Attica (1980)

The true story of the events leading up to and during the 1971 Attica Correctional Facility riot and the aftermath.

Director:

Marvin J. Chomsky

Writers:

James S. Henerson, Tom Wicker (book)

Stars:

Henry Darrow, Charles Durning, Joel Fabiani

Won 1 Primetime Emmy. Another 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Henry Darrow	...	Herman Badillo
Charles Durning	...	Commissioner Russell Oswald
Joel Fabiani	...	Senator Gordon Conners
Morgan Freeman	...	Hap Richards
George Grizzard	...	Tom Wicker
David Harris	...	T. J.
Roger E. Mosley	...	Frank Green
Arlen Dean Snyder	...	Superintendant Vince Mancusi
Glynn Turman	...	Raymond Franklin
Anthony Zerbe	...	William Kunstler
Andrew Duncan	...	Lieutenant John Driscoll
William Flatley	...	Carl Dudley
Ron Foster	...	Leon Clay
Noble Lee Lester	...	Bobby Seale
Paul Lieber	...	Art Silver

Storyline

A TV-movie re-creation of the tragic events which followed the Attica Correctional Facility rebellion of September 9, 1971. Inmates demanding better food and living conditions took 38 guards as hostage. Negotiations begin immediately, only to continually break down thanks to uncompromising stubbornness on both sides. Four days into the crisis, the rebellion ends in a bloodbath, with state troopers firing on the prisoners, killing several of the guards in the process. Based on the eyewitness reporting of the New York Times' Tom Wicker, who was one of the civilian negotiators during the stalemate.

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Plot Keywords:

attica | guard | prisoner | prisoner revolt | inmate | 

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Taglines:

The True Story of the agony at Attica Prison!

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Genres:

Drama

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Did You Know?

Trivia

One of the main characters of this film is played by Charles Durning, who in Dog Day Afternoon (1975) hears a rant from Al Pacino about the Attica incident.

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Connections

Version of Attica (1974)

User Reviews

My brother in law was on the jury

Just a little note, my brother in law was the foreman on the jury, I still remember seeing his face on T.V. & his mother getting all upset, thinking the inmates or families would come after him. He never did have any problems but one of the other jurors & my brother in law became best friends and are still friends to this day.

Strange how bad things can sometimes lead to strange things, like friendship, marriage among others. I now live within a dozen miles from the prison, I have driven past the prison on many occasion, thinking what a scary place it is and how tough you need to be to survive a stint inside the stone walls. I drove my son past one day, explaining about how his uncle was on the jury. I think it frightened him a little bit. I told him to behave or he could end up on the inside! I remember watching the guards in the towers watching me, holding what looked to be M-16 automatic weapons. That was enough to make me turn around and head out of the parking lot and not look back!!

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 March 1980 (USA)

Also Known As:

Attica - Revolte hinter Gittern

Filming Locations:

Ohio Penitentiary, Columbus, Ohio, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

ABC Circle Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1