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Adrien Brody, Forest Whitaker, Cam Gigandet, Clifton Collins Jr., Maggie Grace ... see more see more... , Fisher Stevens , Travis Fimmel , Ethan Cohn , David Banner , Damien Leake , Rod Maiorano , Jason Lew , Rachel O'Meara

Das Experiment screenwriter Mario Giordano works with writer/director Paul Scheuring to craft this remake based on the notorious Stanford Prison Experiment. A team of scientists are conducting a psych... read more read more...ological experiment that requires the participation of 20 subjects. The rules are simple: one group of subjects will be assigned the role of prison guards, while the others will be assigned the role of inmates. Though the guards are specifically instructed to maintain order without the use of force, no one is prepared for what happens when mutiny erupts, and civility erodes. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

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3,606 ratings

R, 1 hr. 36 min.

Directed by: Paul Scheuring

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DVD Release Date: September 21, 2010

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Flixster Reviews (821)

  • MissMorganLeee
    June 12, 2011
    MissMorganLeee
    Not what I was expected but interesting all the same, It would have been interesting to see how this movie would have faired had it go into wide release. Its not like the cast wasnt big enough because they were! Some points in the story seemed a bit odd and unecessary and perhap... read mores thats why. But it was amausing and not too long. This was one good thing, I think if this film would have been any longer my attention would have been dropped. But it wasnt bad.
  • Deano78
    May 12, 2011
    Deano78
    A remake of the German film Das Experiment which was based on a real social study in the 70's. It has a good cast and is an interesting topic to see how peoples behaviour can change given a certain situation. Everyone has a breaking point and acts differently when given power, au... read morethority or treated badly. People can change very quickly from what you expect and within a group. However the film is quite brutal at times, but I just felt the ending let it down a bit. Still worth a watch.
  • theunknownhobo
    January 21, 2011
    theunknownhobo
    Again we come to yet another movie that Adrien Brody kicked ass in. This movie, although a remake of the German movie "Das Experiment", is original and disturbing in all the right ways. It certainly does show how much damage a person can do to another without the need for physcia... read morel violence and more to the point illustrates to a tee how the old saying of "its the quiet ones you need to watch" is utterly true, with Forest Whittaker's rise from zero to psycho unfolds intoxicatingly on the screen. One for the ages.
  • puffchunk
    January 14, 2011
    puffchunk
    This film wanted to push two ideas: first, is that people can become like animals given the right circumstances. This is true, although I believe it more in movies that present situations of actual prison or war or something that takes at least a couple of months to develop. I fo... read moreund it difficult to believe that ordinary people can be raping and murdering after 6 freaking days of an experiment. In realilty, they would have all said "Hey, if we just play by the rules for 2 weeks we get 14 thousand dollars". Also, there is no way the sociologists would have let this go on so long...not sure why they don't interveine the second the black guard guy gets beat up... anyways. The second thing they pushed on is that true ethics comes from within. That the guy who believed in nothing but himself and hope for human kind (who they thought would make a great criminal due to his lack of religion) turns out to be true to his friends at all times, and the religious black guy (who finds ethics from another source, i.e. God or a 'red light') goes nuts while thinking he is still in the right. I like this idea, but it seemed pretty black and white. I wish this story happened over the course of several months rather than in 6 days. It would have been much more believable. I mean really. The guards eventually were doing obviously criminal acts all on camera and you are telling me they don't realize that they will out of there in two weeks. It's not like a real prison where you can do whatever you want because the priosoners will never get to leave to tell the tale. Entertaining though. Fun to watch. Just be prepared to see Adrian Brody get pissed on.
  • xXGiNoBiLiPRXx
    December 30, 2010
    xXGiNoBiLiPRXx
    Love it!!!! Oh the rage I felt identifying myself with Adrien Brody's character WOW. This movie rocks and you can't help but feel the characters emotion and feeling what they are feeling. After seeing this movie I just wanted to fight, I want to fight Forest Whitaker or Cam Gigan... read moredet or any other prison guard in this movie. Great Movie!!!

