Escape from New York
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DVD details
Actor: Adrienne Barbeau, Ernest Borgnine, Garrett Bergfeld, Joel Bennett, Tom AtkinsBrand: TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX HOME ENT
Primary Contributor: Russell, Kurt
Primary Contributor: Van Cleef, Lee
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo; Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled)
Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, Full Screen, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: Anamorphic Widescreen, 2.35:1
Running Time: 99 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2000-11-21
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
DVD Reviews of Escape from New York
DVD Review: Escape to Campiness
Summary: 3 Stars
John Carpenter's camp fest Escape from New York is a pleasure - as one can see from amazon viewer reviews - to the fans of B-movies and sci-fi. It is incredibly dated, a feast of contineous over acting and its script jampacked with logical issues (cassette tapes in 1997? Water, electricity, heat, food? Did the UN relocate? What's harder: finding a person in this wild concrete jungle or an x-ray machine outside of New York to neutralize the capsules?).
Most of us can also ignore the fact that none of the exteriors have actually been shot in New York. But the film's problems add more to its charm than they hurt. The soundtrack, the director's usual minimalistic syntheshizer compositions, is fantastic.
Carpenter has managed to produce pictures that withhold the test of time quite well as we have seen with his worldwide smash hit Halloween and The Thing, which didn't do well at all upon its release to the silver screen but has gained cult status and critic's appreciation in later years. However Escape from New York remains a great flic to pop into your DVD player, fire up your microwave for some popcorn and enjoy hoaky dialogues that will stick with you for a while.
DVD Review: Blu-Ray looks better than Special Edition + exclusive extra
Summary: 4 Stars
Only goes to show you Clint Eastwood and Charles Bronson aren't the only 80's people who can portray a wicked-cool tough guy. Escape from New York is John Carpenter's post apocalyptic answer to those lone wolf anti-heroes we used to see in the classic westerns. Though the movie is rough around it's edges I see this one as one of Carpenter's better movies.
Stick an anti-establishment ex-military dude, load him up with weapons and drop him in a city controlled by roving gangs of convicts. That's Escape from New York in a nutshell. What makes it work? The characters. What makes the characters work? The actors. You get a nice slice of star power in this movie with the likes of Lee Van Cleef, Ernest Borgnine, Donald Pleasance, Adrienne Barbeau and a slew of others. Put them together and you have some pretty sweet performances. Even Isaac Hayes (Chef of South Park) plays a surprisingly interesting role as the Duke of New York. Considering he was a popular singer back then and not an actor I'm impressed. Of course Kurt Russell owns the screen as Snake Plissken. Thanks for Russel's portrayal that name will go down in sci-fi history.
Special effects aren't much to speak of. Most of the movie is based on set design of a ruined New York City. Not exactly high budget and it shows. The special effects that are on the movie are in the beginning and are quite impressive in a very subtle way. First off you have the model work that really brings the trashed city to life. Also there are some images they put on a display screen that have an impressive and very convincing three-dimensional effect you wouldn't expect by first looking at it. Although it's brief, it's neat enough to be worth noting.
Action there is plenty. You get running gun fights, arena death matches, exploding land mines, and a race against the clock. Kind of like a street gang movie with more props. They do get into that tired clich? of killing off as many good guys as you can so the hero can be left alone. Such a shame when considering alternatives to that predictable formula. Plissken is a relatively one dimensional character, but in a way that's the beauty of him. Just keep in mind you won't see much character growth in him.
The Blu-Ray release will be the best release to date. Keep in mind this movie was released in the early 80's and John Carpenter is a budget director so the quality of the source material will guarantee this movie will never look like a high def film you're used to seeing lately.
In spite of what you may hear there is a noticeable improvement in picture contrast and clarity between this Blu-Ray and all other DVD released previously. There is also audio in DTS HD and Dolby Digital 5.1 to boot.
The special features are worth noting too. You get the same commentaries (one originally from the laser disk release) and documentary as in the Special Edition DVD, but as a special bonus there is a brand new interview with John Carpenter not found on the DVDs. You also get the original opening of the movie in all it's... um... glory (yeah, it's still pretty ugly).
Escape from New York could be called your standard post apocalyptic/gang war type movie, only this is the one that set that standard in the first place. Many people consider it a classic and I tend to agree. It's an interesting look into that harsh cyberpunk future without all the gadgets and tech in the way. It's not a classic in the sense of the greatest of the great, but it is a landmark in science fiction heritage and should be respected as such. If you want the best release to date with the most extras (as in one new interview) the Blu-Ray is the best way to go. If you don't really need the slightly improved video quality then the Special Edition is still worthwhile.
