Titicut Follies is a 1967 American documentary directed by Frederick Wiseman, filmed inside the Massachusetts Correctional Institution at Bridgewater, a state facility for the criminally insane, and showing the treatment and daily conditions of its inmates in unflinching, unnarrated observational footage. Massachusetts state officials obtained a court order barring the film from public exhibition, citing the inmates' privacy, and it remained legally restricted for public screening in the state for more than two decades, making it one of the few American films ever banned by court order for reasons other than obscenity. Titicut Follies is widely regarded as a founding work of American direct cinema documentary and as an early, influential exposure of institutional abuse in psychiatric confinement.
Facts
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Original Language FAQs
Why was Titicut Follies banned in Massachusetts and when could it be shown again?
A court banned it over inmate privacy and lifted the ban in 1991.
A Massachusetts court banned the film from general release, saying it violated the privacy of the inmates it showed. The ruling was amended shortly afterward to allow screenings for lawyers, doctors and social service workers. In 1991 the court lifted the ban, primarily because the inmates in the film were all deceased.
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Source Titicut Follies (Wikipedia)
In Medium
Source Titicut Follies (Wikipedia)
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Also in Language Atlas: the original language of this subject.
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Sources
1. Wikidata: Titicut Follies
Wikidata Q144521, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source 2. Titicut Follies (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationLead paragraph, opening sentence
Titicut Follies is a 1967 American direct cinema documentary film produced, written, and directed by Frederick Wiseman and filmed by John Marshall.
Titicut Follies, Description, original language
Titicut Follies is a 1967 American documentary directed by Frederick Wiseman, filmed inside the Massachusetts Correctional Institution at Bridgewater, a state facility for the criminally insane, and showing the treatment and daily conditions of its inmates in unflinching, unnarrated observational footage.
In Medium: Film, Article lead sentence
Titicut Follies is a 1967 American direct cinema documentary film produced, written, and directed by Frederick Wiseman and filmed by John Marshall.
Created By: Frederick Wiseman, Article lead sentence
Titicut Follies is a 1967 American direct cinema documentary film produced, written, and directed by Frederick Wiseman and filmed by John Marshall.
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