The top five corrections-related films and TV shows
A showcase of the best films and shows for corrections majors
Corrections majors have it rough. They seem to take a backseat to law enforcement majors and the depiction of corrections in the media isn’t always super stellar. That doesn’t mean they shouldn’t have their own top five list though. So for all the corrections majors out there, here are five corrections related movies/TV shows.
Let’s Go to Prison (2006)
Regardless of what seems to be a universal dislike of Dax Shepard (Without a Paddle, Idiocracy), Let’s Go to Prison has a solid position on this list as John Lyshitski (Shepard), purposefully goes to prison in order to make the life of an enemy (Will Arnett) miserable while there. The humor is far from refined but that doesn’t mean it isn’t there as Lyshitski, a legal system regular, navigates the prison world with a twisted vengeance.
The Green Mile (1999)
The Green Mile, which is based on the Stephen King novel of the same name, focuses on the inmates and guards of a prison’s death row or, as it’s called in the film, the “green mile.” The film focuses on one of the guards (Tom Hanks) and his experiences with John Coffey (Michael Clarke Duncan), a wrongly convicted man who has the power to heal people. The movie isn’t nearly as light as Let’s Go to Prison—you’re a monster if the death of Mr. Jingles doesn’t make you want to cry—but that doesn’t mean it isn’t a good watch.
Arrested Development (2003-2006, 2013-)
The show doesn’t take place primarily in a prison but some of its characters, including the head of the Bluth family (who is arrested in the first episode) do spend some time there. In fact, it’s where the well-known “No touching!” one-liner came from. Like Let’s Go to Prison, Arrested Development stars Will Arnett and takes a lighter look at a correctional facility, including the concept of conjugal visits.
The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
Also based on writing by Stephen King is The Shawshank Redemption, a film that takes place in the late ‘40s to mid-‘60s and charts the experiences of Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins), a banker who was wrongly accused of murdering his wife and lover, at the Shawshank prison. While there, he not only befriends Red (Morgan Freeman), but begins to do accounting-like work for workers at the prison and, later, money laundering for the warden.
Orange is the New Black (2013-)
There’s no way the Netflix original series, Orange is the New Black, wouldn’t make it onto this list, and with good reason. In the show, Piper Chapman (Taylor Schilling) is sent to prison for a crime buried in her past. While in prison, she has to get used to not only living behind bars, but also the interesting people that she’s stuck living with.
