This filmed showcased not only the reality of a man in the southern prison system but the reality of a veteran coming back from war. James Allen throughout the film was always imprisoned though not always in the literal sense of the term. After returning from the war his family expected him to return the same man and continue his former job, but that was no longer the life James wanted for himself but he was stuck in the fact that his family only saw one way of life for him, so he escaped. James of course then tried to make ends meet doing odd jobs in construction only to end up poor and in the wrong place at the wrong time leading to him becoming a prisoner on the chain gang. Once again James escaped leading only to a life of constantly looking behind his back and being imprisoned by the fear of getting caught. Though it seemed he could achieve his original goal of being an engineer, and he did, he was forced into a loveless marriage by a woman who was willing to turn him in and she did. James of course ended up back in the chain gang only to escape and spend his life on the run living a life of crime. James did everything he could to be happy even though everything he did is the reason why he ended up so unhappy. James created a life of imprisonment for himself by chasing a dream that even when he achieved it never brought him happiness. This movie shows in the clearest way that the choices you make lead to real life consequences and if choose to run from your consequences they will find you or you will live in fear of what will come next.
Review of I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang
