Synopsis
In a world ravaged by crime, the entire island of Manhattan has been converted into a walled prison where brutal prisoners roam. After the US president crash-lands inside, war hero Snake Plissken has 24 hours to bring him back.
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Cast
- Kurt RussellSnake Plissken
- Lee Van CleefPolice Commissioner Bob Hauk
- Ernest BorgnineCabbie
- Donald PleasencePresident of the United States
- Isaac HayesThe Duke of New York
- Season HubleyGirl in Chock Full O'Nuts
- Harry Dean StantonHarold 'Brain' Helman
- Adrienne BarbeauMaggie
- Tom AtkinsRehme
- Charles CyphersSecretary of State
Recommendations
- 100
The New York Times
It's a toughly told, very tall tale, one of the best escape (and escapist) movies of the season. - 100
Time Out
The pleasures are right in your face, beginning with the million-dollar idea of turning NYC into a walled-off prison where criminals run free. Even born-and-raised New Yorkers (of which Carpenter was decidedly not) could smile at that histrionic setup; it’s an outsider’s joke made funny by our willingness to be entertained. - 80
Empire
Boasting one of the most iconic characters ever in Plissken, and an effective sci-fi set-up, this is entertainment of the highest order. - 80
The A.V. Club
Carpenter's grittily convincing New York-in-decay remains the film's best element. Never particularly suspenseful and hampered by a finale that almost literally steers the plot toward a dead end, Escape only intermittently finds Carpenter flexing his directorial muscles. But it may be his most visionary film: Escape allowed him to build a future out of scraps from the past. - 80
Washington Post
Director John Carpenter and producer Debra Hill, the team responsible for "Halloween" and "The Fog," have come up with another B-movie thriller whose ambitions get exceeded by respectable results. [10 July 1981, p.17] - 75
TV Guide Magazine
A generally gripping actioner, the film can also be read as a percipient satire of a society irreparably split along lines of class and race. - 70
Variety
Although execution doesn’t quite live up to the fabulous premise, Escape from New York is a solidly satisfying actioner. - 63
ReelViews
Escape from New York isn't really science fiction -- it's an action flick set in a futuristic setting. Epic potential for a masterful, gripping tale is abandoned in favor of cheap thrills.
