Movie Review -- Escape Plan

Today I saw the new movie Escape Plan, starring Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger. So without further ado, let's get into it.

Stallone stars as Ray Breslin, a man who breaks out of prisons for a living in order to make them as secure as possible. Together with his team (Amy Ryan, 50 Cent and Vincent D'Onofrio), he has successfully busted out of over a dozen correctional facilities. One day Breslin is approached for a unique job: Test a new top-secret high-tech prison--called the Tomb--for terrorists and other enemies of the state. With the pay being twice what he usually makes, he agrees. However, his violent entry into the Tomb makes it clear this job is not what it was supposed to be. And when he meets the sinister Warden Hobbes (Jim Caviezel), he finds out the hard way that he was set up; someone arranged for him to go to prison...for good! With few options, Breslin teams up with Rottmayer (Swarzenegger) to form a...get ready for it...escape plan! But they can't go it alone, so they recruit Jihadist(?) Javed (Faran Tahir of Star Trek and Iron Man fame) and reluctant Dr. Kyrie (Jurassic Park's Sam Neill) to help them. Will Breslin be able to not only find out where the Tomb is located, but who set him up? And can our ragtag protagonists do the impossible and escape this seemingly escape-proof prison?

Stallone makes movies of varying quality. For every Rocky or Rambo, he also does a handful of films that aren't quite up to par. Escape Plan falls somewhere in the middle. It's intelligent in parts, and I appreciate all the research and thinking that went into this, but I wouldn't even put it on the same level as The Expendables. For one thing, Stallone's character just isn't as fleshed-out as Rocky Balboa or John Rambo. His motivation for repeatedly breaking out of prisons is admirable, but it's still not enough to get me to really root for him. Likewise, Schwarzenegger's character remains similarly flat (though in all fairness, nobody goes to an Arnie movie for character development). Also, the action is predictable (though still entertaining) and the big revelation about who set Breslin up happens too abruptly to be appreciated.

Bottom line: Escape Plan succeeds as an action movie, though not one on par with Stallone's best work.

"Want to get dinner?"

"I could cook."

"Haven't I suffered enough?"

Revisiting the Classics -- The Terminator

Today we have the 1984 Arnold Schwarzenegger movie The Terminator.

The story mostly takes place in (then) present-day Los Angeles. Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) is a carefree waitress living an ordinary life. That all changes, however, when a hulking thug (Schwarzenegger) begins systematically murdering the Sarah Connors in the phone book. Said murderer eventually tracks her to a night club, intent on finishing the job. But a mysterious stranger named Reese (Michael Biehn) shows up to save her. He explains that he's come back from a post-apocalyptic future in which machines have turned against humanity. One such machine, the Terminator, has been sent to kill Sarah because her future son, John Connor, is destined to lead mankind to victory over them. She initially (and understandably) refuses to believe him, but after some more superhuman carnage from the Terminator, she accepts that what he's saying is true, and together they try to survive long enough for Sarah to give birth to John.

When this movie first came out, it challenged us to new ideas. What if technology advances beyond our ability to control it? What if it decides to terminate us? Is it a risk worth taking? Director James Cameron brought us a thought-provoking vision of the future that would not be equaled until The Matrix came out in 1999. In addition, solid acting by the cast (especially Schwarzenegger as the terrifying titular character) help convey the emotions the characters go through.

The audio and visual component of The Terminator continue to hold up today. Stan Winston was the man when it came to visual effects, and this film is a prime example of that. Everything from the future scenes, to the Terminator's make-up and prosthesis's, is very realistic and believable. And Brad Fiedel's moody synth soundtrack really brings you into the story. To this day I love listening to the Terminator theme.

The movie spawned three sequels, with Terminator 2: Judgment Day being my personal favorite. You can skip the third film, as it doesn't bring enough new ideas to the table in my opinion. Terminator: Salvation is pretty good, though. The series seems to have gone dormant in recent years, though there's been talk of a reboot in the works.

Bottom line: all science fictions fans should see The Terminator at least once in their lives.

"I'll be back."

Revisiting the Classics -- The Running Man

Today we have the 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger movie The Running Man. Directed by Paul Michael Glaser and based on the novel by Stephen King, it continues to serve as a commentary on America's lust for violence.

The story takes place in 2019. America has become a police state which is ruled with an iron fist. Ben Richards (Schwarzenegger) is a cop for said police state. One night he and his squad are called out to the scene of a food riot. Despite confirming that the mob is unarmed and filled with women and children, Richards is ordered to fire on them. Being the good guy, he refuses. Unfortunately, his partners are not so compassionate. They subdue him and fire on the crowd. He subsequently takes the blame for the attack and is sent to prison. While there, he meets up with resistance members Laughlin (Yaphet Kotto) and Weiss (Marvin J. McIntyre) who want to expose the government's evil deeds. They soon stage a prison break and go their separate ways. Richards heads to his brother's apartment but once there he instead finds Amber Mendez (Maria Conchita Alonso). He forces her to help him get past security at the airport. Too bad he didn't ask nicely; she quickly reports him to the authorities. He's captured once again and, along with equally captured Laughlin and Weiss, is put on The Running Man, a television show where condemned prisoners are hunted by "stalkers," i.e., colorful sadists with weapons. Now the four of them (Amber also has to participate) must survive the game, bring down the system, and get revenge on The Running Man's sleazy host Killian (game show legend Richard Dawson).

You'd be hard-pressed to find a more distinctly 80's movie than this. It's got Schwarzenegger, WWF mainstay Jesse Ventura, bad fashion, synth music, and cheesy one-liners aplenty. It's definitely not Arnie's best movie (that would be Terminator 2), but really--you're not going into this expecting The Godfather. It delivers what it promises: a fun sci-fi romp. I like the retro/primitive CG effects, and the stalkers are certainly interesting. From a psycho Japanese hockey player to a lightning-shooting opera star wannabe, they are simultaneously menacing and nutty as hell. I had fun watching Arnie and CO. tear them apart. Richard Dawson is also a fun attraction, starring as a twisted caricature of himself. 

Bottom line: if you're a Schwarzenegger fan, you can do worse than The Running Man (*cough*Commando*cough*).

http://www.amazon.com/Running-Man-Blu-ray-Arnold-Schwarzenegger/dp/B002XUBDZ6/ref=sr_1_3?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1379631037&sr=1-3&keywords=The+Running+Man