“The Stanford Prison Experiment”: One of the best indie films of 2015 so far

True life dramas are sometimes inherently less thrilling because you might already know the outcome. In the case of The Stanford Prison Experiment, the film is as riveting as the actual study was, and perhaps even more so. Director Kyle Patrick Alvarez and his amazing ensemble cast do real justice to the actual event and in turn put forward a captivating look at human nature. Unsettling, even upsetting at times, it’s a challenging movie, but one that’s about as good as any so far in 2015. It’s a small flick, but one that really demands to be seen. It opens this weekend and truly is a must see. The Stanford Prison Experiment is a slightly dramatized look at the historic study of the same name by Dr. Phillip Zimbardo (played by Billy Crudup). The professor selected 24 male students out of 75 applicants and had them take on completely randomly assigned roles of either prisoners or guards in a mock prison in the basement of the Stanford psychology building during the 1970’s. The plan was for it to go on for two weeks, but it barely lasted six days. What you see is how it all broke down, with the guard subjects almost immediately brutalizing the prisoners. It’s captivating, truly. Alvarez directs a brilliant ensemble cast from a script by Tim Talbott. In addition to Crudup, the cast is a who’s who of up and comers that includes Michael Angarano, Moises Arias, Nicholas Bruan, Nelson Ellis, James Frecheville, Keir Gilchrist, Jack Kilmer, Thomas Mann, Callan McAuliffe, Ezra Miller, Chris Sheffield, Tye Sheridan, Johnny Simmons, Olivia Thirlby, and more. They’re all aces too. Simply put, the cast is to die for. Everyone does tremendous work, with Angarano, Braun, Crudup, Ellis, Miller, Sheffield, and Thirlby especially impressing in a big way. You recognize them, but they disappear into their roles almost immediately. Angarano is the incarnate of man just going with whatever impulse he has when given power, with Crudup the overlord watching his subjects flail about. Miller gets to be the prisoner who cracks, while Thirlby is the voice of reason. It’s all so good, you forget that it’s not a documentary at times. That’s a credit to the writing and direction as well, and I’ll get to them next, but the cast just all do tremendous work. It’s probably too small of a flick to catch on during awards season, but the [...]