30 Prison Movies to Watch for Escapes, Survival, and Life Behind Bars
A prison movie list featuring jailbreaks, wrongful convictions, tough survival stories, reform, revenge, and classic dramas behind bars. Compare ratings, trailers, cast, and watch options.
Rank 1Movie
The Shawshank Redemption
Imprisoned in the 1940s for the double murder of his wife and her lover, upstanding banker Andy Dufresne begins a new life at the Shawshank prison, where he puts his accounting skills to work for an amoral warden. During his long stretch in prison, Dufresne comes to be admired by the other inmates -- including an older prisoner named Red -- for his integrity and unquenchable sense of hope.
Runner-up picks
2Movie
The Green Mile
A supernatural tale set on death row in a Southern prison, where gentle giant John Coffey possesses the mysterious power to heal people's ailments. When the cell block's head guard, Paul Edgecomb, recognizes Coffey's miraculous gift, he tries desperately to help stave off the condemned man's execution.
3Movie
Escape from Alcatraz
San Francisco Bay, January 18, 1960. Frank Lee Morris is transferred to Alcatraz, a maximum security prison located on a rocky island. Although no one has ever managed to escape from there, Frank and other inmates begin to carefully prepare an escape plan.
More rankings
4MoviePapillon
1973★ 7.8
5MoviePapillon
2017★ 7.3
6MovieThe Great Escape
1963★ 7.9
7MovieCool Hand Luke
1967★ 7.7
8MovieMidnight Express
1978★ 7.4
9MovieA Prophet
2009★ 7.6
10MovieHunger
2008★ 7.2
11MovieBronson
2009★ 6.9
12MovieStarred Up
2014★ 7.1
13MovieFelon
2008★ 7.1
14MovieShot Caller
2017★ 7.0
15MovieBrawl in Cell Block 99
2017★ 7.0
16MovieThe Platform
2019★ 7.0
17MovieEscape Plan
2013★ 6.7
18MovieLock Up
1989★ 6.8
19MovieFortress
1992★ 6.1
20MovieCell 211
2009★ 7.4
21MovieThe Last Castle
2001★ 7.2
22MovieIn the Name of the Father
1993★ 7.9
23MovieAmerican History X
1998★ 8.3
24MovieThe Longest Yard
2005★ 6.7
25MovieCon Air
1997★ 6.8
26MovieBound by Honor
1993★ 8.2
27MovieThe Experiment
2010★ 6.4
28MovieAnimal Factory
2000★ 6.3
29MovieEscape Plan 2: Hades
2018★ 5.2
30MovieA Prayer Before Dawn
2018★ 6.7
About this list
A prison movie list featuring jailbreaks, wrongful convictions, tough survival stories, reform, revenge, and classic dramas behind bars. Compare ratings, trailers, cast, and watch options.
- Type
- Curated
- Category
- Movie
- Count
- 30 titles