DVD Review: Looks absolutely dreadful
Summary: 1 Stars
Read the reviews at amazon.co.uk. It is upscaled standard definition. It looks like garbage. Don't waste your money, just wait for the official US release which will hopefully be better.DVD Review: The name's Plissken! Six Stars for Adrienne Barbeau
Summary: 5 Stars
Classic Sci-Fi at its best. What a great character! Seemed like Snake was always in a bad mood, which helps when you're dropped into a city (or prison) filled with scum. Harry Dean Stanton's character was funny, Donald Pleasance as the inept President, and Isaac Hayes as "The Duke" - "A" Number One. Best of all: Adrienne Barbeau..... Oh, her acting was pretty good, too. DVD Review: Good Idea, a Little Hokey
Summary: 3 Stars
Escape from New York / B00004Y87O
*Spoilers*
It isn't easy being covert agent Snake Plissken. To start with, your name and face is instantly known to everyone on earth - even people who have been in maximum security prison and cut off from the outside world for years. That's got to get old fast - imagine how annoying grocery trips must be. And it's difficult to be a covert agent when you're as instantly recognizable as Paris Hilton - how do you sneak around covertly when people are always clamoring for your autograph? I'm not even going to ask WHY a covert agent is so widely known in this universe - maybe he was an American Idol contestant before he was selected to be a special agent.
Then there's the fact that, despite having earned a cool nickname like 'Snake' and despite having everyone on earth acknowledge that nickname as valid - everyone still keeps insisting on tagging 'Plissken' to the end of your name or (and this is worse!) omitting the 'Snake' entirely. I mean, what is the point of having a cool nickname, when all you're stuck with is 'Plissken'? It's no wonder he's in a bad mood.
Seriously, I came to this a little late in the game, so there's no nostalgia factor for me. I'm not certain how well this holds up to the test of time - there's a good concept in here, if unrealistic, since if we needed a maximum security island, it seems like Hawaii would be a more secure choice than New York, but whatever. Unfortunately, the execution is a little hokey - it's deeply annoying that our covert agent is a universally recognized celebrity, and we wonder why our prison run by inmates is so sedate, all things considered. Judged by today's standards, it's a three-star movie, in my opinion, but there's probably enough nostalgia value here to bump it up to four-stars, if you saw it back in the day.
This version provides a closed caption option for the hard of hearing. I do not own this movie - I rented this through my Blockbuster Online account.
Description of Escape from New York
A thrilling landmark film that jolts along at a breakneck pace, Escape From New York leapt to cult status with high-octane action, edge-of-your-seat suspense and a mind-blowing vision of a lone warrior (Kurt Russell) battling his way out of a post-apocalyptic Manhattan! Hailed as "stylish and scary" (Los Angeles Times), "dark and dangerous" (Newsweek) and "gloriously...fun" (Tyler Morning Telegraph), this fast-paced and furiously entertaining thriller grabs you by the throat and won't let go! In a world ravaged by crime, the entire island of Manhattan has been converted to a walled prison where brutal prisoners roam. But when the U.S. President (Donald Pleasence) crash-lands inside, only one man can bring him back: notorious outlaw and former Special Forces war hero Snake Plissken (Russell). But time is short: in 24 hours, an explosive device implanted in his neck will end Snake's missionand his lifeunless he succeeds!In the future, crime is out of control and New York City is a maximum security prison. Grabbing a bargaining chip right out of the air, convicts bring down the President's plane in bad old Gotham. Gruff Snake Plissken, a one-eyed warrior new to prison life, is coerced into bringing the President, and his cargo, out of this land of undesirables. Kurt Russell put his Disney days behind him as the nicest bad guy in the picture. All comic-book sensibilities and macho posturing, this is one of writer-director John Carpenter's better brainless escapes. There are snappy one-liners and explosive action scenes. However, the film lacks tension and some believability even within the realm of SF fantasy. Even when it fails to gel, though, it always manages to amuse, thanks in great part to a varied and unusual supporting cast (watch for Ernest Borgnine as a cabdriver). Followed in 1996 by Carpenter's overdone and campy Escape from L.A. --Rochelle O'Gorman
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