''Stranger Inside'' is a

made-for-television A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definit ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

directed by

Cheryl Dunye Cheryl Dunye (; born May 13, 1966) is a Liberian-American film director, producer, screenwriter, editor and actress. Dunye's work often concerns themes of race, sexuality, and gender, particularly issues relating to black lesbians. She is known ...

that premiered on

cable television Cable television is a system of delivering television programming to consumers via radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted through coaxial cables, or in more recent systems, light pulses through fibre-optic cables. This contrasts with broa ...

in 2001. The story primarily concerns

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

lesbians A lesbian is a homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with fem ...

in prison.

Michael Stipe John Michael Stipe (; born January 4, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter and artist, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of alternative rock band R.E.M. He is known for his vocal quality, poetic lyrics and unique stage presence. Poss ...

, the lead singer of

R.E.M. R.E.M. was an American rock band from Athens, Georgia, formed in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe, who were students at the University of Georgia. One of the first alternati ...

, helped to produce it. In a 2004 issue of ''

Feminist Studies Women's studies is an academic field that draws on feminist and interdisciplinary methods to place women's lives and experiences at the center of study, while examining social and cultural constructs of gender; systems of privilege and oppressi ...

'', Dunye stated that she worked with actual female inmates to produce the script.

Plot

Treasure Lee (Yolonda Ross) learns that her biological mother Brownie ( Davenia McFadden) is incarcerated in an adult prison, so she purposely gets into trouble in order to be transferred from a juvenile facility to an adult women's facility in order to meet her. In the new prison, she reunites with an old friend Shadow (LaTanya Hagans). She meets new inmates, such as Leisha (Medusa), an aspiring

rapper Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

, and Doodle (

Ella Joyce Ella Joyce (born Cherron Hoye; June 12, 1954) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Eleanor Emerson on the Fox comedy-drama sitcom '' Roc'', which originally ran from 1991 until 1994. Early years The daughter of an autowor ...

), a religious,

homophobic Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who are identified or perceived as being lesbian, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, hatred or antipathy, m ...

woman who is involved with a male

correctional officer A prison officer or corrections officer is a uniformed law enforcement official responsible for the custody, supervision, safety, and regulation of prisoners. They are responsible for the care, custody, and control of individuals who have been ...

. When Treasure asks about Brownie, Leisha responds, "I'm about getting up out of here. I ain't about no Brownie." Later, Shadow points Brownie out to her on the

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

court. Brownie knocks a player down, injuring her, and demands that another person take her place. Treasure volunteers for the position. Back in the cells, Treasure approaches Brownie around her "prison family." She pulls out a photo of a woman and says to Brownie that she is her mother and her reason for being in prison. Brownie's "daughters" protest that the photograph is not of Brownie. Brownie asks the daughters to leave and yells at Treasure, stating it is her own fault she is in jail. Treasure is playing cards with Leisha and Shadow when she begins flirting with an inmate named Sugar (Patrice Fisher). Kit (

Rain Phoenix Rain Joan of Arc Phoenix ( Bottom; born November 21, 1972) is an American actress, musician, and singer. She is the older sister of Joaquin, Liberty and Summer Phoenix and younger sister of River Phoenix. Early life Phoenix was born Rain Joan o ...

), Brownie's main daughter, chides the woman for not meeting her in the chapel for their usual sexual relations. A fight breaks out between Treasure and Kit that results in both being placed in

solitary confinement Solitary confinement is a form of imprisonment in which the inmate lives in a single cell with little or no meaningful contact with other people. A prison may enforce stricter measures to control contraband on a solitary prisoner and use additi ...

