The Killing Yard

I was only a very young child when the Attica prison riot happened and being British it`s not really part of my conciousness and besides there`s no Brit equivilent of the Attica riot . The only comparable British prison riot would be the Strangeways riot in 1990 when the inmates took control of the Strangeways prison in Manchester and held most of the prison for several weeks . It was widely reported by several tabloid newspapers that the inmates had stormed the " Nonce " wing ( Nonce being prison slang for a sex offender )where they had executed up to a dozen nonces by castrating them or gouging out their eyes . It goes without saying that when the authorities regained control of the prison and found out no nonces had actually been killed and the accounts were " inventions of the press " the whole of Britain sighed in disappointment . I`m digressing but I`m just pointing out we`re not used to jail house massacres in Britain and that my very limited knowledge of Attica is mainly down to a TVM I saw almost 20 years whose title I can`t even remember which insinuated that of the 49 people who died when the authorities stormed the prison 10 were guards all of whom died of gunshot wounds , but in order to protect themselves the authorities changed the facts to make it look like the inmates had murdered the guards

In many ways THE KILLING YARD is a continuation of that TVM . It centres around a lawyer called Ernie Goodman defending an inmate called Bernard Strobble who`s facing murder charges involving two other inmates during the riot . The film may be on the side of Strobble but at no time did I find myself being hit by a polemical sledgehammer as to the guy being an innocent victim of the system and in parts of the teleplay you`ll certainly find yourself disliking Strobble . THE KILLING YARD also makes a slightly cynical point ( And I`m guessing this is done on purpose ) that whenever black criminals are on trial it`s always white middle class liberals who are their main supporters

All in all THE KILLING YARD is a fairly good TVM . I must admit though that I would have probably enjoyed it more if I had a more extensive knowledge of the Attica uprising and the subsequent fall-out

"The Killing Yard" tells of an elder and ailing defense attorney (Alda) who wages a crusade for and bonds with an Attica inmate wrongfully accused of a double homicide. The film is a typical made in Canada for Showtime journeyman product with the biggest flaw being that we, the audience, can only ask ourselves why we should care. Character development is forsaken for courtroom drama, B-movie queen McGowan contributes little, and our "hero", the convict (Chestnut), plays a hard-to-feel-sorry-for felon. Will work best with those into trial flicks.

Usually, Alan Alda plays characters that are too "soft" and overly verbal -- it's probably how he really lives. This time, he fits the character. Though he overacts when the verdict is being delivered.

The 1971 Attica Prison Riot and the State of New York's response is remembered by many of us as a terrifying event. Only a few journalists have told the true story. This film provides a quick look at the horrors and excesses associated with the Attica riot/revolt. Attica had a major impact on this country. Maybe the movie will stimulate someone to research the history.

I can't remember a feature movie made from the perspective of the prisoners -- though there is a great PBS piece with the actual Attica survivors/participants. The perspective of the guards held hostage is explored in "Against the Wall" with Kyle MacLachlan, Samuel L. Jackson, Clarence Williams III, and Frederic Forrest.

Back in the day, we shouted, "Attica! Attica!" It was nice to hear it in the movie. Brought back memories.

The worst part of the movie are the natural wigs Morris Chestnut and the other African Americans must wear. It would have been easy for these people to grow a 'Fro.

The Killing Yard is a great film, although uneven at times. Morris Chestnut puts forth a phenomenal effort as a mentally wounded and judicially jilted prison inmate, and the presence of Alan Alda as his defense attorney is none other than genius. The emotion and raw reality portrayed in this film's "flashback" scenes have the ability of putting viewers directly into the midst of the events being pictured. I was not even born when the Attica riot took place, however, through extensive research, I find that "The Killing Yard" does the story all of it's fair justices. I would definitely recommend this film for viewing by any educational or activist group as a much needed learning tool.

This film blew me away. I thought I knew a little about the Attica prison riot. After watching this, I see I knew nothing. The story is told through the relationship between the attorney and the black inmate. Both the personal story of these two men and the unfolding courtroom drama were riveting. The flashback sequences in the prison were awesome. It's hard to believe it wasn't documentary footage it was so real. It was not only a great piece of drama, it was an incredible lesson in an important chapter in American history. I'm with Ebert and Roeper. I give it two thumbs up.