Wait, what’s the hundredth prime number again?
If only the premise of Escape From New York (1981) were palatable. From my science fiction days, I remember “they” would say you got one unbelievable assumption in a story. But it just doesn’t work here. The sacrifice of Manhattan, with all its valuable buildings, to be a high-security prison for all the criminals of the United States simply rings completely false.
Add to that the lack of interesting thematic material, and Escape From New York becomes merely another mindless action flick, as Air Force One goes down in Manhattan, and the President must be found and extracted by one “Snake” Plisken, former Special Forces, later arrested and convicted on charges of attempting to rob the Federal Reserve.
What’s turned him from military to armed robber? For that matter, what’s caused the 400% increase in crime? We don’t know. Not a hint. It makes the movie much less interesting. It seems like everyone in Manhattan has heard of Snake. Some have even heard he’s dead. Where do those two bits of info lead?
Oh, nowhere.
If you want mindless action, this isn’t too awful. Good sequences. But it’s not gripping, it’s boring.