    26 men are chosen to participate in the roles of guards and prisoners in a psychological study that ultimately spirals out of control.
  • itsjustme2004
    November 26, 2010
    itsjustme2004
    Based on a book and the film Das Experiment, that must have been based on the Stanford Prison Experiment. This film gives an interesting spin on the source material. We, the viewer, are put in the shoes of the prisoners, not exactly sure what's going on, and how far things will b... read moree allowed to go. It's tough to watch at times, and keeps your stomach in knots. Some real solid acting going on, especially by Adrien Brody and Forest Whitaker. It's a shame this didn't get more exposure.
  • blacksheepboy
    November 12, 2010
    blacksheepboy
    Another stupid movie about a psychological experiment that makes no sense. The men in the roles of prisoners are a bunch of imbeciles in every way imaginable and the ones playing guards are sick sociopaths, so what is the point here? Even worse, though, is the terrible ending.
  • allan913
    November 4, 2010
    allan913
    A must-see film that's as riveting as it is frightening. A disturbingly intense, gut-wrenching and hard-core edge of your seat physiological thriller that will blow your mind completely. A taunt, brutally sadistic, exciting, bone-chilling and utterly exhilarating film from start ... read moreto finish. A hold on to your breath ride that's full of heart-pounding suspense and stellar visuals. A pure knockout of a thriller. A powerful and extremely well-crafted film. Brody and Whitaker give incredible performances. Adrien Brody is electrifying, he brings a great amount of emotional vulnerability as well as fierce intensity. Forest Whitaker is unforgettably menacing, he gives an absorbing and terrifying performance. A rocking tour de force of a film. Director, Paul Scheuring has crafted a tremendously well-done movie that just shouts classic with powerful velocity.
  • LWOODS04
    October 2, 2010
    LWOODS04
    Cast: Adrien Brody, Forest Whitaker, Cam Gigandet, Clifton Collins Jr., Fisher Stevens, Maggie Grace, Travis Fimmel, David Banner, Ethan Cohn, Jason Lew

    Director: Paul Scheuring

    Summary: Thriller about a group of ordinary men who volunteer to take on the roles of guards and... read more inmates in a mock prison as part of a controversial psychological experiment. When Barris (Forest Whitaker) and the other guards abuse their power in unnerving ways, Travis (Adrien Brody) and his fellow prisoners stage a revolt. Maggie Grace co-stars in this film based on the infamous real-life 1971 Stanford prison stunt.

    My Thoughts: "I am fortunate to not have seen the first made version of this film. I was unaware there was one made before this one in the first place, but I don't like comparing films to the one's that have came before it. I thought the film was intense and shocking. Great acting. Adrien Brody was ridiculously good in this. Seems Whitaker went a bit bat-shit crazy a bit too fast. Just shows you what a bit of power can do to someone when they start believing they are holier then thou. Things get a bit crazy and people turn into animals. Great film. A must see in my opinion, and knowing its based on true events is what makes it shocking."
  • LorenzoVonMatterhorn
    September 4, 2010
    LorenzoVonMatterhorn
    "Everyone has a breaking point"

    26 men are chosen to participate in the roles of guards and prisoners in a psychological study that ultimately spirals out of control.

    REVIEW

    "The Experiment" is... read more a very disturbing film because it purports to show the true nature of humans. A scientist gets together a bunch of men, all strangers, all attracted to the experiment by the $1000 a day payment. All these men had to do was to get through two weeks in a prison environment, or else they would not get paid.

    At the onset, a few were selected to play roles of guards, while the rest became the prisoners. Within the next day, a power play among guards and prisoners ensues which then escalates into an uncontrollable "Lord of the Flies" scenario, a battle pitting the common good against individual needs.

    The central characters were well essayed by the Oscar winner lead actors. Adrien Brody plays the most outspoken prisoner, Travis, in an effectively gritty manner. Forrest Whitaker plays the shy and lonely Barris, who discovers the repressed Idi Amin within him as he played guard. The rest of the cast were also okay, but were mostly playing caricatures.

    I found out that this film was released direct to DVD, which was unusual for a film that features an Oscar winning cast. Maybe the producers were thinking that not many can sit through the difficult scenarios this film shows, and they may be right. I personally cannot believe that this experiment can turn out in this violent way in real life so quickly, but then again, we also know what people can do when desperately strapped for money. It would also be interesting to watch the original 2001 German movie about this same experiment.

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Critic Reviews

David Nusair
September 28, 2011
David Nusair, Reel Film Reviews

It's finally impossible not to wonder just what the point of all this is supposed to be... Full Review

James Luxford
September 1, 2011
James Luxford, The National

an average, by-the-numbers movie lifted by two brilliant leads. Full Review

Brian Orndorf
September 14, 2010
Brian Orndorf, BrianOrndorf.com

Scheuring does summon the energy to end the picture with a The More You Know closer, but it's a laughable period at the end of a baffling sentence...the feature misses a lasting significance by a coun... Full Review

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