Wait for the 'collectors edition' to be released...

Ok. So I'm a HUGE fan of Escape from New York. Obviously that's going to make me a little demanding of any treatment of the film. Just from examining the packaging, though, you can tell this DVD release doesn't do the film justice. Here's how:

1. The only 'extras' on this DVD are the theatrical trailer. Well, the recent VHS release of the movie has a complete documentary on it along with footage that was edited out of the original film. This footage does the setup for Snake Pliskin getting sent to prison. Why wasn't this on the DVD? Probably because it's being saved for a future 'collector's edition' DVD. Any fan who bought this will have to then buy a copy of the good one.

2. The cover illustration depicts Pliskin with a snake tattoo on his arm. He has a snake tattoo on his stomach, not on his arm. If you flip the box over, there's even a photo from the movie where you can see he doesn't have a tattoo on his right arm.

3. In the synopsis on the back, the text says "Kurt Russell (Stargate) plays ...." Whoah! If you're going to make a parenthetical reference describing Kurt Russell by a movie he's been in, THIS IS THE MOVIE to use. Not Stargate. I'm not bashing Stargate, but I bet Escape from New York is Kurt Russell's best-selling movie on DVD. Having seen it in the theater, I instantly became a Kurt Russell fan. When he came out with The Thing, Stargate, and Soldier, it was Snake Pliskin that made me want to see those movies.

Ok. So I've been ranting. The last comment I have to make is that if you're sick of buying DVD's that later get trumped by the 'collector's edition' being released, then don't buy this. Hold out for the inevitable 'Special Edition' of Escape from New York.

The Greatest Escape

If you've never seen this movie before, let me remind you that it was made in 1982, so forgive the bad guys for wearing Village People clothing. It's another great vision from John Carpenter, with Kurt Russell taking the excellent lead role as "Snake Pliskin".

When this movie hit the theatres, it was probably one of the best futuristic movies ever made. Set in 1997, it imagines the City of New York transformed into a maximum-security prison. Ordinary criminals shunned by a weary society are left to fend for themselves behind the massive walls of the city. The inmate characters portrayed in this movie are unique in style and behavior. A few are just down-right weird (The Duke's #2 man is my favorite). Snake Pliskin is given a chance for freedom in exchange for saving the president (a self-interested and thankless character play by Donald Pleasance), who's plane has been hijacked and crashed into the city. Pliskin must fight off numerous gangs and thugs to reach the president and free him from his captors. But time is his biggest enemy, as you will see.

If you can get past the Control Room set, with thousands of useless flashing lights, ugly limo's, giant face-shields, super-sized watches (heck, I had a digital watch back in '82, and it was nowhere near the size of Pliskins) and bad guys wearing Sally Jessy Rafael glasses, you'll still enjoy this movie. The excellent settings of the city and the musical score (Carpenter's specialty) intensify his vision of a bleak and hopeless future for a once-great city overrun by crime.

There's a hole in the storyline, though. When Pliskin first gets injected with those micro-size charges, the doctor reassures him that they can burn out those charges with x-rays 15 minutes before his time is up. But he only has seconds left when they finally get to him, according to his huge watch. So, should Snake have died? Hell, no! The name's Pliskin!

Isn't it weird that Carpenter's best movies were made when he didn't have a big budget to play with. THE FOG is a good example of that. With that said, do yourself a favor and don't watch (or buy) the sequel, Escape from L.A. It is one of the worst sequels I've ever seen. What was he thinking? It's full of ridiculous scenes (the surfing comes immediately to mind) and fails to follow up on the previous film's effect. A big disappointment. Mr. Carpenter, if your going to make a sequel to one of your other great early films, please try to keep the storyline and atmosphere in check with the prior film. We dont need the million dollar explosions or outrageous plots to enjoy the film. Stick to the basics that made you so successful early on.

"The name is Plisskin."

Back in 1981, John Carpenter released a film, set in 1997, that depicted a somewhat bleak future for the United States in that the crime rate had risen to the point where it was necessary to turn New York City into a maximum security prison by enclosing the island in giant, concrete walls, installing landmines on the access bridges, and providing constant surveillance with the threat of death for any that try to escape. Felons convicted and sent to this prison are given the option of execution rather than being forced to try and survive in this hellish, nightmare environment. Truly only the strongest and most ruthless survive behind these walls. The female narration, done by Carpenter favorite Jamie Lee Curtis, at the beginning ends with the ominous line, "Once you go in, you never come out."

After this is set up, we learn that, while en route to an extremely important conference, the president's plane has been hijacked, and is crashed inside the prison. The inmates recover the president, and threatening to kill him if any attempt is made to release him. A plan is formulated, one including the recently captured, ex-military, now convicted, criminal Snake Plisskin (Kurt Russell) to send him in, alone, and try to bring the president out alive, offering him a full pardon should he succeed. Only problem is, due to time constraints, of the conference, Snake only has 24 hours to complete this mission, if he accepts it. Another minor glitch...without his knowing it, microscopic implants are inserted into Snake's neck in case he decided to skip out, and are set to go off unless Snake can recover the president and return him safely within the time allotted.

This has always been one of my favorite movies. It brings to life the perfect anti-hero, the outlaw. We've seen and loved this type of character before, like in the Clint Eastwood western movies of the 60's. America loves an outlaw, and John Carpenter has brought the character into the future. Escape From New York is an excellent example of a low budget movie that is really well made, from the realistic sets and scenery, characters, casting, scripting, direction, and music, all of which was composed by John Carpenter himself. Kurt Russell plays Snake so perfectly that you'll never picture anyone else in the role. Other actors that provide wonderful performances, many of which Carpenter uses in his later films, are Harry Dean Stanton, Donald Pleasance, Adrienne Barbeau, Ernest Borgnine, Lee Van Cleef, and Tom Atkins. And let's not forget Isaac Hayes as The Duke of New York, leader of the most powerful gang within the prison, and the one holding the president in hopes of using him to escape. Another thing is that this movie moves. There is no plodding, the plot is clearly defined and drives the movie to its' satisfying conclusion.

The special features included in this special edition DVD are many, and listed thoroughly on the product page. Included is the eleven-minute sequence involving Snake, a bank robbery, and subsequent capture that led him to be sentenced to the prison. This was only available before on the laserdisc version, so I am really glad it made it here. After watching it and listening to the commentary, you'll understand why it was cut from the movie, but the gist is that it humanized the character of Snake too much. Also included from the laserdisc version is a full-length commentary by John Carpenter and Kurt Russell. Many commentaries I watch tend to be dry and boring, but it was wonderful listening to these two talk about scenes and reminisce. They go into great detail, all while keeping it interesting. Some of the other extras are nice, but probably not for everyone, like the mini comic book and the additional commentary by producer Deborah Hill and production designer Joe Alves. It's a bit dry and boring, and probably only would appeal to the more hardcore fans. And last but not least is the quality of the picture. It looks beautiful and crisp, better than I have ever seen it. All in all, this release is truly befitting of the title 'Special Edition'.

This movie was followed up in 1996 by a somewhat disappointing sequel called Escape From LA. The elements were pretty much there for that one, but the gritty edginess that made Escape From New York so wonderful just wasn't. Maybe too much time had passed between the movies.