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Escape From New York poster

Escape From New York

year 1981decade 80sdirector John Carpentergenre Science fiction action

99 minutes

IMDb
Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Escape From New York | The Rewatchables

host Bill Simmonshost Shea Serranohost Chris Ryanproducer Craig Horlbeck
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Most Rewatchable Scene

The gladiator match wins one ballot and the opening setup wins another, amid a broad set of action and world-building alternatives.

In the discussion (10)
Approx. transcript time · 00:25:48Read transcript
  • The Hawk briefing is praised for revealing Snake’s decorated military past and criminal sentence through an absurd rescue proposition and clipped sarcasm.
  • Lee Van Cleef’s earring and severe presentation deepen Hawk’s villainous authority.
  • Snake landing a one-seat glider on the World Trade Center is praised despite questions about how the president would have escaped with him.
  • The first Duke sighting, chandelier Cadillac, stolen car, and run down Broadway form another favored action passage.
  • The Duke firing repeatedly around the president while forcing his slogan is singled out as an absurd high point.
  • Romero’s finger-delivery countdown establishes how strange prison society has become.
  • The gladiator match is selected for its unexplained entrance, Ox Baker reveal, nail-studded bats, live music, and cross-cut rescue attempt.
  • The bridge escape and president killing the Duke complete a favored finale sequence.
  • The map-like opening that raises the prison walls wins another ballot for producing immediate physical excitement.
  • The sewer attack and Chock Full o’ Nuts abduction are praised for making every surface in Manhattan feel dangerous.

What’s Aged the Best?

Frank Doubleday’s Romero, the score, deleted material, fatal catchphrase, military base, Kurt Russell, and soundtrack lead the praise.

In the discussion (8)
Approx. transcript time · 00:40:18Read transcript
  • Romero is praised as perfectly balanced between an extreme look and an ordinary accountant-like voice.
  • His first-line physical flourish and the finger exchange remain memorable.
  • The deleted bank-robbery opening is valued as an extra seven minutes for fans.
  • Every character who tells Snake they heard he was dead eventually dies, creating a recurring kiss-of-death phrase.
  • The Gulf Fire plane and the Duke’s car are added to the list of designs that still hold up.
  • Hawk’s military installation and its sweeping helicopter-preparation shots remain an unimproved dystopian base design.
  • Kurt Russell’s Snake performance is judged capable of making him a star even if released today.
  • The synth score remains futuristic, frightening, and musically influential.

What’s Aged the Worst?

Post-2001 imagery, the president, romance beat, tattoo, huge phone, fight sounds, and inert radar display are criticized.

In the discussion (8)
Approx. transcript time · 00:45:16Read transcript
  • A presidential aircraft flying toward a New York skyscraper plays differently after 2001.
  • Donald Pleasence is judged an implausible American president because of his accent and shifty Nixon-like manner.
  • A possible sexual pause with the Chock Full o’ Nuts woman is debated as either unappealing or understandable given Snake’s isolation and limited time.
  • Snake’s tattoo is criticized as hastily designed, though its roughness is defended as period-appropriate.
  • Hawk’s future cell phone is comically enormous.
  • The exaggerated fist-fight sound effects have dated.
  • The radar operator claims Snake entered a building even though the screen’s blinking light does not move.
  • The appended interview says the president’s foreign accent was intentional because the story is set in the future, directly qualifying the panel’s accent criticism.

The Dion Waiters Award for Best Heat Check Performance

Frank Doubleday completes the triple crown over Adrian Barbeau, Isaac Hayes, and Ernest Borgnine.

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 00:51:58Read transcript
  • Adrian Barbeau and Isaac Hayes are strong short-performance alternatives.
  • Ernest Borgnine is praised as a famous older actor enjoying the role.
  • Doubleday wins for moving from terror to insecurity, dying with strange physical precision, and adding expressive gestures throughout.

Apex Mountain

Ox Baker, John Carpenter for Halloween, dystopian New York movies, and possibly Escape from L.A.’s production receive positive cases; Kurt Russell remains debated.

In the discussion (8)
Approx. transcript time · 00:58:03Read transcript
  • Kurt Russell is debated between this breakout and later peaks around Tango & Cash, Backdraft, Tombstone, and other roles.
  • Escape from New York is treated as the moment Russell became the guy even if it was not his biggest-star phase.
  • Making Escape from L.A. is floated as a possible Russell apex because he had enough power to revive the character.
  • Ox Baker receives a yes.
  • Adrian Barbeau is rejected in favor of her years on Maude.
  • John Carpenter receives Halloween as his apex.
  • The year 1997 is rejected as a cultural apex.
  • Dystopian New York films receive a clear apex verdict here.

Sequel, Prequel, Limited Series, or All-Black Remake

A modern series is watchable but risks losing the handmade magic; Catalina and an inverted Escape to New York are proposed.

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:08:34Read transcript
  • A 2020 series offers many advantages, but modern effects may erase the practical magic that distinguishes the original from Escape from L.A.
  • Catalina Island is proposed as a California prison society for a series.
  • Escape to New York would invert the premise by making Manhattan the only safe, supplied area in a ruined country.