Movie Review: "Escape Plan" (2013)

Movie: "Escape Plan"
Director: Mikael Hafstrom
Rating: R
Running Time: 1 hour, 55 minutes

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Ray Breslin (Sylvester Stallone) breaks out of maximum security prisons for a living. When he is offered a high paying job by the CIA to test an off-the-books prison at an unknown location, he takes it. At the pick-up point, he is tasered and kidnapped and transported to the facility (which was not part part of the plan). His in-prison contact person does not exist, and this place has a new warden named Hobbes (Jim "JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF" Cavizel), who is sort of a sadist and initially has no knowledge of why Breslin is there other than the fabricated story the CIA gave him. During his first day in this prison, he meets Emil Rottmayer (Arnold Schwarzenegger) and they make a deal: it's up to them to break out or spend the rest of their lives in prison.

This is exactly what you'd expect a Stallone/Schwarzenegger movie to be like. It's filled with action and corny Arnold one-liners, so if you go into this movie knowing that, you'll enjoy yourself. The story is actually quite good and it is enough to keep you entertained for its running time. Though a bit predictable, there are some interesting plot points along the way.

There's something about watching Arnold Schwarzenegger (our former governor, mind you) pick up a gigantic machine gun that should be mounted to a helicopter and beginning to annihilating people with a flurry of bullets that makes us smile. He's exactly where he should be, he's home. Sylvester Stallone was also fun to watch fight, but still talks like he has a mouth full of marbles, but it's getting better. The two of them together on screen is nothing short of amazing to watch because they have great chemistry; they bounce off one another and obviously had a good time making this movie. Jim Cavizel is flawless as usual, and he does a fantastic job as the sadistic jerk of a warden.

Overall, this is a solid action flick that we would probably own and re-watch again.

My Rating: 7.5/10
BigJ's Rating: 7/10
IMDB's Rating: 7.2/10
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 49%
Do we recommend this movie: Sure, why not?