No Escape

Summary

“Society has no further use for you.”

I have a soft spot for post-apocalyptic films. After Mad Max and Escape from New York blew everyone’s minds, a slew of post-apocalyptic films were made in the United States and in Italy. It has been a nice time to be a fan of these films as Shout! Factory has recently released Escape from New York on 4K, Warner (and Kino Lorber) released all the Mad Max films in 4K, and Severin Films released several Italian post-apocalyptic films last year (Warriors of the Year 2072, Raiders of Atlantis, Endgame.) I have always been drawn to these type of films because of my love of the Sci-Fi Network as a child, which aired this style of films a good amount. I remember that when I was nine years old I saw a television ad for No Escape, and I desperately wanted to see it. I was not allowed to see the movie at that age, and I forgot about it for a long time. Last year, as Severin released numerous post-apocalyptic films, my mind wandered back to No Escape. I looked up the film and realized that it had been directed by Martin Campbell who directed one of my favorite movies of all time, Casino Royale. There was an overseas Blu-ray, but I had a feeling that it would be brought stateside at some point soon. Unearthed Classics announced that it would be releasing No Escape stateside with brand new special features and a good scan of the film, so I eagerly awaited its release. I watched the movie the other night.

As the credits of the movie play, a marine is seen drawing a gun and killing his commanding officer. In 2022, the penal system of the United States has been handed over to corporations who have made it a big business. Marine John Robbins (Ray Liotta) is sent to a maximum security prison run by the warden (Michael Lerner.) John was sent to prison after killing his superior in the Marines. He had his reasons which are revealed later in the film. Because John has escaped from two other maximum security prisons, he has been escalated to the last stop. The conditions of the prison are rough, and a fellow prisoner tells John that there is an island where the worst inmates are sent called Absolom. When John refuses to beat his fellow inmate as a punishment for hoarding food, John is dropped by helicopter into the most dangerous part of Absolom. There are two rival factions on the island. The wild and violent inmates that have reverted to savagery are led by Walter Marek (Stuart Wilson,) whereas the nonviolent and more civilized inmates are led by “the Father” (Lance Henriksen.) John finds himself enmeshed in the battle between both sides while trying to figure out a way off the island so he can tell the world a dark truth about why he murdered his superior.

No Escape is an entertaining post-apocalyptic film in the same vein as Mad Max and Waterworld. As I mentioned already, I really enjoy this film genre, so I basically considered this film catnip. These type of movies have been replaced by the more depressing and realistic Walking Dead style films and television series, which are enjoyable in their own ways, but somewhat lacking in stirring the imagination in a joyful way. I think that a lot of these films were written off as being cheesy, but I always considered this type of entertainment transportive. I enjoy a solid break from reality and love films revolving around futuristic dystopias. I also like the ways in which these films predict futures based on troubling aspects of the present. For example, Waterworld and Split Second predicted rising water levels caused by climate change. No Escape predicted that the penal system would eventually be run by major corporations, and currently the prison system in our country does rely on several corporation run prisons. These films get more wrong about the future than they get right – for example, No Escape takes place in 2022 and its world is nothing like the one we live in today – but those elements are interesting as well. If weathermen can’t predict with absolute accuracy the weather from day to day, it would be silly to expect science fiction writers to predict our future with any real accuracy. Sitting down and watching No Escape was a lot of fun due to these missed calculations.

Based on a book by Richard Harley called The Penal Colony, No Escape was adapted by Joel Gross. His script was then given a polish by Michael Gaylin. I believe that script polish may be the reason why the film almost feels like two different movies that are at war with each other. Gross claims in his original screenplay that the dialogue was more somber and that the rewritten dialogue lacked the charm of his original script. As I watched the film, I thought that the actions of the characters all made sense, but there was something lacking in the dialogue department. It felt clunky. When I realized it had been polished with no input from the prior screenwriter, this made sense. The film also had to have its ending retooled when the picture basically ran out of money. Surprisingly, the changes made to the script to rework the ending might be the best sequence in the film.

Despite the issues with certain aspects of the script, the film benefits from solid direction by Martin Campbell. Campbell did a good job of choreographing the numerous battle and chase sequences while filming the picture in dangerous parts of Australia. The film’s production design is very good, which makes sense considering that it was produced by legendary sci-fi producer Gale Anne Hurd. I think that the production design is probably the best reason to watch the film. I love the futuristic sets in the prison and the rugged outposts set in Absolom. The art direction on all of those aspects is top rate.

The film also has an enjoyable cast who all try their best to deliver somewhat lacking dialogue. Ray Liotta is always fun to watch on screen, and although he does not hit the notes he did in Something Wild or Goodfellas, he is a strong choice for a leading man. Lance Henriksen is perfectly cast for the role of the sage “Father.” Ernie Hudson, Kevin Dillon, and Kevin J. O’Connor are all good choices for supporting characters. I liked Stuart Wilson’s performance, but he was somewhat lacking in the intimidation department to play a lead villain. I also thought that the casting of Michael Lerner as the warden was maybe just a little bit too far of a stretch.

Overall, No Escape is not a classic sci-fi that can compete with films like Escape from New York or The Road Warrior, but it is an enjoyable way to escape reality for a couple hours. I definitely enjoyed watching it, warts and all.

Video

Unearthed Classics have given No Escape a surprisingly good looking release. I had expected that the release would be culled from an older master, but the strong transfer would lead me to believe that this may have been culled from the new 4K master that is used for an upcoming German 4K release. I could totally be wrong about this and will update the review accordingly if I am incorrect. No Escape is presented on Blu-ray with a 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded image in 2.40:1. While the film does show some light specking, the grain is very well resolved. The materials were obviously in good quality for the transfer, because I did not see any noticeable damage. A few sequences look a little soft, but I believe that to be simply due to how they were filmed. I give this transfer solid marks.

Audio

Unearthed Classics has provided an English LPCM 2.0 track and a DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround track. I enjoyed the surround track which did its best to bring the original sound design to life. The film features by an excellent score by Graeme Revell which sounds great in this presentation. 

Supplements:

• Welcome to the Future: The Sci Fi Worlds of Gale Anne Hurd – this audio interview set to production stills features producer Gale Anne Hurd. This is an excellent interview that encompasses numerous important moments in her career from her early start with Roger Corman, her work with James Cameron (Aliens, The Terminator) to later film productions. This is well worth your time.
• Survival of the Fittest: Directing No Escape – this audio interview set to production stills features director Martin Campbell. This is another great interview that dives into aspects of the film that were changed during production and how the film landed him the job working on the James Bond film Casino Royale.
• Penal Colony: Writing No Escape – this audio interview set to production stills features writer Joel Gross. There is a lot of good information in here about the aspects of his script that were changed and character motivations he tried to push across in his original script.
• Alternate Intro – the Escape from Absolom title is used during the opening.
• Making of Escape from Absolom – an archival featurette.
• Vintage Featurette
• Promotional Gallery

Overall Scores:

Video – 4.25/5

Audio – 4/5

Supplements – 4/5

Overall – 3.75/5

No Escape is by no means a perfect film, but it is an enjoyable post-apocalyptic film with solid action direction by Martin Campbell and excellent production design. The film has a good cast led by Ray Liotta, but the script stumbles from some overcooked dialogue and unconvincing villains. As it stands, I would rewatch No Escape in the future with just slightly lowered expectations. I have a feeling I will like it even more on a second viewing for its own charms. Unearthed Classics has done an excellent job on this release with a solid transfer, good audio, and some very well made supplements. For fans of the film, this release is a no-brainer. For those on the fence, a rental may be recommended prior to a purchase.