The Escapist

The Escapist (2009)
Directed by Rupert Wyatt
Starring Brian Cox, Joseph Fiennes, Liam Cunningham, Dominic Cooper, Sue Jorge, Steven Mackintosh.

A rather off kilter' prison escape' movie fresh out of the UK. An old inmate, played by Brian Cox, attempts a dangerous Jail Break in order to visit his terminally ill daughter whom he hasn't seen in over a decade. A gang of inmates assemble to participate, all with good reasons to want out of the 'circus type prison' in this surreal story. Its The Great Escape meets Snatch, not really. but almost that silly.

The co-lead played by Cunningham is a quiet young man, a new inmate who is threatened by a pair of homosexual brothers, inmates who 'run the jail'. This is where reality starts to bend somewhat but the stellar UK cast holds it together and makes up for most of the trangressions. It feels like an art-film and Im not sure if its deliberate or accidental, its visually poetic but too over-stylized for such a gritty hard-core narrative.

The film intercuts the escape in parallel with the build up to the escape, throughout the entire story. This becomes a frustrating plot device as the story jumps back and forth. The climax reveals why the story was presented in non-linear format as part of the escape is revealed to be a 'dream sequence' (dah-nah!!!) from a dying man. Yes, Im not lying, I was stunned. It really threw me for a loop, also made me chuckle. It was not predictable at all but very corny and implausible. I know it sounds odd, but it reminded me of the dream sequence in 'Last Temptation of Christ' (1st entry on this blog). There are effects sequences at the end of the film, when the inmates escape through the sewers that almost suggested these men were dead in heaven or hell.. only to be explained as dream sequence later, rather odd.

Check it out if you like British films, the acting is good but the story is out-there..

Parts of the movie were great, essentially the acting. UK actors have the chops sadly this film doesnt.