Escape From New York - A Stone Cold Classic!

Escape From New York

Why you need to watch this movie tonight!

I recently re-watched John Carpenter's classic, Escape From New York, and I have to say that the movie has aged incredibly well, and still kicks major ass.  This movie is set in the year 1997, where crime has risen 400%.  The island of Manhattan has been transformed into a maximum security prison compound, where there are no guards, and inmates run the asylum.  We come into the action seeing that Air Force One has been hijacked by a group of terrorists (the 9/11 foreshadowing is strikingly eerie) on the way to a freedom summit in Hartford, Connecticut (Hartford???  The insurance capital of the world?  That Hartford??Yup, that Hartford).  Before they can crash the plane, the president (portrayed by Donald Pleasence) escapes in an escape pod.  His safety is in peril as he is stranded on the prison island of Manhattan and captured by the criminals.  With the fate of the world hanging in a delicate balance (The president was supposed to deliver a speech at the peace summit that would effectively end World War III), the warden hatches a plan to rescue the president in time for the peace summit to take place.  You see, as luck would have it, a prisoner had fallen into the warden's lap.  A prisoner that could go in and save the president and... wait for it... Escape from New York.  That prisoner is none other than Snake Plisskin.

Here's a few reasons why you should skip the big budget dreck (with the exception of Dawn of the Planet of the Apes - go see it!) that is currently in theaters and rent this 80s masterpiece.

1) Kurt F'n Russell  

Russell's portrayal of the former Special Forces soldier gone bad, Snake Plisskin, is a PhD dissertation on badassery.  He just oozes confidence throughout the film.  He doesn't play it too over the top, which I like because when he does explode it has more gusto behind it.  It's my second favorite Kurt Russell role (the first being the immortal Jack Burton from one of my all-time favorite movies, Big Trouble In Little China).  He is calm, cool, and collected.  He never seems over his head, no matter the amount of peril he seems to be in.  Much like a real snake, Plisskin strikes with speed and certitude.

I like his character because Kurt Russell, the action hero, is the antithesis of the steroidal meat puppets that would soon come to dominate the 1980s action scene.  He was strong, both mentally and physically, yet he didn't look like a Mr. Universe contestant.  He had to rely on his brains and cunning to get through his impossible mission.  Don't get me wrong, I love me some Schwarzenegger/Stallone action as much as the next guy!  It's just refreshing to see a different, less chemically enhanced, actor playing the lead role in an action movie in the 80s.


2) The rest of the cast is amazing!

This movie works so well because the supporting cast is so strong.  Carpenter could have surrounded Russell's character with a bunch of no names in crazy costumes to save some money, but the movie would not have worked as well.  Just take a look at the supporting cast and you'll see why this movie is so amazing.

- Lee Van Cleef (whom most of you will remember as "The Bad" in Sergio Leone's epic conclusion to the "Man with no name" trilogy, The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly):  Van Cleef's prison warden/New York police chief character is the perfect blend of good and bad.  He toes the asshole line perfectly, to the point where you don't know what his motives are.  He promises Snake Plisskin immunity if he can successfully rescue the President, while at the same time implanting a timed explosive inside Plisskin in case he decides not to complete his task.  This move also gives the movie a perfect sense of pacing, as Plisskin is forced (quite literally) to race against the clock.  You get a sense that there's history between the warden and Plisskin, and that something has gone wrong between the two.

- Ernest Borgnine:  Borgnine's "Cabby" character provides the otherwise grim film an sense of comedic relief.  You get a feeling that he's not quite playing with a full deck, mentally, but it's not done in a demeaning way. It's almost as if his character may have been driving a cab at the time when the prison island was put in place and just happened to stay there.  He also very well could have been very dangerous in a previous life... we never find this out. You don't really get his back story, which leaves it open to interpretation.  He is, perhaps, one of the only "good" people in this movie.

- Isaac Hayes:  Hayes' Duke character is the leader of "Crazies," the group that runs the show on this prison island.  I always love these kind of characters, and Hayes is the perfect choice to play the Duke of Manhattan.  He plays him as cool as the other side of the pillow.  He runs the island with an iron fist, and yet you can't help but root for him because of his natural charisma.  The fight at the end of the movie between the Duke and Plisskin is feels meaningful because both actors do enough to develop the sense of animosity between the two.

These are just a few of my favorites in a stellar supporting cast.  My only knock on this film is that there isn't a great female presence to balance out the testosterone.

3) The score.

The first thing you notice in a John Carpenter movie is the music.  From Halloween (a Mt. Rushmore theme song), to Escape, to Big Trouble In Little China, Carpenter's scores (which he composes himself) are incredible.  Each theme song is almost another character in the movie.  The music in this film adds depth and a sense of foreboding to each scene.  The score was a key element in making this such an effective action movie.

4)  The film is still very much relevant.

John Carpenter wrote this movie in response to the Watergate scandal (and the resulting distrust of the government) of the 1970s.  You can see it permeating throughout this film.  Donald Pleasence's president is a wholy unlikeable character, whose indifference to the death of "lesser" citizens is made evident as the film closes.  The police force surrounding the island is unrelenting in their use of power and force.  Snake Plisskin is a direct embodiment of the lack of care given to returning Vietnam veterans (and, for that matter, American soldiers ever since).  We call them heroes, but turn our back on them when they need us the most.  Although this movie is set in the "future" of 1997, the themes of distrust and the loss of innocence are still very much present in today's culture.  Look at the level of skepticism people have in our Federal government (whether that skepticism is warranted or not is another matter for another blog).  Look at the recent VA scandal as proof of how we are failing our returning soldiers and veterans.  Look at the level at which we incarcerate our citizens as proof that this movie was on to something in 1981.  These are just a few of the themes that make this a movie worth exploring.

5)  Parts of this movie are slightly dated, which only adds to the fun.

I'll just say this briefly.  The president holds the key to world peace, and that key is... a cassette tape recording!!!  I guess CDs were too difficult to predict back in 1981.

I highly recommend this film to anyone looking for a good rental.

Easter 2014... Yes, I'm extremely behind on my videos/blog posts!

Here's a little video of Axel meeting the Easter Bunny for the first time.