Das Experiment

"You are invited to participate"

Mar 8 2001 R 2h 0m
Drama, Thriller

20 volunteers agree to take part in a seemingly well-paid experiment advertised by the university. It is supposed to be about aggressive behavior in an artificial prison situation. A journalist senses a story behind the ad and smuggles himself in among the test subjects. They are randomly divided into prisoners and guards. What seems like a game at the beginning soon turns into bloody seriousness.

Plot

The movie is based on the infamous "Stanford Prison Experiment" conducted in 1971. A makeshift prison is set up in a research lab, complete with cells, bars and surveillance cameras. For two weeks 20 male participants are hired to play prisoners and guards. The 'prisoners' are locked up and have to follow seemingly mild rules, and the 'guards' are told simply to retain order without using physical violence. Everybody is free to quit at any time, thereby forfeiting payment. In the beginning the mood between both groups is insecure and rather emphatic. But soon quarrels arise and the wardens employ ever more drastic sanctions to confirm their authority.

Written by

Mario Giordano, Christoph Darnstädt, Don Bohlinger

Directed by

Oliver Hirschbiegel

Cast

Moritz Bleibtreu, Christian Berkel, Oliver Stokowski

Crew

View crew

Production Countries

Germany

Production Companies

Senator Film, Fanes Film, Typhoon, Seven Pictures

Languages

Deutsch

Awards

14 wins & 14 nominations total

Trailers
Das Experiment Trailer
Scores
# of Votes
98,641
Average Rating
7.7 out of 10
Metascore
59
Popularity
NA