X
  • 2012
  • Not Rated
  • Matson Films
  • 1 h 30 m
  • 2012
  • Not Rated
  • Matson Films
  • 1 h 30 m
Music from the Big House

Summary Music From the Big House is an extraordinary story about finding hope, joy and music behind bars. Rita Chiarelli, Canada’s Queen of the Blues, takes a pilgrimage to the birthplace of the Blues: Louisiana State Maximum Security Penitentiary, a.k.a Angola Prison – formerly the bloodiest prison in America. Rita’s trip turns into an histor...

Directed By: Bruce McDonald

Written By: Tony Burgess, Erin Faith Young

  • 2012
  • Not Rated
  • Matson Films
  • 1 h 30 m
  • 2012
  • Not Rated
  • Matson Films
  • 1 h 30 m

Music from the Big House

Metascore Mixed or Average Based on 5 Critic Reviews
44
User Score Available after 4 ratings
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Summary Music From the Big House is an extraordinary story about finding hope, joy and music behind bars. Rita Chiarelli, Canada’s Queen of the Blues, takes a pilgrimage to the birthplace of the Blues: Louisiana State Maximum Security Penitentiary, a.k.a Angola Prison – formerly the bloodiest prison in America. Rita’s trip turns into an histor...

Directed By: Bruce McDonald

Written By: Tony Burgess, Erin Faith Young

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Critic Reviews

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Metascore
Mixed or Average Based on 5 Critic Reviews
44
0% Positive
0 Reviews
100% Mixed
5 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews

Critic Reviews

 View All
Metascore
Mixed or Average Based on 5 Critic Reviews
44
0% Positive
0 Reviews
100% Mixed
5 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews
60
Jun 4, 2012
The proceedings have a certain haunted quality, thanks to the dramatic setting and the stark black-and-white cinematography by Steve Cosens that fully conveys its bleakness.
By Frank Scheck FULL REVIEW
50
Jun 15, 2012
Even with a gripping subject like blues-singing convicts, the documentary Music from the Big House has a disconcerting emotional distance.
By Robert Abele FULL REVIEW
50
May 30, 2012
It finally feels too cautious, as if digging a little deeper might compromise the prevailing tone of tentative uplift.
FULL REVIEW
50
May 30, 2012
The performances are fun, if musically only adequate -- there are no evident virtuosi languishing within Angola's walls -- and Chiarelli's attempts to frame matters philosophically fall a little flat.
FULL REVIEW
40
Jun 6, 2012
The filmmakers hesitate at going deeper into the dark places of the prisoners' biographies and the storied prison itself. The one wouldn't exist without the other, and Ms. Chiarelli's rambling platitudes are no substitute.
FULL REVIEW

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Details

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Production Company Optix Digital Pictures
Release Date Jun 1, 2012
Duration 1 h 30 m
Rating Not Rated
Genres
Website http://www.facebook.com/pages/Music-From-The-Big-House/327529824794
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Awards

Toronto Film Critics Association Awards
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination

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