The Experiment is a 2010 American thriller film directed by Paul Scheuring and starring Adrien Brody, Forest Whitaker,Cam Gigandet and Maggie Grace.The film is also a remake of the 2001 German film Das Experiment, which was directed by Oliver Hirschbiegel. The experiment begins when 26 men are chosen to participate in the roles of guards and prisoners in a psychological study that ultimately spirals out of control. $14,000 for two weeks, it is easy-earned money.
Aug 12, 2011 - Original review featured on The Doha Film Institute website. Drama A group of 26 men take part in a psychological experiment for a period of. The Experiment (Also Known As: Eksperiment) is a Drama, Thriller film directed by Paul Scheuring and written by Mario Giordano. It was released on 12 August 2010 (South Korea). It stars Adrien Brody, Cam Gigandet, Forest Whitaker.
The study examines aggressive behavior in an artificial prison setting. At first the tenants are divided randomly into prisoners and guards, but soon a spiral of violence begins. I had some hope for this film because I remember seeing the original Das Experiment more then a year ago and enjoying it.
Although brutal the film was brilliant in the way it explored human nature, human instincts, and one's moral compass. It's actually quite surprising that it took such a long time (9 years) for Hollywood to assassinate, pardon me, remake this very interesting story which is actually based on the Stanford prison experiment that took place in 1971 and was highly criticized afterwords. The problem with this remake is that, as in most things Hollywood, it's all about big name actors and big fights and nice camera angles. What's most important, the characterization and the character development which are the things that make this story, were completely thrown aside.
One of the consequences of doing so is that the film felt extremely rushed and therefor the payoff wasn't that great. I didn't think there was real tension, and the film lacked that gritty look of the original, instead it looks sharp and polished.
Also, it's one thing to put your own spin into a story but this remake eliminated an entire dimension of the original film. I'm talking about the people behind the cameras, the scientists watching and conducting the experiment. They played a big part in the original and in this remake they are nowhere to be seen and it truly diminished the story. Regarding the acting, I thought Adrien Brody did a pretty good job and Cam Gigandet was delightfully nasty as he usually is. On the other hand, Forest Whitaker was absolutely awful. In almost every film that see him in, he acts like he has a speech impediment and to be honest, it adds nothing to his performance. Overall, The Experiment it's somewhat enjoyable but not nearly as good as the original.
Original review featured on website. Director: Paul Scheuring Stars: Adrien Brody, Cam Gigandet and Forest Whitaker Genre: Thriller, Drama A group of 26 men take part in a psychological experiment for a period of two weeks, that will earn them $1000 a day. Set in a mock prison, the group is divided between guards and inmates. The Guards are supposed to apply five main rules, and if any of them gets broken, the experiment is terminated and no one gets paid. Monitored by cameras everywhere, the experiment reveals worrying behavioural problems from the first day with some taking their role a bit too seriously.
The research transforms into a living nightmare. Travis (Adrian Brody) – a Zen who wouldn’t hurt a fly – has just met Bay (Maggie Grace) who seems to be the potential love of his life. Bay has already planned to go on a journey of spiritual enlightenment in India, but Travis can’t afford it. Faced with this sudden need for cash, Travis finds a newspaper advertisement for the experiment, and applies in hopes of financing a getaway with the girl of his dreams. In this real life simulation, Travis is picked amongst the prisoners.
His pacifist nature is slowly dissimulated, as he becomes the prisoners’ rebel and the guards’ favourite torturing element. Yes the guards have incarnated their blue suits, revealing sick and sadistic conducts. The film is a remake of the 2001, and what makes it even more interesting, is the very fact that it’s based on real life events.
In 1971, a psychologist by the name of Zimbardo has decided to implement a similar strategy on university students for what’s known as the in order to “study of the psychological effects of becoming a prisoner or prison guard” that turned into an unethical, mentally damaging, sadistic character revealers. This, when all members picked for the study are – supposedly – emotionally ‘stable’.
Have a look at some of the real footage. This is not the type of mature developments that you’d expect in a complex psychological thriller. The one-dimensional analysis brings out too early the alter-character of the prisoners and guards, without logical warm ups.
But from outside this seemingly real prison, what do we know about the psychologist running this experiment – his reactions while watching these people almost kill each other – and how many are behind it? Little is said about the people behind cameras, which is a crucial point in accessing the obsession that drags the psychologist stalker as much as the players. But this is without a doubt an eye-opener journey questioning the reality behind prison guards, morality and justice. It reveals the many ways human beings can adopt in shifting rules to their benefit while abusing power when getting the chance to.
Power and prison are not made for everyone it seems. Adrian Brody is good at the rebel but the most remarkable is Forest Whitaker playing the very religious and spiritual man who turns into a psychotic and sadistic guard. (He makes you want to kill him. Are we part of the experiment then?) I only wish the characters got the chance to develop more for a rare experience in human nature. However, the film leaves you totally hooked on to the exciting yet disturbing action.
Make sure to watch it soon, because it’s on for only another week. Then make sure to share with us which type of guard or prisoner you think you’d be!