The film will imprint a fear of humanity in every viewer who sits through the draining two hours.

Thirty years ago, a group of ordinary young men were rounded up and thrown into jail. Whilst 10 of the lab rats were given guard uniforms, batons and whistles, the other half were stripped of every belonging and every human right they'd taken for granted since the day they were born.

This experiment became a classic story, and the results were shocking. This movie recreates what these men originally thought was a money-making game and takes it to realistic extremes.

Tarek Fahd has seen an advert in the paper asking for 20 male volunteers for a two-week 'lab test', with 4,000 Marks as a reward. He has no idea what's coming.

As the 20 excitable men are confined in their cells and in the guard room, Fahd has an uneasy feeling about his new role as prisoner. Almost immediately the first rumbling of discontent are apparent. The guards begin to enjoy their power and the prisoners find taunting them an easy way to pass the hours.

Within three days the dynamics are clear. The guards are the oppressors and struggle to keep their violent desires under control, and the prisoners are having a tough time keeping their dignity in tact.

As the days pass, those conducting the experiment and watching the every move of the power-hungry and humiliated men begin to suspect that, for the safety of all involved, it might be a clever idea to call a halt to the experiment. Unfortunately the ambitious scientist at the helm will not allow his project to end prematurely and insists on battling on.

As the dramatic, violent and disturbing climax dawns, the audience is thrown into the realms of questioning how human nature could degenerate to such a dire state in a matter of days.

Apart from a completely ineffectual and irritating love story, this is a film with all the makings of a classic. In terms of style, dialogue, direction and characterisation, the world of European cinema will be bowled over.

Natalie Stone