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Prison Song

  • 20012001
  • RR
  • 1h 34m
IMDb RATING
6.2/10
647
YOUR RATING
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
Prison Song (2001)
  • Crime
  • Drama
A young man lives and learns while growing up on the street and in and out of correctional facilities.A young man lives and learns while growing up on the street and in and out of correctional facilities.A young man lives and learns while growing up on the street and in and out of correctional facilities.
IMDb RATING
6.2/10
647
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Darnell Martin
  • Writers
    • Darnell Martin
    • Q-Tip
  • Stars
    • Danny Hoch
    • Elvis Costello
    • Q-Tip
Top credits
  • Director
    • Darnell Martin
  • Writers
    • Darnell Martin
    • Q-Tip
  • Stars
    • Danny Hoch
    • Elvis Costello
    • Q-Tip
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 13User reviews
    • 3Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Photos7

    Prison Song (2001)
    Mary J. Blige and Harold Perrineau in Prison Song (2001)
    Q-Tip in Prison Song (2001)
    Prison Song (2001)
    Prison Song (2001)
    Mary J. Blige, Elvis Costello, Fat Joe, Clay Da Raider, Jamie Hector, Danny Hoch, Hassan Johnson, Joe Paradise, Harold Perrineau, Q-Tip, Justin 'DJ' Spaulding, Charles Malik Whitfield, Bobbito Garcia, N.O.R.E., Snow, Eric McCollum, Dominique Walters, and Denee Rivera in Prison Song (2001)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Danny Hoch
    Danny Hoch
    • Harrisas Harris
    Elvis Costello
    Elvis Costello
    • Public Defenderas Public Defender…
    Q-Tip
    Q-Tip
    • Elijah Dixonas Elijah Dixon
    Eric McCollum
    • Thomas Wilsonas Thomas Wilson
    Denee Rivera
    • Jolie Martinezas Jolie Martinez
    Justin 'DJ' Spaulding
    • Young Elijahas Young Elijah
    Mary J. Blige
    Mary J. Blige
    • Momas Mom
    Snow
    • Officer McIntyreas Officer McIntyre
    Bobbito Garcia
    • Brownas Brown
    • (as 'Bobbito' Robert Garcia)
    Hassan Johnson
    Hassan Johnson
    • Jayas Jay
    Clay Da Raider
    • KTas KT
    Fat Joe
    Fat Joe
    • Big Peteas Big Pete
    Harold Perrineau
    Harold Perrineau
    • Uncle Ceeas Uncle Cee
    Casper Martinez
    Casper Martinez
    • C.O. Vilaras C.O. Vilar
    • (as Edil 'Casper' Martinez)
    Jamie Hector
    Jamie Hector
    • Phone Kidas Phone Kid
    Mateo Gómez
    Mateo Gómez
    • Mr. Gonzalezas Mr. Gonzalez
    Ryan Toby
    Ryan Toby
    • Teacher's Assistantas Teacher's Assistant
    Joe Paradise
    • Chief Berryas Chief Berry
    • Director
      • Darnell Martin
    • Writers
      • Darnell Martin
      • Q-Tip
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
    • All cast & crew

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    Storyline

    Edit
    A young man lives and learns while growing up on the street and in and out of correctional facilities.
    • title directed by female
    • title co written by female
    • two word title
    • younger version of character
    • prison visit
    • 94 more
    • Plot summary
    • Add synopsis
    • Genres
      • Crime
      • Drama
    • Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)
      • Rated R for violence, language and brief sexual content
    • Parents guide
      • Add content advisory

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Film was originally intended to be a full-fledged musical, but this tested poorly with audiences, so most of the musical numbers - except the most essential to the story - were cut. This helps explain the mysterious appearance of Elvis Costello in two roles in which he does very little.
    • Connections
      Referenced in The Rotten Tomatoes Show: Robin Hood/Letters to Juliet/Just Wright (2010)
    • Soundtracks
      A Teacher's Tale (Oh Well)
      Elvis Costello

    User reviews13

    Review
    Top review
    10/10
    A Musical Relief
    I was told about this movie by a friend. He said it was one of the best movies he had seen. Unfortunately he told me the ending, but I won't spoil that for you...

    "Prison Song" is a film about a boy brought up in group homes with a gift of art. He does beautiful drawings and is an excellent photographer. He is accepted to college and at first his gets a full scholarship but then something changes and it is taken away. This is one of the many times our principle character is let down. He gives up on his dream and gets angry. He ends up picking a fight with one of the boys from the group home and kills him. He ends up in jail 15 years to life.

    The movie to me is a Musical Relief. Actors do break out into song or rap throughout the movie but fortunately this break from spoken word to words of rhythm and melody has a smooth transition. Transitions are so smooth that it seems almost real, like it was something anyone would do when reflecting.

    Rapper, Q-tip, place the principle character and plays it well. Though he is quiet most of the time, the viewer will feel almost every emotion he does, even when his face is plain as a blank piece of paper. Through the film you grow to love the character and feel bad that things worked out the way they did. He is like many Black men, like many men period, talented but locked in jail.

    I would recommend this movie to anyone who wants to see a prison movie with a lot of heart in it. Characters are deep and the story line is rich.
    helpful•8
    3
    • Magnum2G3
    • Aug 30, 2002

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • April 27, 2001 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Filming locations
      • Philadelphia Prisons, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
    • Production company
      • New Line Cinema
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 34 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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