Director: Mikael Håfström
MPAA Rating: R
Film Pulse Score: 5/10
The trick to enjoying Mikael Hafstrom’s Escape plan comes in a series of steps not unlike Sylvester Stallone’s elaborate scheme’s to break out of prison. First, you must check your brain at the door. Any amount of analysis of the plot will cause your suspension of disbelief to crumble under the weight of coincidence and ludicrous story. Second, you need to be a fan of 80s action flicks. The contents within Escape Plan harkens back to the days when guns, explosions, and badassery took precedence over all else. Finally, you need to be forgiving of the weak dialogue and performances. In a film that features Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and 50 Cent, you can’t demand much in the acting department. If you follow all these steps, you’ll come away from the film feeling marginally satisfied with a half interesting story, and some fun action.
The film revolves around Stallone working for a security firm that specializes in exposing the vulnerabilities of Federal prisons. After being contacted by the CIA, he reluctantly agrees to take on a new job at a super secret experimental prison, dubbed The Tomb. After arriving at the prison he quickly realizes that things are not as they seem and he must team up with another inmate, played by Arnold, in order to escape.
While the general plot feels fairly simple, there are several twists and turns added to complicate things, which also muddies the waters of what starts as a clear and concise story. Adding in these various double crosses and misdirections doesn’t necessarily detract from the film overall, however it does open the door to finding holes and discrepancies throughout the movie. Those elements aside, as a fan of prison films, it was still fun to see how Stallone’s character worked out his plan and executed it even though it got completely ridiculous at times.
Going back the my second step of being an action fan, those that wanted to always see Stallone and Schwarzenegger headline together will be pleased with then end result. In addition to seeing them face off against one another near the beginning of the film, you’ll hear plenty of cheesy one liners, and witness a number of satisfying action set pieces. The film’s climax is of particular note, when Arnold does something very cool with a mounted gun.
The action in Escape Plan is plentiful, however it’s not non-stop or over the top like we’ve seen in The Expendables films. Much of the runtime plays out like a standard prison break film, with sparse bits of action thrown in to keep everyone interested. Leaving the theater I wasn’t necessarily wanting more out of the action, however it ultimately proves to be forgettable.
If you’re in the mood for some mindless action on a lazy Sunday, Escape Plan will fit the bill. It’s nothing more than a generic throwback to the dime a dozen action flicks of yesteryear, but that’s enough to please the hearts of most people that will take the time to check this one out.
