Escape From L.A.

With Kurt Russell, Stacy Keach, Steve Buscemi, Peter Fonda
Written and directed by John Carpenter
(Paramount, 1996)
by Scott Hefflon

Snake, the one-eyed, one man army, is back! If you think he’s slowed down with age, his stunt double will kick your ass. Sure he’s getting a paunch Gene Simmons or Archie Bunker would approve of, but he’s the producer after all. He can whup ass, fend off circling bikers, and shoot a cross-court basket because he has the power. Not of legend, but of producership. Sexy Valeria Golino (Hot Shots!) makes a quick appearance and offers to do him, but gets shot mere moments later. She’s even gorgeous as she dies. Stacy Keach plays a pony-tailed fascist in a fascist land, with Michelle Forbes as his tough-as-nails sidekick. Her spoken introduction, while not nearly as cool as Swimming with Sharks,’ gets you through the drudgery of yet another Star Wars/Dune/Blade Runner/Road Warrior spiel about the state of post-Apocalyptic society. Yawn. Used-car-salesman-cum-loyalty-selling-slickster Steve Buscemi wins the award for the character you’d most like to punch in the mouth. Random scenes of gratuitous violence/cruelty mimic Pulp Fiction (and, of course, fall far shy), but Escape… has a surf scene to match P.F.‘s soundtrack. In general, lots of people get shot, tough lines are growled out of the corners of mouths, the soundtrack rocks, and the world is saved. Interesting parallels to contemporary society can be drawn, but who wants to bother?