The Work, documentary, Folsom Prison, group therapy, film review,

“I ain’t seen the sunshine since I don’t know when, I’m stuck in Folsom Prison, and time keeps draggin’ on”. Johnny Cash.

This film isn’t about Johnny Cash, but it is about life in Folsom Prison.

“The Work” is a real life documentary set inside a single room during a four-day group-therapy retreat. We follow three volunteers from the outside who join an imposing group of heavily tattooed murderers and gang-banging lifers, with lives cut short, estranged from broken families who long ago gave up on them.

The Work, documentary, Folsom Prison, film review,

Everyone is blind-sided by the tsunami of grief, pushing them towards their own long buried traumas. Demons literally come screaming out of bodies as the men own up to the harm they’ve caused themselves and others. What immense bravery to show such vulnerability to each other and the camera.

Imagine how a little love and encouragement, maybe one simple break, could allow more fathers to raise their sons and perhaps end the multi-generational cycle of incarceration.

“The Work” is one of those films that stay in your head long after the credits roll.