Sorry, this movie sucks

Memorable, crazy movie

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

I understand that this file is a great achievement for black women since it has four starring roles for black women and a black female director. On the other hand, I can't see why we accept less than average work for black cinema. This movie is a total disgrace. I understand that there were budget concerns with this movie, but some of the problems with this picture have nothing to do with money.Questions: (Spoilers Below)At the beginning, we are told that Sergeant Dees has been at the prison for 17 years and he has outlasted 4 Wardens. On the other hand, when the Warden and Dees get into an argument.... he tells Dees that he will send him back to Florida where he found him. The problem is that based on the first statement, the Warden found Dees at this prison...not in Florida.Little Mama is in jail for killing her stepfather who raped her. Now, she is about 4 or 5 months pregnant (from her stepfather) when we meet her and she has been there for some time. In which state does justice move so quickly? It takes at least a year for a murder trial to commence. Well, that is a small thing.The inmates seem to have a huge problem because there is no heat in the cells. On the other hand, when the two main characters are sent to "dungeon" for solitary confinement...they are clothed only in their underwear and it is extremely hot. I thought heat rises. Plus, when the girls are outside, they don't seem to be cold at all. So, it is only in the jail cells that they are cold.I also noticed the problem with Wet's scar. They talk about the scar, then she gets smacked...but she is not bleeding while she is being taken away. Later, she has this bright red scar that looks like she has been cut by a steak knife. Something doesn't fit.The entire "miscarriage" scene is a total disgrace. First, I know that Frances was a nurse, but how does the doctor know to trust her with the defibrillator? In addition, the screen to the defibrillator is off..now that is really funny. Little Mama does not have any IVs or monitors connected to her to let the doctor know her vital stats. The doctors tries to "shock" her threes times before he calls the time of death. I thought they tried for at least 30 minutes. Also, when someone's heart stops beating, I thought you are supposed to start compressions....at least I have watched enough ER to know that much.In the final scene, the backdrop to the exit of the "infirmary" is completely different when Wet walks out that when Frances and Nikki walk out 10 minutes later. Hey, this is a small thing, but when you make a motion picture, these things should not happen....I don't care how small the budget is.All in all, I felt this movie insulted my intelligence. I am supposed to pretend that I don't realize all the flaws with the plot and cinematography...just to enjoy the picture? No way!

A friend already warned me not to expect a whole lot from this movie, so I went in trying to like it. Perhaps it's because it's the director's first feature film, but mainly because of budget constraints, "Civil Brand" left a lot of gaps in credibility, and visual creativity. I know that the director comes from a television background, and a lot of shots have tight close-ups. Saves money. But I honestly felt that this picture almost slid into B-movie campiness. Let me break it down. Actors. N'Bushe Wright is the best thing in this flick. Casting a few rappers and marginal actresses hurt this piece. I love Mos Def, but he was set up as an important character, but he's underutilized. Perhaps because there was not enough cash to get this thing done, some scenes were not filmed. Less Voice over narrative would've helped. In fact, there should be no narrator. Narration separates the audience from the characters, especially when the person narrating is not integral to the plot. Next, sound design. Clifton Powell (who plays the head prison guard) is an awesome actor. He brings intensity to any scene, and can flip directions like Gene Hackman, hands down. But the choice of music (too much) overwhelmed scenes that could be more intense without telegraphic music that announces what happens next. I felt like I was viewing a silent-era film where the organ player tells you what to feel by the music cue. Reminds me of that damn zither from "The Third Man", the music over powers certain scenes that just don't need it. Make-up/hair. These women are in prison. Sistas had their hair and nails hooked up better than the women I see walking down my street! The characer "Wet" has a faded scar in one scene; a few scenes later another character is commenting on how she just got a bad scar on her face from a beating, then, minutes later (days later in movie-speak), her scars are all red a fresh, even though she had them way before the mention of any beating. Chalk it up to lack of continuity. A fake bloodshot eye lense was very obvious on the Tichina Arnold character. (I know I mispelled her name...sorry) The warden had this thick gob of gel that is used to simulate sweat, but it never moved in all the close-ups he had. Just looked like a gob of goo. Not a big deal if it's a medium shot. But Extreme Close-up? Yikes. Looks like vasoline. I tried to overlook these things, but they are important if one is trying to immerse a person in this world. It was a distraction. Especially Lisa Raye's glitter eye shadow in a few of her close ups as she's talking behind bars. Some scenes were just plain over the top, to the point where I was laughing when I should've been focused on caring for these women. I feel like the movie should be done again, and Neema Barnette given the budget and support to take her time making this picture. It was meshed together in 15 days, when clearly three more weeks probably would've solved a lot of character problems and plot holes left over. So much potential. I support independent film by any means necessary, and Neema is to be commended for actually getting a film on screen. At the same time, the idea that this is a film being lauded as one of the best "black films" and is winning awards in some festivals has me concerned about the quality of films black audiences are desperate to watch. I honestly don't know if the script was even up to task on this. Too many missed opportunities. This film shoulda been popping like the Attica Prison Riot. Instead, it comes of limp and unfulfilled. Just a major disappointment. I hesitate to recommend people to see this. It's a catch-22. If people see this, and like it, then more will be made just like it. Not Good. And if no one goes to see it, distributors and studios can point the finger and say, "See, no one wants to see films, with a dominant black cast." So, I say go see it for what it is, and hopefully it will be financially viable enough to actually get the money to do a story of this magnitude better justice. The prison industrial complex and female slave labor and assualts behind bars is no joke. We have yet to see that story.

CIVIL BRAND is a story which tells of a women's prison in which the inmates are forced to work as slaves, and are exploited as little more than animals. True, we've all seen this in SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION, where convicts are put to physical labor, but it's always been presented as an acceptable situation. A man robs a store and kills the clerk, so why not have him pound out license plates and working on road construction crews?CIVIL BRAND offers a fresh look at the Prison-Industrial Complex, attacking the issue from several different angles. For one thing, the inmates aren't working on roads or some kind of community service- they're making clothes for department stores. A more provocative approach, though, is the fact that these slaves are female, a scenario that folks are not used to considering. Outstanding performances by LisaRaye, Mos Def, Clifton Powell, MC Lyte, Monica Calhoun, Lark Voorhies, and the sensational N'Bushe Wright (the lady Panther from DEAD PRESIDENTS who is one of the most talented people acting in Cinema today, not to mention drop-dead gorgeous), powerful cinematography, and brutal honesty come together to make CIVIL BRAND not just a great movie, but an extremely important one.(c) Jake McGee - Get Underground

Suffice it to say this movie could have been way more than it was. I have to write this knowing what transpired in the making of the film. Civil Brand was to focus on the Prison Industrial Complex and how it relates to women in prison. The fact that most women in prison are in as a result of some aspect of domestic violence; and that the need for these women in prison fuels a slavocracy in the production of products for sale for corporation; and that the prison industry has risen as a result of this need for slave labor; and that women in prison are attacked because of their gender ie rape,beatings. The budget was approx $500.000, the shoot was 15 days. (Using real or ex convicts along with the actors would have been the real deal adding a reality and tension in the film that it cannot get w/just actors) Simply there was not enough money or time given to the filmmaker to put these points across with the bang, which is how I believe they intended. The forces that be "behind" the film did not allow it. Nevertheless, Civil Brand, gives us a glimpse of the gendered persecution that women face in prison and how if people really knew what was happening in there they would not want to go in(focus on youth) and they would rise up against a system that destroys human potential and separates themselves from their selves.