Best movies about prison

Q: What is in this list?

This list includes, for example, The Iceman , The Green Mile , The Man in the Iron Mask .

41 items • 98 views • 0 votes • updated Nov 7, 2026

Discover the best movies about prison, ranked from best to worst.

Based on 0 votes, the movie American History X, starring Edward Norton and Edward Furlong, came in first as the best movie about prison of all time, followed by Bandit and Brubaker from 1980. Scroll down for the top 10 movies about prison, recommended by movie fans in 2026.

Recommend the best movies about prison

American History X

1998 - Edward Norton, Edward Furlong, Beverly D'AngeloDrama

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Derek Vineyard gets out of prison after three years, convicted of killing two African-American men. His younger brother recounts how Derek led a violent extremist gang and how deeply that •••

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Bandit

2022 - Josh Duhamel, Elisha Cuthbert, Mel Gibson, Nestor Carbonell, Lorenzo Yearby, Swen...

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After escaping from a Michigan prison, a charming career criminal assumes a new identity in Canada and proceeds to rob a record 59 banks and jewelry stores while being hunted by a police •••

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Brubaker

1980 - Robert Redford, Yaphet Kotto, Jane AlexanderCrime, Drama

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The new warden of a small prison farm in Arkansas first goes in posing as an inmate, then tries to clean the place of corruption. Robert Redford stars alongside Yaphet Kotto and Jane •••

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Con Air

1997 - Nicolas Cage, John Cusack, John MalkovichAction, Thriller, Crime

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Former Army Ranger Cameron Poe is paroled and wants to get home to his wife and the daughter he has never met. The plane taking him there also carries the most dangerous convicts in the •••

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Death Race

2008 - Jason Statham, Joan Allen, Ian McShaneAction, Thriller, Science Fiction

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Former racing driver Jensen Ames is framed for his wife's murder and sent to an island prison run by a private company. There, inmates compete in armored car races broadcast as a show, and •••

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Doing Life

2026 - Naomi Baker, Jay Reeves, Tamberla Perry, Karen Obilom, Jasmine Sargent, Danielle Moné...

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A single mother and a man in prison begin writing letters to each other, and their bond brings hope, love, and a chance at a new life. The romantic drama is directed by Tyler Perry.

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Escape from Alcatraz

1979 - Clint Eastwood, Patrick McGoohan, Roberts BlossomDrama, Thriller

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In January 1960, Frank Morris is transferred to Alcatraz, the maximum-security prison on an island in San Francisco Bay from which no one had ever managed to escape. With other inmates, he •••

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Escape from New York

1981 - Kurt Russell, Lee Van Cleef, Donald Pleasence, Adrienne Barbeau, Harry Dean Stanton...

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In 1997, Manhattan has been walled off and turned into a maximum-security prison for the worst criminals, who have formed an anarchic society.

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Escape From Pretoria

2020 - Daniel Radcliffe, Daniel Webber, Ian Hart, Mark Leonard Winter, Nathan Page, Grant Piro...

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South Africa, 1978. Tim Jenkin and Stephen Lee, two white political activists from the African National Congress imprisoned by the apartheid regime, put a plan in motion to escape from the •••

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Escape Plan

2013 - Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jim CaviezelAction, Thriller

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Ray Breslin is the world's top expert in prison security and designs places no one can escape from. Framed, he ends up locked in one such building he designed himself, and has to find a •••

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Frequently asked questions

Is there already a ranking based on votes?

This list has not received any votes yet. The order shown does not reflect visitor preferences. You can help by voting for the options you recommend.

What is in this list?

This list includes, for example, The Iceman, The Green Mile, The Man in the Iron Mask.

What are the most recent movies in this list?

Among the titles with a known release year, the most recent are: Doing Life (2026), Ghost in the Cell (2026), Motor City (2026).

Which movies from 1990–1999 are included?

Titles released in this period include Instinct (1999), Life (1999) (1999), The Green Mile (1999).

How do I vote and how is the ranking decided?

Press the up arrow if you recommend an option or the down arrow if you do not. You can use the search box in the list to quickly find a name and vote directly. The order takes into account both positive and negative votes and how many there are, and positions can change as votes are added.