One of the world’s foremost authorities on structural security agrees to take on one last job: breaking out of an ultra-secret, high-tech facility called “The Tomb.” Deceived and wrongly imprisoned, Ray Breslin (Sylvester Stallone) must recruit fellow inmate Emil Rottmayer (Arnold Schwarzenegger) to help devise a daring, nearly impossible plan to escape from the most protected and fortified prison ever built. ESCAPE PLAN is the first pairing of action legends Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger in leading roles, and co-stars Jim Caviezel, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, Vinnie Jones, Vincent D’Onofrio and Amy Ryan.
REVIEW:
I was surprised to see how fresh and full of action Escape Plan was when I saw it. I guess it was mainly because I had seen so many Stallone and Schwarzenegger movies my whole life that just when I think they’ve reached their limit, they take themselves a few extra steps of awesome further. And I almost skipped out on this one too… glad I didn’t.
Sylvester Stallone plays Ray Breslin, the world’s leading top expert in prison security, knowing each and every step it takes to plan a clean break, and successfully demonstrating each and everytime. Soon enough, his services are warranted by a lawyer representing a private prison, off the books and not accountable within any area of the world, which is a huge risk for Breslin who accepts the job much to the chagrin of his team.
One day later as scheduled, Breslin is black-bagged and spirited away and cut off from his team and the outside world, soon to discover that there is more to this job than meets the eye. And from the moment Breslin finally wakes up in his new cell, his assignment instantly turns into a fight for survival, with the possibility of escape next to nil while inside of a maximum security facility run by a mad warden who built the prison based on a book Breslin wrote.
With conspiracy is abound and loyalties questioned, Breslin has no choice but to make friends, strategize and stay alive long enough to find out who is really pulling the strings and escape as soon as possible, or die in a prison of his own virtual design.
Escape Plan is not to be missed. I enjoyed it from beginning to end, learning more about the characters and not getting too stuck in moments where transition was needed. The dialogue was great as well-funny, witty and full of drama and tension, further ornamented by actor Jim Caviezel, and fellow lead action star Arnold Schwarzenegger whose comedic timing, as always, speaks volumes!
The action proved solid as both Stallone and Schwarzenegger still manage to hold their own on the big screen, in addition to fellow action badass Vinnie Jones, lending much credibility to the action of the film, with the overall suspense, hurdles and elemental danger faced by our characters. I was immediately drawn back to the days when Stallone made films like Cliffhanger and Daylight while watching certain scenes, and I’m very happy to see that Stallone, inarguably, can still pull it off.
Considering that the film is lead by two leading Hollywood blockbuster greats, I’m inclined to look at Escape Plan as a standout sentence in a continual love letter to the action movies of the 1980’s and 90’s with films like The Expendables trilogy, Universal Soldier: Regeneration and Day Of Reckoning, and other films as of late. There’s raw suspense, the threat of mortality and no effortless bullet-dodging or flying, all of which seem to accompany most movies nowadays. And thankfully, we have Sly, Arnold and co., along with director Mikael Halfstrom to remind us that movies like this are still possible. All it takes is WORK…and a little *ahem*…planning!
Job well done gang!
I say look forward to The Expendables 3 and Sabotage when they’re released soon. Be advised, it only gets better.
