A Three Confession Movie

Escape From New York (1981) – In the dystopian world of 1997, the island of Manhattan has been turned into the top security prison in the nation. Once you go in, you never come out. As the legendary Snake Plissken is about to enter, the President of the United States crashes into the center of the prison. Plissken has twenty-four hours to save the President and free himself.

Directed by John Carpenter

Starring – Kurt Russell, Donald Pleasence, Lee Van Cleef, Ernest Borgnine, Isaac Hayes, Adrienne Barbeau

Why I Liked It – Lots of action laced with just the right amount of silliness.

I have two confessions to make, or maybe three.

First, I have a lifelong bad habit of digging in my heels if people tell me “You have to read/see this!” For whatever reason, even with my best friends in the world, my reaction is (the somewhat childish, I admit) “Oh, no I don’t!” Over the years, there have plenty of people who insist “This is the best movie EVER!” Item number the first: No, it isn’t. Item number the second: my automatic nope out on the subject. It’s a dumb reaction and means I miss fun movies like this.

Second confession, it was 1981, and the movie has a main character named “Snake Plissken”. Gimme a break. Oh, and it’s being played by Kurt Russell. Seriously? Now remember, it’s 1981, Kurt Russell has been one of the dominant faces for DISNEY. The clean faced, All-American boy hero of a long list of mostly forgettable movies. (I said “mostly”, all you Kurt/Disney fans can take a breath) And now he’s a tough guy with an eye patch and a snake tattoo on his belly? No. Just no.

My third confession is that at times in my life, I’ve been a bit of a snob. John Carpenter made horror films. I didn’t like horror films, so I pooh-poohed him as director. Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. He does some very nice work here.

So, where does that leave me? With my final confession, that I enjoyed this movie more than I expected. I was looking for something a little different, something I knew of but had never watched. The same thing that got me to watch “The Sandlot” a couple weeks before.

As we know now, Russell is actually a solid actor. He can be funny, he can be scary, and he can be equally convincing at each. Surround him with a solid cast as Carpenter does here, and then step back and watch. Russell has noted several times that this is his favorite role. Plissken is, if I may be so bold, a perfect hero for Gen X. He’s seen the world, it sucks, and he just wants everyone to leave him the bleep alone. You came into this world alone, and that’s how you’re leaving. At the same time, there’s that element of Gen X they don’t want to talk about. As George Carlin said, “Scratch a cynic and you’ll find a disappointed idealist”. That’s who Snake Plissken is, and why, IMHO, he appeals to so many folks.

The action is fast and furious, the cast is wonderful, there’s a clever bit about everyone who tells Plissken they though he was dead, and the movie offers a dark, moody vision of the “future”. At the same time, it’s really kinda cheesy. Snake Plissken is still a dopey name, the world building is as thin as paper, and the scenery is over the top. But fun. I don’t know if it will cure me of my knee jerk rejection of enthusiastic recommendations, but I have to remember that there may be something worth looking at.

No promises.

You can stream “Escape from New York” on Amazon Prime Video, Plex, YouTube, Google Play Movies, and Fandango at Home.

Rating – *** Worth A Look