Escape from New York (1981)
84%RT Audience Score: 77%
Awards & Nominations: 4 nominations
Featuring an atmospherically grimy futuristic metropolis, Escape from New York is a strange, entertaining jumble of thrilling action and oddball weirdness
Escape from New York is a classic film that takes place in a dystopian future where New York City has become a maximum-security prison. The film follows the story of Snake Plissken, a former soldier turned criminal, who is sent on a mission to rescue the President of the United States. With its iconic anti-hero and thrilling set pieces, Escape from New York is a must-see for any fan of action and sci-fi films. Plus, who doesn’t love a good countdown-clock suspense sequence?
Production Company(ies)
DENTSU Music And Entertainment, Nibariki Nippon Television, Network
Distributor
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc., Embassy Pictures, AVCO Embassy Pictures
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Fox Theater – 527 N. Grand Boulevard, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
MPAA / Certificate
R
Year of Release
1981
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Stereo Dolby Digital
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Aspect ratio:2.39 : 1
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Runtime:1h 40m
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Jul 10, 1981 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 2, 2004
Genre(s)
Action
Keyword(s)
starring Kurt Russell, Ernest Borgnine, Adrienne Barbeau, Lee Van Cleef, Donald Pleasence, Isaac Hayes, directed by John Carpenter, written by John Carpenter and Nick Castle, action, dystopian, maximum security prison, Air Force One, hostage, criminal, Snake Plissken, Special Forces, freedom, president, Larry J Franco, Debra Hill, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc., Embassy Pictures, AVCO Embassy Pictures, R-rated, 1981, 1h 40m, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Anton Bitel, Phil Hoad, Arthur Knight, Joshua Rothkopf, Jaime N Christley, Nick Schager, Scott Sublett, MPAA rating, producer Larry J Franco, Debra Hill
Worldwide gross: $25,274,965
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $85,158,646
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,092
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 9,286,657
US/Canada gross: $25,244,626
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $6,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $20,215,730
Production budget ranking: 1,360
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $10,886,171
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $54,056,745
ROI to date (est.): 174%
ROI ranking: 701
Ernest Borgnine – Cabbie
Adrienne Barbeau – Maggie
Lee Van Cleef – Bob Hauk
Donald Pleasence – President of the United States
Isaac Hayes – The Duke of New York
Director(s)
John Carpenter
Writer(s)
NA
Producer(s)
Larry J. Franco, Debra Hill
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
4 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (68) | Top Critics (15) | Fresh (58) | Rotten (10)
1997 is the year in which the film’s events are set, but far from being a bright, progressive future, it is a hyperbolic deterioration of 1981’s here and now
November 19, 2018
Anton Bitel
Little White Lies
TOP CRITIC
The film plays its social satire broad but strings it along a rail of self-awareness.
October 25, 2018 | Rating: 4/5
Phil Hoad
Guardian
TOP CRITIC
It has got an intriguing premise, an effective cast, and it has been expertly mounted.
July 10, 2017
Arthur Knight
Hollywood Reporter
TOP CRITIC
The movie proudly wears its affection for crusty Sergio Leone archetypes and countdown-clock suspense sequences; Carpenter was Tarantino long before Tarantino was.
July 23, 2013 | Rating: 5/5
Joshua Rothkopf
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
Most of the images are elaborate confections of urban blight, etched against a nearly unlit soundstage, and the sound mix, until the finale, is rarely louder than Snake’s elbow busting out an old windowpane.
July 17, 2013 | Rating: 3.5/4
Jaime N. Christley
Slant Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Has a surprisingly measured pace, its set pieces choreographed with a deliberateness at odds with the frantic nature of Snake’s quest.
April 14, 2011 | Rating: B+
Nick Schager
Lessons of Darkness
TOP CRITIC
New York as surreal, existential hell was done much better by Walter Hill in The Warriors; Carpenter’s imagery fails to shock today’s jaded audiences.
May 23, 2022
Scott Sublett
Washington Blade
One of John Carpenter’s most popular films remains this futuristic yarn featuring an irresistible hook and an iconic anti-hero.
April 10, 2022 | Rating: 3/4
Matt Brunson
Film Frenzy
Regardless of how much John Carpenter pays homage to Howard Hawks, or how much Kurt Russell’s performance is rooted in Clint Eastwood’s various onscreen characters, Escape from New York stands on its own merits and achieves something unique.
February 14, 2022 | Rating: 4/4
Brian Eggert
Deep Focus Review
What works is the tone, the character, and the deeply cynical attitude towards authority of all stripes.
October 24, 2021
Travis Johnson
Blunt Magazine
[O]ne of the standouts of director/co-writer John Carpenter’s damn-near-unmatched 1976-1988 run of stupendous filmmaking.
July 11, 2021
Justin Harrison
The Spool
A substandard-by-design, low-budget, accidental sci-fi epic that is too good to pass up.
September 6, 2020 | Rating: 9/10
Mike Massie
Gone With The Twins…
Plot
In the future, crime is out of control and New York City’s Manhattan is a maximum security prison. Grabbing a bargaining chip right out of the air, convicts bring down the President’s plane in bad old Gotham. Gruff Snake Plissken, a one-eyed lone warrior new to prison life, is coerced into bringing the President, and his cargo, out of this land of undesirables.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
The film features Kurt Russell as the lead character, Snake Plissken, a former Special Forces soldier turned criminal.
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