Escape from L.A. (1996)

Snake Plissken is once again called in by the United States government to recover a potential doomsday device from Los Angeles, now an autonomous island where undesirables are deported.

Director:

John Carpenter

Writers:

John Carpenter (characters), Nick Castle (characters),

Stars:

Kurt Russell, Steve Buscemi, Peter Fonda

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kurt Russell	...	Snake Plissken
Steve Buscemi	...	Map to the Stars Eddie
Peter Fonda	...	Pipeline
Cliff Robertson	...	President
Valeria Golino	...	Taslima
Stacy Keach	...	Cmdr. Malloy
Pam Grier	...	Hershe Las Palmas
Bruce Campbell	...	Surgeon General of Beverly Hills
Georges Corraface	...	Cuervo Jones (as George Corraface)
Michelle Forbes	...	Brazen
A.J. Langer	...	Utopia
Ina Romeo	...	Hooker
Peter Jason	...	Duty Sergeant
Jordan Baker	...	Police Anchor
Caroleen Feeney	...	Woman on Freeway

Storyline

The year is 2013 and Snake Plissken is back but this time it's L.A., which through the agency of earthquakes has become an island of the damned. But something has gone wrong in this new moral order, because the President's daughter has absconded to L.A. with a detonation device, and Snake is commandeered to retrieve it. But just below the surface there is a coiled Snake ready to strike.

---

Plot Keywords:

island | escape | earthquake | terrorist | virus | 

---

Taglines:

Snake Is Back.

---

Genres:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi | Thriller

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence and some language

Details

Official Sites:

JohnCarpenter - movie site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 August 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

John Carpenter's Escape from L.A.

Filming Locations:

Courthouse Square, Backlot, Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$50,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

JPY 9,040,640 (Japan) (29 November 1996)

Gross:

JPY 131,401,000 (Japan) (6 December 1996)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures, Rysher Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Kate Hudson auditioned for the role of Utopia.

---

Goofs

When Snake is making his escape from Anaheim in the chopper, you can see the shadow of the wing-rotor blades under the body of the helicopter from a light source below it.

---

Quotes

[last lines]
[after having shut down all machinery in the world]
Snake Plissken: Welcome to the human race.

---

Connections

Referenced in Be Kind Rewind (2008)

---

Soundtracks

"Escape From New York - Main Title"
By John Carpenter & Alan Howarth

User Reviews

Slightly better with a second viewing.

I remember seeing this film a few years back and really didn't like it, although I did like "Escape From New York". Not too long ago I watched "Escape From New York" and then after watching it I thought I'd give the sequel a second chance. After watching it again and having super low expectations I have to say it wasn't as bad as I remembered. Granted, it still has some MAJOR flaws in the film, due to John Carpenter in my opinion (not a fan of his work, as you can tell from my other reviews of his films).

This film really could have been great, without too much work and editing. First of all get rid of the stupid Surgeon General of Beverly Hills character...in fact get rid of the entire scene (Bruce Campbell, I love your work, but I'm sorry, you've got go). Secondly, get rid of Peter Fonda's character and any scene involving surfing within the film. Next, axe Pam Grier's character, or at least give her a character overhaul and rethink the whole transsexual thing...pretty dumb! And lastly, make a few minor adjustments here and there on various things and you've got yourself a pretty decent movie.

I remember being less than impressed with the film's special effects when I first saw it. With this second viewing of the film, I found them to be much better than I remembered as well, or at least tolerable. Sometimes they were really good, and other times not so much, but in most cases, good enough for the film.

All in all, I couldn't in good conscience say this was as good as the previous installment, but it had some good things going for it. Surprisingly enough, I liked the story in the film quite a bit, it was rather interesting and quite original.

I did like seeing Steve Buscemi and Bruce Campbell in the film, even though Bruce's character was just god-awful. Steve was a pleasant surprise though. Kurt Russell did a fine job in the role of Snake Plisken, even though I don't care for his whisper-voice in this film. Pam Grier and Peter Fonda both did fine jobs acting, but their characters are less than great. A.J. Langer was the only cast member I was truly impressed with, not really because of acting skill (although she isn't bad), but because she is quite the looker. I'll be keeping a watchful eye for her future work. The rest of the cast was ok, but nothing worth mentioning.

I must say that the soundtrack/score in this film is FAR better than the atrocious music in "Escape from New York". ...And the end credits song, White Zombie's "The One", is probably one of my favorite White Zombie songs to date.

I don't think I would go around recommending this film to everyone, but if you are a fan of John Carpenter, then go ahead and check it out. Why someone would be a fan of his work is beyond me though. I would definitely recommend seeing "Escape From New York" first though, and if you like that one, then go ahead an give this a shot, but remember...low expectations. I hope you enjoy the film...and if not, perhaps you should give it a second chance, someday down the road. Thanks for reading,

-Chris