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93
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47
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54
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93
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82
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79
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78
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73
Kung Fu Panda
71
Tropic Thunder
71
Horton Hears a Who!
70
Vicky Cristina Barcelona
65
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
64
Wanted
64
Pineapple Express
63
Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2, The
61
Incredible Hulk, The
60
Traitor
57
Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D
55
House Bunny, The
54
You Don't Mess with the Zohan
54
Get Smart
53
Sex and the City: The Movie
53
Rocker, The
52
Longshots, The
51
Mamma Mia!
51
Step Brothers
49
Hancock
47
Swing Vote
47
X-Files: I Want to Believe, The
43
Meet Dave
42
Death Race
36
Space Chimps
36
Fly Me to the Moon
35
Star Wars: The Clone Wars
35
Mirrors
34
Happening, The
31
Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, The
26
Babylon A.D.
24
Love Guru, The
19
Bangkok Dangerous
15
Disaster Movie
15
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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.

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61
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80
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26
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Man on Wire
86
Edge of Heaven, The
86
Up the Yangtze
86
Flight of the Red Balloon, The
85
Momma's Man
85
Alexandra
83
U2 3D
83
Tell No One
82
Frozen River
81
Trouble the Water
80
Encounters at the End of the World
80
Bigger, Stronger, Faster*
80
Order of Myths, The
79
Visitor, The
78
Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired
78
Last Mistress, The
77
Pool, The
76
I Served the King of England
75
Young@Heart
75
Boy A
74
Anita O'Day: The Life of a Jazz Singer
74
Mongol
73
Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson
73
Secret, A
72
Priceless
72
Transsiberian
72
I.O.U.S. A
71
To the Limit
71
Girl Cut in Two, A
71
Roman de gare
70
Love Songs
67
XXY
67
Jellyfish
66
Elegy
66
Patti Smith: Dream of Life
66
American Teen
66
When Did You Last See Your Father?
65
August Evening
64
Brideshead Revisited
64
Fall, The
63
In Search of a Midnight Kiss
63
Kit Kittredge: An American Girl
62
Kabluey
62
Mister Foe
62
Baghead
62
Girls Rock!
61
Bustin' Down the Door
61
Wackness, The
61
Man Named Pearl, A
61
Red
61
Brick Lane
58
Beautiful Losers
58
Sukiyaki Western Django
57
Sixty Six
56
Bottle Shock
56
Then She Found Me
55
Save Me
55
Bra Boys
54
Year of the Fish
54
Hamlet 2
54
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54
What We Do Is Secret
54
CSNY: Déjà Vu
52
Elsa & Fred
51
Savage Grace
50
Last Stop for Paul
49
Children of Huang Shi, The
47
Before the Rains
47
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46
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46
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44
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40
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26
Everybody Wants to Be Italian
25
Hell Ride
xx
Young People F**king
xx
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xx
Cthulhu
xx
Goal II: Living the Dream
xx
Surfer, Dude
xx
Beer for My Horses
Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.
|
Civil Brand
Lions Gate Films
MPAA RATING: R for violence including a rape, and for pervasive strong language
Starring
LisaRaye,
N'Bushe Wright,
Mos Def,
Da Brat,
Monica Calhoun,
Clifton Powell,
Tichina Arnold, Lark Voorhies,
and
MC Lyte
Forced to work under slave-like conditions in a "prison for profit" program, the inmates of a mostly African-American female prison try to take over the institution.
| GENRE(S): |
Drama
|
| WRITTEN BY: |
Preston A. Whitmore II (also teleplay)
Joyce Renee Lewis (teleplay)
|
| DIRECTED BY: |
Neema Barnette
|
| RELEASE DATE: |
DVD: January 27, 2004
Video: January 27, 2004
Theatrical: August 29, 2003
|
| RUNNING TIME: |
95 minutes, Color |
| ORIGIN: |
USA |
Winner, Best Film and Best Performance by an Actor (Powell), 2002 American Black Film Festival

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
80
Los Angeles Times
Kevin Thomas
A compelling, highly charged film that brings a contemporary perspective to classic prison picture elements.

60
Variety
Walter Dawkins
Film explores the abuses rampant in woman's prisons and the powerlessness of the inmates, while telling the uplifting story of one inmate, Frances (LisaRae).

50
The Hollywood Reporter
Sheri Linden
Although the film loses its way in the late going with a preponderance of melodramatic elements that dilute the more compelling social message, for much of its running time it packs a visceral punch, thanks in large part to a strong cast headed by LisaRaye, N'Bushe Wright and Mos Def.

40
LA Weekly
Ernest Hardy
There are also strong flickers here of a film that might have been.

40
TV Guide
Maitland McDonagh
There's way too much of the usual bonding, beatings, petty humiliation by guards, cat fights in the yard and trips to the hole.

38
New York Daily News
Elizabeth Weitzman
Exploitation shamelessly posing as empowerment, Neema Barnette's self-congratulatory drama about women in prison promises to reveal shocking truths.

38
Premiere
Peter Debruge
There's no question that Civil Brand has an ambitious premise, but it feels boxed in by the standard prison-movie formula.

30
The New York Times
Dana Stevens
Before Civil Brand erupts into over-the-top melodrama (which is pretty early), it shows some interest in its characters, and in its less screechy moments the dialogue has the rough, bantering ring of actual speech.

30
The Onion (A.V. Club)
Nathan Rabin
Civil Brand's aesthetic is pure mid-'70s blaxploitation, and not in an ironic or reverent sense. Even the heavy-handed political rhetoric is in keeping with the neo-blaxploitation vibe, since even bad blaxploitation movies often had revolutionary undercurrents.

25
New York Post
V.A. Musetto
The cast includes rappers Da Brat, Mos Def and MC Lyte. Their fans might get some pleasure from Civil Brand. Everybody else best stay away.

25
Chicago Tribune
Robert K. Elder
Plagued by continuity problems, ham-fisted storytelling and a problematic voiceover by Da Brat, Civil Brand feels less like a prison movie than a prison sentence.

20
Village Voice
Laura Sinagra
Without a scorcher like Pam Grier, the sub-NYPD Blue dialogue and acting dilute what could have been a shrieking wake-up call about for-profit prisons.

20
Chicago Reader
J.R. Jones
Corrupt warden, sadistic guards, new inmate debauched by her surroundings, prison-break hostage drama--could have come straight from an old George Raft vehicle.


The average user rating for this movie is 2.3 (out of 10) based on 3 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
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