a way for us to see things through an innocent standpoint. This was a movie about a prison that was not contained to the proper ordinance and showed what could happen if it wasn't. In that result, it played out to be a movie that can keep you at *awe* and utter despair for the prison gaurds. The role played by Samuel L. Jacson was a good one as well. He is always been such a good actor and to me, he shined in this one, to a point. Those were the good things about it, and my only gripes were seeing naked inmates, Mike Smiths' feistiness, and the totally annoying head gaurd. I forget his name, and I don't much want to know anyways. Aside of those little pests, I enjoyed the film to it's fullest. Frankenheimer did a good job directing this one. This was my rating: 8/10

The event that changed the system

[theotherbritney · 10/10 · 10 October 2009]

"Against the Wall" is an amazing portrayal of the uprising that took place at the Attica prison in the 1970's New York. It is an important film that shows, that while the uprising caused the loss of life among prisoners, staff, and civilian personnel, it was what reformed the American prison system for the rest of time. It is an important legacy and stepping stone in both American history and in the civil rights movement that needs to be told. The director did a fantastic portrayal of the true life situation to the screen in the HBO made for TV movie, which has since moved to DVD. Prison life was changed because of this one event and because of what these men stood for.

A very good film

[apjc · 9/10 · 27 December 2017]

It's well worth watching, it's only failing is it starts with the PC view of a brutal White led prison regime. These men were surrounded by very violent inmates who not only attacked the guards but murdered each other before the take over even happened. A basic truth applies you can't judge people and past events by your modern morals. The finale probably mirrors scenes that have horrified us recently that would automatically shift our perception of bad guys. As for the actual ending, it just portrays how the mightiest nation on Earth can't seem to stop prevaricating on what action to take, let alone doing it right. The real story is hostage lives matter, but political careers mean far more.

AMERICAN (A+ Movie) My Ratings 8.5 /10

[THE-BEACON-OF-MOVIES-RAFA · 8/10 · 11 March 2022]

The film does a decent job of portraying the real events and a few captions at the end credits tell us of some of the aftermath that follows. There is some decent acting from the main characters of Jackson and MacLachian and good back up jobs from the lesser roles. Like many true story re-enactments, the fact that what your watching is more or less true takes it film up a notch or two. So the thing you take away from this film is that this actually happened and not that its a brilliant film. However, given that it doesn't stray too far from the truth, it's a great visual addition to just reading about it. Well worth watching as it's shocking, well acted, pretty true to its source and it's by far the best TV film you'll ever watch.

The second grates film of all time, and the only greatest film ever directed by John Frankenheimer, and story written by Ron Hutchinson

[gabrielwho-44390 · 10/10 · 24 August 2022]

So this movie was as abstract or an actual theatrical release, simply a TV movie, but I loved it.

A movie on a scale like this is unbelievably great. Kyle, Harry, Samuel, Clarence, Bruce, Mark, and Carmen were great actors.

Music brilliantly composed by Gary Chang with the truncheon to pipe sound effect that marked the action scenes gave me goosebumps.

One of my favorite actors in the film was Clarence Williams III, he made such funny lines like "Hot Soup", "Stop eating, get that s@$! Over to the kitchen", "What's wrong with you man?!", and also his speech while arguing to commissioner Oswald (democrat) about the inmates own rights, the best scene, literally, and entirely, the most important of all scenes.

Samuel Jackson starts to be this Muhammad of a character, who's patient concerned about the system of the prisoners and officers rights. He was an almost lost cause for their justice. Not exactly a hero.

Carmen Argenziano is super attendant Vincent Mancusi, a man loyal to the state, New York, trying to protect the law from corruption. Though not a man of action, he was the main hero of the film. Mancusi, even though in real life, that hero died ten years ago, that historical figure should remembered and honored.

Lastly, Frederic Forrest. He played chief officer/lieutenant Weisbad. A rough character, and another favorite. Chrarcter who were war veterans are great. So underrated.

In memory of: John Frankenheimer (1930-2002), Clarence Williams III (1939-2021), Anne Heche (1969-2022), Harry Dean Stanton (1925-2017), Philip Bosco (1930-2018), and Carmen Argenziano (1947-2019)

Gone, but never forgotten.