This movie may have been released decades ago but its theme resonates today. Although the story is presented in a stagy and melodramatic manner, that in no way negates its power as a tragedy. The movie depicts the wasting of human potential. It's about pent up anger that distorts one's conduct. It's about the institutionalization and dehumanization of the individual. The social message is clear: anyone who winds up in prison is doomed. The principal character, Tommy O'Connor, played by Spencer Tracy, symbolizes all the troubled, angry, alienated and damaged people for whom the only solution is incarceration. Betty Davis plays his loyal girlfriend. Yet, as the movie so aptly shows, even someone deemed incorrigible is capable of acting responsibly and even honorably if treated with compassion. Tracy gives a convincing performance as a cynical and hard-bitten gangster who redeems himself, but at a high cost. To find out what that high cost entails, watch the movie.
Review of 20,000 Years in Sing Sing