. While confined, Brownie speaks through a wall telling Treasure that they should meet once she is released. Once back in the general population, Brownie meets with Treasure alone and states that she did not know about her because she was taken away at birth. She admits, "I failed you." Treasure cries on her shoulder. As Treasure becomes a part of Brownie's prison family, Kit informs her that Brownie taught her how to survive in prison and demands that she sells drugs. Later, Brownie shoves a fork into Kit's thigh when Kit fails to bring in a certain amount of money from selling drugs. Meanwhile, Leisha is released from prison and Shadow admits that she wished she had never told Treasure about Brownie. Brownie tattoos the same

ankh Progressive ankylosis protein homolog (ANK ilosis H omolog) is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ''ANKH'' gene. This gene encodes a multipass transmembrane protein that is expressed in joints and other tissues and controls pyrophosphate ...

she has on Treasure's arm. Treasure suggested that she should be reassigned cells to be closer to the family and Brownie does nothing to make that happen. However, when Brownie eats food made by Treasure's new

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

cellmate (Emily Kuroda), she proposes that the new inmate should live near her. Brownie mocks Kit when she sees Kit reading

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

literature. Kit responds, "I am not jealous of you and Treasure because I know Brownie just cares about Brownie." Brownie then kicks her out of the prison family. In a later scene, a ranting Brownie grabs Treasure and comes close to maiming her with broken glass. Brownie approaches Treasure in the kitchen area where Treasure shows her obvious irritation with Brownie. Brownie tries to persuade Treasure that she needs to kill Kit, who now associates with a female

neo-Nazi Neo-Nazism comprises the post–World War II militant, social, and political movements that seek to revive and reinstate Nazism, Nazi ideology. Neo-Nazis employ their ideology to promote hatred and Supremacism#Racial, racial supremacy (ofte ...

gang. On the basketball court, Brownie slides a shank to Treasure. Treasure demands to play one-on-one basketball with Kit. Instead of playing, they immediately begin fighting. Treasure beats Kit badly but does not use the shank on her. Brownie pulls her to the side and demands that she kill Kit. As the two women leave their huddle, Kit approaches Brownie and puts a shank deep in her neck. All the inmates fall to the ground as correctional officers run out onto the court. In a medical waiting area, Treasure sees Leisha, who is now in a

wheelchair A wheelchair is a chair with wheels, used when walking is difficult or impossible due to illness, injury, problems related to old age, or disability. These can include spinal cord injuries ( paraplegia, hemiplegia, and quadriplegia), cerebr ...

. Leisha, in a drowsy voice, states that the police caught her with

drug paraphernalia "Drug paraphernalia" is a term to denote any equipment, product or accessory that is intended or modified for making, using or concealing drugs, typically for recreational purposes. Drugs such as marijuana, cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamin ...

again. When a medical worker calls Treasure's name, she dismisses her for not having matching blood. Treasure grabs the woman by the arm and demands to donate blood. A female correctional officer approaches the two and demands to read the file. The file reveals that Brownie is not Treasure's mother, but instead the woman who killed Treasure's mother. The

warden A warden is a custodian, defender, or guardian. Warden is often used in the sense of a watchman or guardian, as in a prison warden. It can also refer to a chief or head official, as in the Warden of the Mint. ''Warden'' is etymologically identic ...

(

Lee Garlington Ann Leslie "Lee" Garlington (born July 20, 1953) is an American actress. Early life Garlington was born in Teaneck, New Jersey. She spent her teenage years in Wilmington, Delaware. Career She has guest starred in a number of notable television s ...

) has a meeting with Treasure in her office, and says that she sympathizes with her. She offers to transfer Treasure if she will admit that Brownie and a male correctional officer have been working together to bring drugs to inmates. At her new prison, a crew of inmates approach Treasure out of respect while she is outside smoking a cigarette. They ask her for her name and Treasure replies that her name is Brownie.

