NO ESCAPE (1995)
Label: Unearthed Films
Region Code: A
Rating: R
Duration: 118 Minutes
Audio: English DTS-HD MA 2.0 Stereo and 5.1 Surround, French PCM 2.0 with Optional English Subtitles
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (2.35:1)
Director: Martin Campbell
Cast: Ray Liota, Lance Henriksen, Kevin Dillon, Ernie Hudson, Michael Lerner, Stuart Wilson
Produced by super-producer Gale Anne Hurd (The Terminator) and directed by Martin Campbell (Goldeneye) the future-prison actioner, set in the once futuristic year of 2022, No Escape aka Escape from Absolom (1995) stars the late Ray Liota (Goodfellas) as John Robbins, an anti-authoritarian ex-marine sent to an inescapable prison island for murdering his commanding officer. Once inside he runs afoul of the The Warden (Michael Lerner, Barton Fink), and is sent to an even-more-secret known as called "Absolom", a Lord of the Flies-esque hellscape ruled by two waring faction of prisoners. We have the Mad Max 2-esque group calling themselves The Outriders lead by Walter Marek (Stuart Wilson, Hot Fuzz), a sort of charming cut-throat who rules with violence, and on the other side The Insiders, a idealistic cooperative that wants to carve out a new society on the island governed by rules, benevolently lead by The Father (Lance Henriksen, Pumpkinhead).
After initially encountering The Outsiders Robbins proves not to be a fan of their violent ways and makes a run for it, but s darted with poison and ends up falling a cliff into the river below, where he is found by The Insiders and taken in, he reluctantly joins their ranks and eventually leads them against a coming war with their nemesis. This slice of Battle Royale -esque island prison flick also stars the talents of Kevin Dillon (The Blob) and Ernie Hudson (Ghostbusters) and is an action-packed and violent piece of 90's cinema, I absolutely loved it. Think Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome by way of Terminal Island - with a dash of Waterworld - and you have a decent idea of what your in for here. The first time I saw this I thought going-in that Liota was a surprising choice for the action-star lead, on it's surface this seems like the sort of role that would have gone to someone like Schwarzenegger, but I was proven wrong and Liota brings a lot to the role, I rather how he was seeeking atonement for past war-crimes he's committed at the orders of his superiors, and I love Michael Lerner (Anguish) as the evil prison warden, also playing against type a bit, but he absolutely pulls it off.
Chock full of brute action and cool dystopian future prison set pieces this is an action flick that delivers the goods, with cool set designs for the primitive settlement communities on the island, the strongly Mad Max-ish wardrobe stylings, and the island settings offers a range of tropical forest and rocky outcropping that looks great on film. On top of that you have a terrific cast that really sells the Lord of the Flies for adults plot. The special effects are pretty decent, the futuristic prison design looks solid, there's ample amounts of impressive explosions and the stripped down battle scenes have some nice weight to them. We also get a pretty impressive dead fall stunt from pretty high up that is well-shot. A handful of the mid-90's digital FX looks pretty shite in hindsight, but I had such a blast overall I didn't give a shit about the few that don't hold up, because this is a solid and unsung 90's actioner, especially if you're digging into the filmography of the sadly, gone-too-soon Ray Liota.
Audio/Video: No Escape (1995) arrives on Blu-ray from Unearthed Films as part of the Unearthed Classics line-up, release #10, in 1080p HD widescreen (2.35:1). I have not seen any verbiage about the source of the HD scan here but it looks quite similar to the 2018 Umbrella Entertainment release with the same framing, color-grading, etc. To my eyes grain and detail are slightly better resolved, and it appears a tad darker, which I appreciated. Most likely an older existing HD master, but not without it's finer points in regard to clarity, depth and detail. Audio comes by way of English DTS-HD MA 2.0 and 5.1, or French PCM 2.0 with optional English subtitles. It's clean and well-balanced, no issues with sibilance or distortion, and the bombastic explosions sounded full-bodies, plus the terrific score from Graeme Revell (From Dusk Till Dawn) sounds great.
