No Escape (1994)

If you took the outline plot and characters of 'The Road Warrior', situated them on the penal colony as portrayed in 'Papillon', and then filmed it in the vein of John McTiernan's 'Predator' then you basically get this as an end result. And you know what...? It bloody works!

I first saw this film when it was released on a straight-to-video premise way back in 1994 as a Sunday night filler, and to be honest I couldn't remember much about it, except that it wasn't that bad, but nor was it memorable.

Twenty years on, I managed to grab a copy of it again, and finally forced myself to sit through what I anticipated to be an excruciatingly painful event, as I'm just not a great fan of Ray Liotta or Kevin Dillon to say the least, and what with time being so cruel and all, I expected the cheesiest of cheese. How wrong I was! This gem appears to have magically grown better with time!

So yeah it's a bit corny in parts, and the overall plot only SEEMS to be kinda predictable, but there's many an unexpected twist and turn to keep the story moving at an extremely entertaining pace, with some fantastic camera work reminiscent of 'Predator', and some great one-liners to boot.

Knowing that this was pretty much a mash-up of previous classic movies didn't leave a sour taste at all, and I'd watch it again in an instant. Bloody good entertainment, surprisingly minimal on the profanities, (I think I heard only one quickly blurted F-word expletive from Marek throughout), and highly recommended for those 80's/90's action genre buffs.

A generous and solid 8/10 for overall value and stamina.

Fmovies: No Escape is the type of flick that Stallone or Schwarzenegger would have headlined, had it been given a higher budget and major studios presence. It's almost better that it didn't, because instead we got a scrappy little post apocalyptic actioner starring a cheeky, roughneck Ray Liotta, who you just can never say no to when he shows up. He plays J.T. Robbins here, an army official who's been disgraced and stripped of his title following an incident involving a superior officer. He's being shipped off to Absolon, a remote island that's been fashioned into a massive prison for convicts who are never to be released. Two groups of prisoners inhabit Absolon: a piratical group of violent miscreants led by flamboyant Walter Marek (Stuart Wilson commands attention with his uproariously weird performance), and a peaceful tribe of hut dwellers, presided over by father (Lance Henriksen). Robbins wants only to escape, a prospect that has been fervently shot down in his face by Absolon's overbearing Warden (Michael Lerner). Using his military cunning and inherent brute force, he tries to start a war between the two factions and raise enough of a commotion to make a break for it. What he doesn't count on is his fondness for the people within Father's group, and his eventual need to get some of the, out as well. It's pure aged mid 90's dystopian action cheese, and a delight for any lovers of the gourmet dish. Liotta is strong, silent and nasty when provoked, a great antihero. Henriksen is unusually compassionate and reserved, and Wilson struts around without any inhibitions, wearing his best grade school play face chomping scenery like a wildebeest. Watch for work from Kevin Dillon, Ian McNeice and Ernie Hudson as well. A lighthearted romp with its heart in the right place and the competence to back it up.

This is not a perfect movie but I'd rate it 8/10. It is a very good sci-fi adventure movie which is different from other movies at the time (1994). It has the look and feel of a Planet of the Apes - at times it is a bit silly and too violent/sadistic but it usually makes sense. The main character is someone who would usually be played by Van Damme. Anyway, there is a freshness and an excitement in this movie which is really all the genre needs. If only there were more movies of this type. I guess, it's like this typical pulp-sci-fi thriller. The effects are not very impressive but it has a kind of post-80s look to it. This was before CGI became normal. I think this movie is going to prove especially satisfying to fans of adventure movies such as "Conan" and to sci-fi fans who likes movies such as "Planet of the Apes". Of course, it is also a prison-break movie, however, I don't think that is what the movie is really about.

No Escape fmovies. On the surface, this looks like a dumb movie which is overly violent and too seedy because it features nothing but hardened criminals plus the normal sadistic warden Hollywood always shows in all modern-day films.

But....it turns out the story isn't as sordid as it looks and the violence, although plentiful, is somehow not overdone. Also, the chief villain " Walter Marek" (Stuart Wilson) is a man with a good sense of humor. The comedic relief he brings is a real plus to the story. By the way, Wilson doesn't look like Mel Gibson but his voice sure sounds similar.

"No Escape" is strictly an action movie with an all-male cast that has a grim atmosphere of convicts fighting it out on an inescapable island in the year 2022.

Profanity isn't as much as you'd except in a tough film like this and - in a real oddity - Lance Henriksen is the nicest guy in the movie! He never utters a bad or angry word. If you know the characters Henriksen usually plays, you know this is a rarity. Ray Liotta, Michael Lerner and Ernie Hudson also star, so it's a decent cast.

You could do a lot worse looking for two hours of "escapist" fare.

I totally agree with the comment given by Slurpee 7. I first saw it as a young teen and thought it was OK, but every time I saw it afterwards it just kept getting better and better. I don't know why. The story is very simple, but Campbell's movies just make you forget about that(e.g. Vertical limit- with a rather stupid story). This is the first movie I ever saw Ray Liotta and the man just has such powerful and "vicious" eyes.Great for the part. And the villain(excellently portrayed by Wilson), referring to his "habitat" as a first class hotel and making constant jokes - gotta love it. A movie about survival, and what a man is actually prepared to do for it. 9/10

Soldier Ray (Goodfellas) Liotta is sent to Prison for shooting one of his commanding officers in the year 2022- but it's no ordinary Prison, they send if to a deserted Island where bad ass criminals are taken and left alone to fend for themselves FOR EVER. When he arrives he realises there are two tribes one a violent and sadistic one known as the 'Outsiders' led by Marek (a great performance from British Actor Stuart Wilson and a Peaceful, loving and tight-knit community run by 'The Father' (a tailor made role for Lance Henriksen) who would live the rest of their lives in Peace and Harmony if it wasn't for Marek and his dirty,Ugly band of bad asses. Liotta needs to find his way off the Island which is 200 miles from the nearest coastline and is constantly watched by The Warden who will kill anyone who attempts to get off as well have having to fight with the good guys against the Outsiders who are becoming more and more fierce with each attack, This is a very well made Sci-fi actioner from Martin Campbell who has since made 007's Goldeneye (1995), The Mask of Zorro (1998) and Vertical Limit (2000) and is currently working on the Zorro Sequel due out Next Year. There are also plenty of faces to spot for British Viewers including Jack Shepherd (Yes! Wycliffe himself) who is suprisingly good the as the village mechanic who has tried for years to build a contraption to get them off the island, and The late Don Henderson who stars as the resident beer Maker.

Unfortunately the film bombed on both sides of the Atlantic taking a measly $15m in the states and a pathetic £500,000 here in the UK on it's original release 10 years ago but don't let that put you off it's very well acted with plenty of action and Drama.

My Rating:- **** out of *****