Escape from New York
 (1981)
review by Head Cheeze

After the The Fog, John Carpenter took on a decidedly different project with 1980's made for television bio-pic "Elvis" in which he began a lifelong friendship with his star, Kurt Russell. Carpenter's next project would be Escape from New York, and while he lobbied for Russel to star in the film, the studio had their sites set on Tommy Lee Jones. Russell, up to that point, had been associated with comedy and family films, practically growing up in Disney films, and the studio didn't think he had it in him to convincingly portray Escape from New York's anti-hero, Snake Plissken. Carpenter did not relent, however, and Russell not only nailed the role, but also opened a whole new chapter in his career. An action star was born!

Escape from New York is set in the not so distant (at least back in 1981) future, where crime has become a plague, the police force and army, and the island of Manhatten a prison. The island is inhabited by the refuse of society who have formed splinter groups of under-city dwellers, Broadway psychopaths, and a legion of soldiers devoted to the Duke (Isaac Hayes).

When Air Force One is hijacked and crashes in the prison, the President (Pleasence) is abducted by the Duke as a bargaining chip for the amnesty of the island's populace. The prison warden Hauk (Van Cleef) enlists the aid of new inmate Snake Plissken, whose reputation as both a soldier and master criminal is the stuff of legend, to retrieve the President and the tape of a speech he was to deliver at a crucial world summit meeting. Plissken has just under 24 hours before the summit ends, the President is disposible, and the microscopic explosives Hauk had implanted in Snake's neck kill him. Just another day in the life of a hero.

Escape from New York is just as much fun to watch today as it was back in 1981 when I first saw the film as a kid. I remember walking out of the theater feeling just a little bit cooler now that I had gotten to meet Snake Plissken, and watching it now still gives me a little testosterone boost, although it's usually just enough to get me to the fridge to grab a frosty one. Russell is basically playing Clint Eastwood here, but he's clearly loving every second of it, and Carpenter keeps the pace fast and furious, with enough macho humor to make you smile as you root for the "Bad Guys" to save the day.

The DVD that is currently in release, however, is nothing to cheer about. The transfer is decent enough, probably the best the film has looked since the laser disc, but it's a bare bones affair with just a measly trailer and "collectible" two panel booklet. Carpenter is hard at work on a new edition, however, said to be on par with the recent Big Trouble in Little China SE, and we should get another rousing commentary with Russell and the director, plus all sorts of goodies from the vault. This new edition may be a ways off, though, so die-hards may want to pick up this low priced version to hold them over.