Previously issued on region-free Blu-ray from Umbrella Entertainment in 2018 that disc featured only archival extras, which are carried over on this Unearthed release. This new edition however also features three brand-new featurettes produced by Ballyhoo Motion Picture's that are exclusive to this release, all three use voice-over with the three participants handsomely laid over scenes from the film with archival behind-the-scenes images and stills. First up is the 17-min Welcome to the Future: The Sci-Fi Worlds of Gale Anne Hurd is a new interview with producer Gale Anne Hurd features the big-time producer talking about her early love of TV sci-fi by way of Outer Limits, Twilight Zone and Star Trek, working for Roger Corman and New Word Pictures, working on such classics as on Humanoids from the Deep and Battle Beyond the Stars, being able to work in a variety of capacities from the script levels, art department set creation, and even applying goo to the creatures. She also talks about meeting James Cameron, as his boss, on Battle Beyond the Stars, before producing The Terminator for Cameron, as well as Aliens. She also touches on producing Bad Dreams, Tremors, The Abyss and then into No Escape with Martin Campbell, whom she had worked with previously on the HBO movie Cast a Deadly Spell - which is still in desperate need of a Blu-ray! Hurd talks about the decision to shoot in Australia, pointing out the various locations used, the cast and score, and how it rained a lot while filming, in addition to the vast assortment of deadly creatures in Australia.
The 14-min Survival of the Fittest: Directing No Escape - a new interview with filmmaker Martin Campbell who talks about his early career, originally wanting Russell Crowe for the lead but going with Liota at the insistence of the financier. He also gets into studio shooting versus location, the construction of the elaborate sets, production design and the wardrobe which was made by Norma Moriceau who worked on the Mad Max films, shooting the action scenes and trying to keep the action "realistic", budget limitation cutting down some of the action of the finale. The 10-min Penal Colony: Writing No Escape - a new interview with co-writer Joel Gross who talks about adapting the novel into a screenplay, the themes and characters, and various changes made throughout the draft process.
We also get a 2-min Alternate Intro with the non-US 'Escape from Absolom' title card, the 2-min Original Theatrical Trailer, 2-min of TV Spots, 8-min Photo Gallery with stills, promotional materials, comic book art and home video releases, plus a 28-min archival Making of No Escape featuring b-roll footage and interviews with producer Gale Anne Hurd, director Campbell, and actors Liotta, Wilson, Hudson, Dillon, Henriksen, and others from the set of the film, and a 6-min
Vintage Featurette which looks like it culls most of it's footage from the previous featurette. The single-disc release arrives in a standard keepcase with a single-sided sleeve of artwork featuring the theatrical artwork. The same artwork is featured on the slipcover, both the wrap and slipcover are numbered.
Special Features:
- NEW! Welcome to the Future: The Sci-Fi Worlds of Gale Anne Hurd - A new interview with producer Gale Anne Hurd (17 min)
- NEW! Survival of the Fittest: Directing No Escape - A new interview with filmmaker Martin Campbell (14 min)
- NEW! Penal Colony: Writing No Escape - A new interview with co-writer Joel Gross (10 min)
- Alternate Intro (2 min)
- Original Theatrical Trailer (2 min)
- TV Spots (2 min)
- Photo Gallery (8 min)
- Making of No Escape - Archival Featurette (28 min)
- Vintage Featurette (6 min)
- Unearthed Trailers: The Dark Side of the Moon (2 min), Night Wish (2 min), The Unnamable (2 min), The Old Man Movie (3 min)
No Escape (1995) is a solid 90's actioner that feels quite 80's in it's execution, and that's a good thing. If you enjoy dystopian prison island flicks like Escape from New York, Fortress, or Terminal Island this should be on your radar. Unearthed Films give it a solid A/V presentation and I loved the newly produced extras.
Screenshot Comparison
Top: Umbrella Entertainment Blu-ray (2018)
Bottom: Unearthed Films Blu-ray (2022)
More screenshots from the Unearthed Filmed Blu-ray:
