Can you imagine a convicted killer walking away from a minimum security prison in this day and age? I know times are crazy, but our nation’s continued obsession with locking people up and throwing away the key, makes the idea of prison escape pretty unbelievable, particularly for a murderer. But, walk away from prison is exactly what Norman Porter did after having served 25 years of his sentence as an exemplary prisoner. After his escape, he reinvented himself as a poet, handyman and church-goer in Chicago under an assumed name. In 2005, he was re-captured after 20 years of freedom.

Killer Poet by Susan Gray, which won Best Documentary at this year’s Boston International Film Festival, delves into Porter’s story with testimony from Porter himself, to the family members of his victims, to the police who have been involved in his case over the years, to the lives he touched in a positive way while he was living in Chicago. The central question of the film is can a person change from a thieving murderer to model citizen? The best part of the movie is that it allows you to draw your own conclusions.