Mick O'Brien is a young Chicago street thug torn between a life of petty crime and the love of his girlfriend. But when the heist of a local drug dealer goes tragically wrong Mick is sentenced to a brutal juvenile prison where violence is a rite of passage and respect is measured in vengeance.
Acting
Penn's volcanic debut—pure feral charisma.
Direction
Rosenthal makes juvenile hall feel like actual purgatory.
Writing
Dialogue so sharp it'll cut you first.
Director
Rick Rosenthal
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Sean Penn was so committed he got into real fights with extras and refused to break character between takes.
This film invented the template for 'gritty juvenile prison drama' that every prestige TV show still copies—Orange is the New Black owes it rent.
US
