SIFF Capsule Review: If you’ve ever wanted to see what hardened criminals do in group therapy, now is your chance. The Work is a surprisingly captivating and emotional documentary set almost entirely inside a single room in Folsom Prison. Filmmakers Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous more or less let their subjects do the hard work as you get to see prisoners face their demons in shockingly explosive ways. It’s fascinating to see these men--one of whom apparently gutted another in two--vacillate between violence, anger and vulnerability.

The documentary certainly appealed more to my wife, a psychotherapist, but there’s no denying that The Work provides a rare glimpse at the power of therapy on what some would say are the people who need it most.

Review by Erik Samdahl. Erik is a marketing and technology executive by day, avid movie lover by night. He is a member of the Seattle Film Critics Society.