Synopsis
This film is based on the actual events that took place in 1971 when Stanford professor Dr. Philip Zimbardo created what became one of the most shocking and famous social experiments of all time.
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Cast
- Billy CrudupDr. Philip Zimbardo
- Michael AngaranoChristopher Archer
- Ezra MillerDaniel Culp / Prisoner 8612
- Tye SheridanPeter Mitchell / Prisoner 819
- Olivia ThirlbyDr. Christina Maslach
- Nelsan EllisJesse Fletcher
- Moisés AriasAnthony Carroll
- Nicholas BraunKarl Vandy
- Gaius CharlesPaul Vogel
- Keir GilchristJohn Lovett
Recommendations
- 91
Hitfix
Using real transcripts, and with the involvement of Dr. Philip Zimbardo, who was the psychologist who designed the project in the first place, Talbott and director Kyle Patrick Alvarez have opted to aim for something authentic and honest. - 91
The Playlist
Alvarez’s clinical but deeply engrossing execution of the drama is mesmerizing in its directness. - 83
The A.V. Club
A gripping dramatization, The Stanford Prison Experiment puts its audience in the same position as the head researcher, Dr. Philip Zimbardo: We watch with equal fascination and dread as a group of fresh-faced undergraduates adapt with scary speed to the roles they’re assigned. - 80
The Guardian
Director Kyle Patrick Alvarez deserves all the praise in the world for the way he cranks up this pressure cooker script. The Stanford Prison Experiment begins with giggles but ends in full psychological break. - 80
The Hollywood Reporter
For all its flaws it’s a rich, thought-provoking film which, while challenging, is not without humor and visual pleasures, particularly in the restrained but bang-on period production design. - 75
Slant Magazine
The formalism fashions effective textural shortcuts to behavioral understanding that the remarkable cast fills in with chilling, convincing finesse. - 75
New York Post
The film spirals steadily downward through humanity’s worst impulses as the guards, led by Angarano’s character, explore the free rein they’re given to torment the powerless. - 70
Village Voice
Even simply sticking to the facts, the film is a painful watch.
