The astronomical rise of the prison population in the US throughout the decades, through victimization of ethnic minorities and partnerships between correctional facilities and private corporations.
A brave new world! Well, not so new, really. Well, not so brave either, I guess. Writer, producer, and director Ava DuVernay hit the nail on the head with a revealing documentary on the once inexplicable rise of the prison population and its deep connections to racial inequality, the capitalist system, and their common denominator, which is none other than continuously manipulative governments.
I am pretty convinced that DuVernay’s footage was dozens of hours long, and she could probably have had about three documentaries like 13th. While evaluating her footage, she narrowed it down and told the story as she did. The documentary’s strong suit is the information it provides on the connection between the era of slavery to the media and cinema and The Birth of a Nation (1915) to the present era, and how it is all connected to the rise of the correctional facilities industry. I for one, and not being American, I didn’t have the foggiest so that was, while unpleasant and disheartening, an eye-opening experience. The research was also solid and the archive footage was strong and extremely effective, it literally put a lot into perspective.
And even though I learned loads about the disgusting, filthy companies that profit from human suffering, I didn’t get around why the poor who can’t get out of prison have been incarcerated, to begin with. I got an idea, don’t get me wrong, but instead of spending some time to expand on it, it expanded on movements and actions unrelated to the rise of the prison population.
The editing in documentaries such as 13th plays a catalytic role in narrative formation. Documentary means research. The filmmaker does not really know where it will lead or how it will really lead them where it will. It is a journey. O.J.: Made in America (2016) is a perfect example of that. Upon meticulous editing, the 7 hours and 47 minutes focus on the chronicle of O.J. Simpson, the anchor of the documentary, and only expand to the events surrounding his case.
Regardless, 13th is a must-watch, as are DuVernay’s previous work, Selma (2014), and the biographical When They See Us (2019) – reviews to follow.
Panagiotis, this one’s for you, mate. Thank you for the recommendation.
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