Condition Red (1995)

I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

This is supposedly based on a true story.Danny Cappelli (James Russo) is a former boxer working as a prison guard. He is an old neighborhood Philadelphia blue collar type guy who has some stress issue which he brings out with some early first person narration. His inability to get along with male inmates without going into the berserker mode lands him a job at the less stressful "G-Block" guarding women.Gidell Ryan (Cynda Williams) is a prisoner. She is an up and coming night club singer and part owner, along with her boyfriend Angel (Paul Calderon) of an adult entertainment establishment. He is the reason she is in prison. Our main two characters discover they both like closet sex and plan their escape.Gidell's character was not well developed. It could have used a few clever minutes showing us her crime. Russo played a fairly decent blue collar guard, being chased by an Adrian clone from "Rocky."Parental Guide: F-bomb, sex, brief nudity (Cynda Williams, some strippers with pasties)

It is a low-budget movie, but expertly directed: for instance , with few actors and means the atmosphere in the prisons is effectively rendered. The movie in fact consists of three roles only ( the late Victor Argo being seen for very few minutes), but they are all well played. Paul Calderon is quite believable as a slimy gangster. I confess that I did not know Cinda Williams before, and found her very attractive in a sultry way, but also quite convincing. The best however is James Russo, who is really outstanding, using only his gimlet eyes and clenched jaws. *** Spoilers: while you expect Russo to be broken by the death of the loved one, the unexpected but appropriate end helps greatly to make a success of Condition Red

The movie is pretty good but it looks horrible on DVD. All you see is artifacts and blocks. Its was also transfered 4:3 ratio. If you want to see this movie get the VHS instead. The DVD looks like a movie recorded off TV in EP mode

Dan Capelli (James Russo) is a prison guard with a major attitude problem. After repeatedly getting too violent with inmates, he is temporarily transferred to duty in a women's prison. There, he meets Gidell (Cynda Williams), a stressed out inmate who initially just tries to make small talk with him. Dan tries to maintain detached from Gidell despite how he may really feel, but when Gidell's boyfriend Angel (James Calderon) comes into the picture, things seem to change.This is a strange movie. Independent films have this strange effect on me - even if they aren't too good, if they're character driven little plots, I get sucked in no matter what. From a technical sense, this film isn't that great. It's a character driven story with underdeveloped characters, and a movie with no plot that still manages to have plot holes. But, I couldn't help it. There was something about it's low budget-ness that I liked. Maybe it was knowing that this was such a small film that I was seeing something perhaps only a handful of other people had ever seen.James Calderon really changed for this role. I'm pretty sure he's Puerto Rican, but he looked African-American in this film. Strange what makeup can do. He and Victor Argo are too good actors who were underused in this movie. Cynda Williams is also good when she has stuff to work with, but like Kris Kristofferson, she's a performer who has had her fair share of characters that you just can't go anywhere with. But, James Russo's monologue at the end of this film makes up for all of that. Strange, how a good monologue can greatly improve a movie's quality.This one is good to watch on the movie channels if you're up after midnight and no one else is home.