Felon

"No rule. No hope. No way out."

2008 1h 43m EN

👍

7.1

SOLID

🍅

60%

FRESH

😬

METACRITIC

⭐

7.4

IMDB

★7.1TMDB · 1,030🍅60%Rotten Tomatoes●58Metacritic★7.4IMDB · 86,626

CrimeDramaThrillerAction

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A family man convicted of killing an intruder must cope with life afterward in the violent penal system.

“No rule. No hope. No way out.”

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Cast

Stephen Dorff
Wade Porter
Val Kilmer
John Smith
Harold Perrineau
Lt. Jackson
Marisol Nichols
Laura Porter
Johnny Lewis
Snowman
Nick Chinlund
Sgt. Roberts
Anne Archer
Maggie
Larnell Stovall
Viper

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Ric Roman Waugh
Writers: Ric Roman Waugh
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $2.9M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 18 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Ric Roman Waugh, shot by Dana Gonzales. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Gerhard Daum. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Jonathan Chibnall shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Stephen Dorff and Val Kilmer and Harold Perrineau carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "No rule. No hope. No way out.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt1117385 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Ric Roman Waugh directs. Dana Gonzales behind the camera. Gerhard Daum scores. Jonathan Chibnall cuts. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $2.9M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Released 18 years ago.
3Directed by Ric Roman Waugh, shot by Dana Gonzales. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Gerhard Daum. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Jonathan Chibnall shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Stephen Dorff and Val Kilmer and Harold Perrineau carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "No rule. No hope. No way out.".
8IMDB entry: tt1117385 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 12 themes, including "prison", "neo-nazism", "tattoo", "court".

The technical file

Cinematography: Dana Gonzales
Original score: Gerhard Daum
Editing: Jonathan Chibnall
Production design: Vincent Reynaud
Costume design: Meriwether Nichols
Makeup / hair: Loretta Jo Blaine-Miller
Sound: Jonathan Miller
Stunt coordinator: Mike Smith
Runtime: 103 min · 1h 43m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $2,900,000
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Felon (2008)
Rotten Tomatoes: 60% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 58/100
IMDB rating: 7.4/10 · 86,626 votes
MPAA: R

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Ric Roman Waugh

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Community reviews

What people are saying

RCH22882017-05-04
★ 10/10
Wade Porter (Stephen Dorff) had it all going for him. A thriving construction business, a beautiful family and a future with endless possibilities for a great life. That all ends in an instant when while defending his home, he chases after a burglar and ends up killing him. Faced with the possibility of serving a 15 year sentence for Involuntary Manslaughter he pleads his case down to 13 months instead. Unfortunately he is woefully unprepared for what prison will be like for him. He gets caught up in unfortunate circumstances with a white prison gang and is then sent to the San Quenton SHU to serve his time. To survive against the other inmates and a sadistic cadre of guards, he finds himself tip toeing the line of prison politics and racism of the gangs and violent fights just to stay alive. He is befriended by a hardened 20 year veteran of the prison who is a mass murderer named John Smith (Val Kilmer). Smith helps guide him to keep his sanity in the brutal conditions of prison. All the while Porters fiancee and child are trying to stay afloat while he is in prison as well serving out his sentence. Well acted and well directed, Felon is one of the best prison movies ever made. It's right up there with American Me in terms of quality of film.
Dean2024-08-16
★ 10/10
One word: Masterpiece!