Riot in Cell Block 11 (Criterion Collection)

Early in his career, Don Siegel (THE KILLERS) made his mark with this sensational and high-octane but economically constructed drama set in a maximum-security penitentiary. RIOT IN CELL BLOCK 11, the brainchild of producer extraordinaire Walter Wanger (FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT), is a ripped-from-the-headlines social-problem picture about prisoners' rights that was inspired by a recent spate of uprisings in American prisons. In Siegel's hands, the film is at once brash and humane, showcasing the hard-boiled visual flair and bold storytelling for which the director would become known and shot on location at Folsom State Prison, with real inmates and guards as extras.