January 9, 2013
We recently added “Presumed Guilty” (Presunto Culpable) to the DBRL collection. The film played on the PBS series POV in 2010, and currently has a rating of 91% from audiences at Rotten Tomatoes. Here’s a synopsis from our catalog:
In December 2005 Toño Zuniga was picked up off the street in Mexico City, Mexico, and sentenced to 20 years for a murder he knew nothing about. A friend of Toño’s contacted two young lawyers, Roberto Hernández and Layda Negrete, who gained prominence in Mexico when they helped bring about the release of another innocent man from prison. Looking into Toño’s case, Roberto and Layda managed to get a retrial–on camera–and enlisted the help of filmmaker Geoffrey Smith to chronicle the saga. Shot over three years with unprecedented access to the Mexican courts and prisons, this dramatic story is a searing indictment of a justice system that presumes guilt.
Check out the film trailer or the official film site for more info.
Filed under: new dvds
September 24, 2012
Prison can be the end of the road for some inmates, but for others prison life can be a transforming experience. These three docs are centered around different prison programs to help inmates to be productive and ready to enter life outside prison walls.
“Sweethearts of the Prison Rodeo”
Directed by Bradley Beesley, this doc focuses on a special program of the Oklahoma State Penitentiary where inmates get to participate in a rodeo. The women in the film have unique stories that unfold as they train to compete in the rodeo.
“Shakespeare behind bars”
The Shakespeare Behind Bars Program at Kentucky’s Luther Luckett Correctional Complex lets inmates participate in The Tempest. The themes of the play weigh heavy on the participants as they rehearse their lines and think about the crimes that they have committed.
“Serving Life”
The maximum security prison at Angola, Louisiana has a program where inmates can apply to provide hospice care for dying inmates. As they care for other inmates, often older than themselves, they take a glimpse into their future and look back at the life they’ve lived.
Filed under: doc topics
August 22, 2012
We recently added Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory to the DBRL collection. The film is the third in the Paradise Lost trilogy which includes Paradise Lost and Paradise Lost 2. The film currently has a rating of 100% from critics at Rotten Tomatoes. Here’s a synopsis the official website:
Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory, the new installment of Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky’s HBO Documentary Films series about the notorious 1993 “West Memphis Three” child murders, chronicles the 18-year fight to prove the innocence of Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin, and Jessie Misskelley.
Check out the film trailer or the official film site for more info.
Filed under: new dvds
June 25, 2012
We recently added “Crime after Crime” to the DBRL collection. The film currently has a rating of 89% from critics at Rotten Tomatoes and was shown last year on the OWN Network. Here’s a synopsis from our catalog:
In 1983, Deborah Peagler, a woman brutally abused by her boyfriend, was sentenced to 25 years-to-life for her connection to his murder. Twenty years later, California passed a law allowing incarcerated domestic violence survivors to reopen their cases. This documentary follows two attorneys who take Debbie’s case and strive to attain: testimonies of long lost witnesses, proof of perjured evidence, and new testimonies from the men who committed the murder.
Check out the film trailer or the official film site for more info.
Filed under: new dvds
