ESCAPE PLAN (B-)

Bottom Line: Like a somewhat polished, semi-plausible throwback to something either one of these muscle-bound movie gods would have considered filming back in mid- to late 80’s, ESCAPE PLAN aggressively toes the line of simplistic, B-level, you’ll-get-exactly-what-you-expect filmmaking.  It’s not ground breaking cinema, it won’t change your life and it most certainly won’t win any awards – but there’s ample amounts of cheesily vacant fun to be had when these two start throwin’ their well-honed charisma around like a well-toned, well-tanned ton of bricks…  It does all seem eerily familiar; the faces, the monosyllabic delivery of lines, the gratuitous violence and the ill-defined, MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE-esque vibe - but in committing to the concept, both Stallone and Schwarzenegger (particularly fun to watch here) add swagger to a ballistically action-packed and preposterously half-baked concept.  Most of what you’ll see is done with fists, a wink and a smile.  They’re having a blast, so why shouldn’t we (to some extent; let’s not get too crazy here)?  The story may be expendable but these two aging, having-a-bit-of-fun-again stars are anything but…  Stop whining!  Don’t be a bum.  Lower your expectations accordingly and get with (a matinee showing of) the PLAN!

 

Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jim Caviezel, Vincent D’Onofrio, Amy Ryan, Vinnie Jones and Curtis ’50 Cent’ Jackson

Directed by: Mikael Håfstrom (THE RITE)

Rated: R

Running time: 116 minutes

Story: One of the world's foremost authorities on structural security agrees to take on one last job: breaking out of an ultra-secret, high-tech facility called "The Tomb." Deceived and wrongly imprisoned, Ray Breslin (Sylvester Stallone) must recruit fellow inmate Emil Rottmayer (Arnold Schwarzenegger) to help devise a daring, nearly impossible plan to escape from the most protected and fortified prison ever built. (c) Summit

 

Trailer: www.escapeplanmovie.com