Cast

Yolonda Ross Yolonda Ross is an American actress, writer and director. Life and career Ross was born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska. She began her acting career in New York, appearing in the episodes of television series ''New York Undercover'' and ''Third Wa ...

as Treasure * Davenia McFadden as Brownie *

as Kit *

as Doodle Alderidge *

Conchata Ferrell Conchata Galen Ferrell (March 28, 1943October 12, 2020) was an American actress. Although she was a regular cast member of five TV sitcoms, she was best known for playing Berta the housekeeper for all 12 seasons of ''Two and a Half Men''. For he ...

as Mama Cass *

as Warden Arnold * LaTonya 'T' Hagans as Shadow *

Medusa In Greek mythology, Medusa (; Ancient Greek: Μέδουσα "guardian, protectress"), also called Gorgo, was one of the three monstrous Gorgons, generally described as winged human females with living venomous snakes in place of hair. Those ...

as Leisha *

Marc Vann Marc Vann (born August 23, 1954) is an American actor. He is known for his role as Conrad Ecklie in the CBS television series '' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation''. He also had notable roles in ''Angel'' and ''Early Edition''. Vann was born in N ...

as Nelson * Almayvonne Dixon as Scar *

Mary Mara Mary T. Mara (September 21, 1960 – June 26, 2022) was an American television and film actress known for her main role as Inspector Bryn Carson on '' Nash Bridges'' and appearances on primetime dramas '' ER'' and '' Law & Order''. She also ap ...

as Tanya * Karina Logue as Fran *

Emily Kuroda Emily Keiko Kuroda (born October 30, 1952) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Mrs. Kim on TV's ''Gilmore Girls'', but she has had a long career on stage and screen and is a veteran of East West Players, Los Angeles's premi ...

as Min

Awards

In 2001, ''Stranger Inside'' won the Audience Awards at the

Seattle Lesbian & Gay Film Festival Seattle Queer Film Festival (formerly known as the Seattle Lesbian & Gay Film Festival) is an annual film festival in Seattle. The 25th Annual Seattle Queer Film Festival will take place October 14–24, 2021. It is the largest LGBTQ film festival ...

, the

San Francisco International Film Festival The San Francisco International Film Festival (abbreviated as SFIFF), organized by the San Francisco Film Society, is held each spring for two weeks, presenting around 200 films from over 50 countries. The festival highlights current trends in in ...

, L.A. Outfest and the

Philadelphia Film Festival The Philadelphia Film Festival is a film festival founded by the Philadelphia Film Society held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The annual festival is held at various theater venues throughout the Greater Philadelphia Area. Overview The annual f ...

. It also won the award for Breakthrough Actor at the

Gotham Awards The Gotham Awards () are American film awards, presented annually to the makers of independent films at a ceremony in New York City, the city first nicknamed "Gotham" by native son Washington Irving, in an issue of ''Salmagundi'', published on ...

(for Yolonda Ross) and the Special Jury Award at the

Miami Gay and Lesbian Film Festival Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

. In 2002, the film was nominated for several awards including a

GLAAD Media Award The GLAAD Media Award is an accolade bestowed by GLAAD to recognize and honor various branches of the media for their outstanding representations of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community and the issues that affect their live ...

, three

Independent Spirit Awards The Independent Spirit Awards (abbreviated Spirit Awards and originally known as the FINDIE or Friends of Independents Awards), founded in 1984, are awards dedicated to independent filmmakers. Winners were typically presented with Poly(methyl m ...

and five

Black Reel Awards The Black Reel Awards, or BRAs, is an annual American awards ceremony hosted by the Foundation for the Augmentation of African-Americans in Film (FAAAF) to recognize excellence of African Americans, as well as the cinematic achievements of the Afr ...

. It won the Audience Award and Special mention at the

Créteil International Women's Film Festival The Créteil International Women's Film Festival (in French Festival international de films de femmes de Créteil) is an annual event in Créteil, France, founded by Jackie Buet in 1978 to showcase the directing talents of female filmmakers who, ...

. For producing the film, Effie Brown won the Producer's Award at the 2003

References

External links

* * {{Amg movie, 239447, Stranger Inside
The Stranger Inside 2013 Official Trailer

The Stranger Inside 2013
2001 drama films 2001 television films 2001 films American LGBT-related television films African-American LGBT-related films Lesbian-related films Lesbian-related television shows American prison films Films scored by Andrew Lockington Films scored by Mychael Danna 2001 LGBT-related films American drama television films 2000s English-language films 2000s American films