US
2006
70 minutes
Beta SP
Director: Dan Hunt, Janet Baus, Reid Williams

Five women in prison serve as the subjects not of a pulpy, campy midnight movie, but of a unique and thought-provoking glimpse at male-to-female transgendered convicts in men’s penitentiaries. Cruel and Unusual vividly portrays the lives of five transgendered women -- in varying stages of gender transitioning -- in the U.S. men’s penal system, where a prisoner’s gender classification is still based on genitalia rather than gender identity. Award-winning filmmakers Janet Baus, Dan Hunt and Reid Williams skillfully present these prisoners’ candid stories as their lives -- and, often, hopes -- unfold. The determined Yolanda became a “jail wife” on her first night of incarceration and was raped. Passionate Anna and demur Ashley attempted suicide. The fierce Ophelia and brutally honest Linda tell their stories of genital self-mutilation which, while disturbing, are also inspiring since their successful lawsuits now provide trans inmates with hormone therapy. Incorporating frank interviews from lawyers, experts and custodians, the filmmakers shed light on the penal system’s dangerous, institutionalized gray areas for transgendered inmates. – Emily Teel, Lawrence Ferber