"The Escapist" (2008): Can We Now All Relate to the Prison Break Genre?

*Blog post is of a 2010 movie review. More original content started on April 14, 2020.

With Verdana as my default blog font (As I typed, I remember that I have not previewed the appearance yet. It seemed to work out okay.), maybe I can come up with a rant before we get into my movie review, the 2008 prison break movie "The Escapist". It a nice coincidence that I have two hours left on my shift and need something to keep me busy until I can leave the capitalist cage, despite all my rage.

Does anyone know who did the cover of "Bullet with Butterfly Wings" used in the "Final Fantasy VII: Remake"? Shazam could not help me out last night.

Absolutely nothing seems to be going on during the lockdown. Yesterday, it took me the better part of six hours to get my review for the third/fourth worst Rutger Hauer movie that I have seen "Split Second". Today, I was able to catch up with Wrestling Inc., ESPN, FiveThirtyEight, Huffington Post, CNN, NBC, and The Ringer in about four. The only jump I had was on Wrestling Inc.

That seems weird coming out of a holiday weekend, a religious holiday at that. COVID-19 is so dangerous that terrorists stay home instead of attacking a church or two. It makes me wonder if we should even open back up for business.

We are in prison. There are no outliers. Now is the time for Rehoboam. Apple, Google and Amazon have all of our information. Lets get to cracking on some algorithms to predict and direct. I am a nihilist. I am ready for my fate.

That observation might mean that I am basing too many of my Pokémon names around Dolores or Evan Rachael Wood. I used her last name a lot, but just now realized the gender neutrality of her first name. Why have I not used that for any of my Eevees?

Do I continue ranting about my current situation for the next hour or do I get on eBay and amuse myself looking for the right purple football kit or irresistible championship belt deal? In other words, do I buy into the prison system further or whine about it more?

At least I have stretched this blog entry out long enough that I know longer believe that I am cheating my readers. And at least I can scrap the idea of taking a critical run at "Alien 3." It is a flawed film that needs some love, but too give you a prison movie double-feature review seemed daunting.

The Escapist

Every British film not from Edgar Wright (Paul WS Anderson does not count) must be visualized as a play first. This explains the rich dialogue and the lack of any immediate character definition. They do not want to present the audience with caricatures, but it would be nice if we had some clue behind the depressing tale of redemption that is "The Escapist".

Frank Perry has spent 14 years in a London prison with little contact from the outside world. The first contact seems to be from his wife who writes him with bad news. It is news so bad that he can no longer wait for his parole hearing to get out.

He cannot do this on his own, so he has to gather the assistance of those with nothing to lose and the permission of the Irish cons who run the joint. If they can survive the three days prior to the break, they may stand a chance of obtaining freedom.

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"The Escapist" is a clever spin on how to edit a prison break film. The story telling method of jumping back and forth from the jail break and the build up results in a powerful ending, but does test the patience of the viewer. Each jailbird's motive is not made immediately clear, and aside from a rape and Joseph Fiennes picking a fight with future four-time WWE World Champion Sheamus, there is very little action.

It is a long, depressing story which furthers your hopes that they get out of prison, but it has difficulty keeping the viewers attention. If you cannot keep the audience's attention, why would they care about the escape.

If you can make it to the end, "The Escapist" pays off. Fortunately, the filmmakers and actors deliver on their end. Despite the tedious story, your are encouraged to tough it out. With a few tweaks, "The Escapist" would be the standard for the prison break subgenre. The film's method works, but you have to have a strong constitution to be rewarded.