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The Fear of 13

You wouldn’t be blamed for thinking that a film that spends a full hour and a half sitting with just one person as he tells his story might not be all that interesting but The Fear of 13 turns out to be an incredibly compelling tale which which makes for a moving watch.

This film sees Nick Yarris recall his experience on Death Row, after being sentenced back in the 1980’s for a crime he didn’t commit. We hear of the brutality which went on and how the prisoners were treated. Yarris himself tells the story of how he managed to accidentally escape from custody for about a month before handing himself back in.

Director David Sington commendably avoids tricks for the most part, content for Yarris to tell his own story in his own words – after all, it needs no embellishment. There are a couple of flashbacks and some evocative music and sound to fit the theme, and it all works. THE FEAR OF 13 is a fine piece of film-making and one that deserves to be seen by all.

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  1. Such a moving, outstanding documentary. That poor guy spent all that time, went through all that crap, and for what? This is the only reason that I don’t support the death penalty. The human race is not error free. One innocent life is too many.

  2. a lot more interesting than you might think, at first glance, and largely because Yarris is such a compelling person. A thought-provoking film that raises many questions about long-term incarceration, social isolation, the death penalty and human psychology. Another film that deserve to be seem by the many rather than the few.