Ghosts... of the Civil Dead (1988)

Prison gangs clash in a high-tech security jail where there are no rules.

Director:

John Hillcoat

Writers:

Nick Cave, Gene Conkie

Stars:

David Field, Mike Bishop, Chris DeRose

2 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
David Field	...	Wenzil
Mike Bishop	...	David Yale
Chris DeRose	...	Grezner
Kevin Mackey	...	Glover
Dave Mason	...	Lilly
Nick Cave	...	Maynard
Bogdan Koca	...	Waychek
Freddo Dierck	...	Robbins
Vincent Gil	...	Ruben
M.E. Duncan	...	Junkie 1
Nick Seferi	...	Junkie 2
Tony Clark	...	Simone
Yilmaz Tuhan	...	Food King
Ian Mortimer	...	Jack
Mick King	...	Edwin Neal

Storyline

The inmates and guards of a modern, clean and efficient maximum security wing are slowly and increasingly brutalised until they erupt in violence. Dark and macabre, and based in truth, the story is told in a traditional dramatic style combined with telephone interviews and narration.

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Plot Keywords:

male full frontal nudity | maximum security | prison | violence | watching television | 

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Taglines:

They come Back to haunt you.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 June 1989 (Australia)

Also Known As:

Ghosts... of the Civil Dead - avoimien ovien päivä helvetissä

Filming Locations:

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Company Credits

Production Co:

Correctional Services, Outlaw Values

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Nick Cave used his experience in local lock up to help write the film, he overheard another inmate say to the police guard "Come here so I can spit in your eye!!"

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Quotes

Maynard: Officer, come here. I wanna spit in your fucking eye!

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Connections

Featured in Conspiracy Theory with Jesse Ventura: Manimal (2012)

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Soundtracks

Hippy
(uncredited)
Performed by Alan Parker

User Reviews

Scary, claustrophobic film about prison life

Virtually plot less, somewhat documentary-style film about life inside a high-tech maximum security prison in Australia. Easily the scariest film I've ever seen about prison life, certainly the most claustrophobic, thanks in part to Nick Cave's chilling, drone-like score, which is a piece of work all by itself.

It's funny - most of the prison life you see portrayed in film just doesn't seem "real" (never having been in prison myself I cannot say for sure, of course). But it just never seems real. In watching "Ghosts...of the Civil Dead" I was reminded of Roger Ebert's review of the original "Jaws". When talking about the shark Ebert said "...the illusion is complete. It just plain feels like a real shark." That's what I can say about this film. I don't know how much of it is real (which of the characters was played by an actual con, or whatever) but it just plain feels like real prison life. And this is the only film I've ever seen that I can say that about, which is also the highest praise that I can give it.

This probably one of the most menacing films I've ever seen. Although there is not a lot of violence shown, the odor of violence all but oozes from the screen. Every word and every frame drips with the possibility of violence and brutality.

The film basically shows the events leading up a "lockdown" in this prison. There aren't any main characters (the prison is the main character, as Cave points out in an interview on the DVD) although there are a few little subplots here and there. Mostly the film just lurches at you in heavy gasps and you sit and watch in horror. I know I did.

I recently watched a documentary about life inside a maximum security prison in Utah, and it looked stunningly like what is shown in this film.

Highly recommended but be warned, this is a heavy film.