Escape from New York [Blu-ray]

Escape From New York is one of those films that seems to improve each decade it survives, not merely because of nostalgia, though nostalgia is certainly lifting a little weight here, but because it’s stripped-down confidence stands in sharp contrast to the bloated, lore-obsessed action franchises of today. It is a B-movie executed with A-movie personality, anchored by a performance from Kurt Russell that should be studied in a class titled “How to Be Cool Without Trying.” Despite a few underpowered moments and the occasional questionable prop design, the film remains a lean, evocative, wonderfully unpretentious piece of science-fiction pulp, and for all these reasons, and of course because it does not, under any circumstances, overstay its welcome. Escape From New York earns a solid 9 out of 10, with a hearty recommendation for anyone who misses the days when an action movie could be quick, dirty, and utterly memorable.

AWESOME movie, Kurt Russel as Snake Plisken is the bomb. Great escapism. A movie you will no doubt watch more than once. The music, casting, acting and writing is great.

Very good and arrived very fast

Nice movie and collectors edition

This film is based on a terrific idea. It's the future, see, and New York has been walled up and turned into a maximum-security prison. If that concept doesn't grab you, you won't enjoy this cult classic. If it _does_ grab you, you're probably part of this film's target demographic. So here's what happens: the President (Donald Pleasence, of all people, and he's terrific in the role) has ejected from Air Force One and gone down somewhere in New York. He's being held prisoner and somebody is going to have to rescue him. Fortunately, war hero and convicted felon Snake Plisskin (Kurt Russell) is on his way there as a prisoner, and maybe in exchange for a full pardon he can be induced to save the President's butt. If he doesn't succeed within 24 hours, two bombs implanted in his arteries will kill him. This is a great action flick with lots of atmosphere, and it's got the tremendously underrated Kurt Russell, in the film in which he finally shucked off his Disneyfied past. And it's directed by John Carpenter, who is uncannily adept at turning out a fine movie on a budget of about twenty bucks. Frank Doubleday as Romero sets the tone for this particular vision of New York; from his very first moment on screen, he pretty much shows you what the city is all about in this dark future. Ernest Borgnine is charmingly droll as the Cabbie, Lee Van Cleef is Lee Van Cleef, and Adrienne Barbeau is both sharp and beautiful. And Isaac Hayes is even cooler here than he was in _Truck Turner_, and that's saying a lot. The atmosphere is very dark and gritty and vaguely apocalyptic, brought to life with help from a memorable score by Carpenter. Russell brings Plissken to life perfectly. And the film has lost none of its anarchic/antiauthoritarian edge. Great, classic piece of Carpenteriana, as enjoyable today as it was in 1981. Since writing this review originally, I've also bought the two-disc Special Edition, and it's well worth the money for the fine DVD transfer and nifty extras.

I'll keep this short since this movie is roughly 30 years old and anything that there is to be said about it has been said already. This new release was barebones, I knew that going in, so I'm not going to take away a star for that because I just want the movie to look and sound as good as possible right now. I know that there will be a re-release at some point in the near future - either for the 30'th anniversary or for a "first look" at the upcoming remake. I'm sure this is going to happen. I'll worry about that when it happens, and decide what to do with this release when the time comes (if I decide that I *need* to have the extras on Blu-ray). Anyway... The transfer is great. Easily the best this film has ever looked outside of the theater. This release wasn't a DNR nightmare and lacks the edge enhancement and contrast boost mess that took place in the UK release. The picture here is nice (it looks a little dark, but it seems natural) - probably the best it will ever look on Blu-ray. The audio was amazing as well. Amazing DTS-HD MA track! There was only one line that was difficult to hear due to the sound effects/music, but it was like that on the DVD too - so whatever - I guess that's just how it is (for anyone interested, it's whatever Brain says after he says something about redskins). A DVD was included with this release, which was unnecessary but infinitely better than a 'digital copy.' The DVD is a flipper disc that features the widescreen version on one side, and the pan-and-scan version (EWWWW) version on the other side. Now, I know what you're thinking. Is this the same disc as the 2000 DVD release (since that was a flipper disc, too)? That's what I thought at first, but I distinctly remember that disc not having a 5.1 audio track (it only had 2.0). This one has a 5.1 track. So, is it the 2003 Special Edition DVD version, but instead of it being on a regular disc, it's on a flipper disc? This one is missing the Carpenter/Russell commentary track! I don't know what MGM did, but it's like they merged the two releases or something. The picture quality on the DVD wasn't bad, and the 5.1 track was nice, so I'm *guessing* that it was the 2003 version, stripped of the commentary, and pressed on a flipper disc. Why would they do this? I have no idea. If anyone knows what exactly went on with the DVD, since it is clearly SOME kind of mixture of the two discs, feel free to comment me on it! All in all, if you just want the best looking/sounding version of 'Escape from New York' that you could possibly buy right now, this is it. If you're worried about special features, maybe you could hold off for a year or two and see if the product gets re-released (I'm betting it will be since this one is barebones and the anniversary AND remake are coming up). I didn't want to wait, so I scooped this up. I care more about outstanding picture quality than special features, so this was a good buy for me, especially with the included DVD for those times where I'll want to get my Snake Plissken on and I'm not near my only Blu-ray player (or if I want to let somebody borrow the DVD).

Awesome cult classic great add to any collection blue ray brings it to new life

Solo viene en inglés audio y subtitulos. La imagen en 4 k y bluray se miran muy bien. Me hubiera gustado que llegara con slipcover pero aún asi es una excelente edición. Aún no la reproduzco pero trae 3 discos. El 4k y 2 bluray con la película y otro de características especiales. En geberal muy bonita edición y dificil para mi de encontrar.

Received region 1 DVD - it even says not for resale outside or Canada or USA (should not be sold in Europe)

Un chef-d'œuvre très respectable ! Révolutionnaire dans son concept, ses idées, sa cinématographie à son époque. John Carpenter est décidemment un très grand cinéaste de la débrouille.

Kurt russell est extra en snake plissken

Yes