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User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 3
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  1. ChadS.
    Aug 17, 2004
    6
    You haven't lived 'til you've seen Mickey O'Rourke as a transvestite, who looks more like a full-faced Harvey Feinstein than himself. There's also a musical act (a fey singer backed by an accordion and violin) that would be more at home at a small Greenwich Village club than the prison cafeteria. While these are fresh images you can add to the cinematic catalog of penitentary iconography, it doesn't help us forge a bond with Ron (Edward Furlong) because this prison doesn't seem all that scary. Ron is busted for distribution of marijuana, which is an outrage to those who believe that pot is a soft drug, so it would make dramatic sense had he been put through more ordeals to siphon out his good will, and replace this chasm with malice. He does, but Earl (Williem Dafoe) does such a good job of acclimating Ron to prison life, we don't quite buy his transformation from passive naif to hot-head vigilante. Ron's brush with sodomy isn't preceeded by any indication that he's one flashpoint away from protracting his sentence through moral aggravation. This evolution doesn't feel organic, but it's there to set up Earl and Ron's plan to escape from prison...and comparisons to "The Shawshank Redemption". … Expand
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Critic Reviews

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Metascore
65 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 12 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 12
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 12
  3. Negative: 0 out of 12
  1. L.A. Weekly
    Reviewed by: John Patterson
    60
    What enrich the film are its layers of detail -- moronic racial protocols, turf wars, pecking orders, men as livestock -- the authenticity of the dialogue and the rich range of characters.
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  2. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: A.O. Scott
    70
    Willem Dafoe steals the picture with his comic timing.
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  3. TV Guide
    Reviewed by: Ken Fox
    60
    There's something surprisingly sweet at the center of this grim prison drama.
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