ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK COLLECTOR’S EDITION: I HEARD YOU WERE DEAD

I’ve long been a huge fan of John Carpenter, so much that when asked what my top 5 movies are I always include HALLOWEEN. But that wasn’t the only great movie that can be attributed to the director. You’d also have to include THE FOG, THE THING, BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA, VAMPIRES and of course ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK. To this day each of these films holds up to the test of time. While great on their own, when a special edition comes out its time to celebrate. Such is the case with NEW YORK.

If you’ve never seen the movie (can it really be 34 years old?!?) it features Kurt Russell in what was a career changing performance. For the most part up until that time Russell was known for his child and teen performances in television and Disney movies. Having worked with Carpenter in the starring role of ELVIS, the two would partner up for this film and suddenly Russell became a leading man.

In the film Russell plays “Snake” Plissken, an ex-special forces operative who went rogue and became a criminal. But seeing as how this takes place in the future, criminals aren’t treated the same way they are now. In that distant future (whose date in actuality has since come and gone) Manhattan has been walled over and is not a maximum security prison where the inmates run the asylum. With no police force in effect with the exception of watching the walls, inmates rule themselves. This is Snake’s destiny.

Except that circumstances have placed him in the right place at the right time. Terrorists have taken over Air Force One on its way to a peace summit with the President (Donald Pleasance) on board. A rescue team sent in to save him once his escape pod lands finds he’s been captured by the criminals on the island who have yet to make demands with the exception of no police on the island. Head of security Hauk (Lee Van Cleef) seeing the chance to use Snake to infiltrate the island recruits him with the promise of freedom. To insure Snake doesn’t run, he implants two micro bombs in his neck timed to go off in 24 hours, after which time the President will no longer be of use.

Landing atop one of the World Trade Center buildings in a glider, Snake sets out to locate the President via a tracking bracelet he’s wearing. When he finds it on a bum, Hauk insists he carry on. With the aid of a happy go lucky cabbie (Ernest Borgnine), an old “friend” named Brain (Harry Dean Stanton) and Brain’s girlfriend (Adrienne Barbeau), Snake sets out to find the President, now a prisoner of the leader on the island, The Duke (Isaac Hayes). Can he rescue him in time? It’s a non-stop action fueled film that runs out the clock before it ends.

The movie does a great job of creating a world unto itself, a Manhattan that is desolate, destroyed and picked over. It does so good a job most will never realize those set pieces were shot in St. Louis. Working with minimal budgets, Carpenter has always chosen the right people to make his visions come to life. That happens here in everything from the location shots to the island center sets to the decaying interiors of buildings in Manhattan. Even now, long after the “future” the movie takes place in the special effects seem great, even if dated. In a world of streaming movies it seems quaint to see green lines on a black screen as top of the line digital views.

Giving a major assist to Carpenter is long time cinematographer Dean Cundey who shot many of Carpenter’s greatest films. Here he makes for some fantastic night shots that keep things in the dark but not so much that you can’t tell what you’re looking at. His use of smoke and shadow help to create the world that we see as much if not more than the locations used. It’s easy to see why Cundey has become one of the best cinematographers in the business.

So what does this collector’s edition offer? First off a 2k high definition transfer as well as two commentary tracks on the first disc. The second disc is filled with extras including specials on the visual effects of the film, scoring the film, images on the set from photographer Kim Gottlieb-Walker, an interview with actor Joe Unger, an interview with film maker David DeCoteau, a return to the escape from New York featurette, theatrical trailers and photo galleries, and the long thought lost opening sequence of the robbery that landed Snake in trouble to begin with. Some of these items were on previous offerings of the film but some are new as well.

I have several copies of this film in my collection starting with the first DVD release. I later added the updated extras copy. Now I’ve added this one and I’m glad I did. It’s as complete a version as we’re going to get at present. On top of that, Shout/Scream Factory has once more outdone themselves by creating a reversible jacket sleeve that offers original artwork or specially made collector’s edition art. As is always the case, they’ve outdone themselves. If you’re a fan of the film you’ll want to add this one to your collection. If not or if you’ve never seen the movie, it needs to become a part of your collection. It’s just that good. A movie that I have no problem pulling out once a year and enjoying it with every viewing.

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A MOST VIOLENT YEAR: SUBTLE AND DEADLY

If you’re not a fan of violent films don’t let the title of this one scare you away. There is actually very little violence in A MOST VIOLENT YEAR, even though it concerns the potential rising of a gangster boss. What the title refers to is the year 1981, considered statistically to be the most violent year in the recent history of New York City.

What the movie actually involves is the story of Abel Morales (Oscar Isaac), an immigrant who has worked his way to the top of a heating oil business. While he did work his way up he later bought the business from his boss as well as wed his daughter Anna (Jessica Chastain). Successful in his area, he now wants to expand and to help do that he’s attempting to purchase land next door to his operation. With this riverfront location, he can import cheaper oil and take on his competitors. Having placed a down payment using everything he owns as collateral, he now has to make good on the balance within a few days.

But someone doesn’t want to see that happen. Someone has set in motion several problems that will keep Abel from achieving his dreams. As Abel tries to do things on the straight and narrow, he finds it more difficult to work that way in this city than he thought. It begins with the hijacking of his trucks, the first one we see driven by Julian (Elyes Gabel of SCORPION fame). Beaten and hospitalized, the theft takes its toll on Julian. On top of this, a local DA (David Oyelowo) is investigating the company books. While Abel is certain there are no problems, Anna isn’t quite to optimistic and wants to hang on to them as long as possible to go over them.

While his father-in-law once delved into the world of organized crime, Abel wants to steer clear of them at all costs. But with each new roadblock placed in front of him the temptation to do so lingers. Harassed at home by the DA, more trucks stolen and with no one to turn to when the bank who pledged to loan him the money to purchase the land next door backs out, Abel must find a way to fight off those who stand in his way of success without digging a hole from which he can never escape.

The movie plays out like many of the gangster films from the seventies and eighties and has been compared to the movies made by Sidney Lumet. This is actually a great description of the style and feel of the movie. Lumet was known to capture the feel, the heart and soul of what the seedier sides of NYC were like while at the same time showing a love for the city as well. This film does that in spades. Put side by side you might notice the difference, but you would also recognize the similarities as well.

More so than the look of the film is the combination of screenwriting and acting that make this film pop. Isaac turns in a fantastic performance here often reminding at least this viewer of the young Al Pacino in THE GODFATHER, perhaps one of the best performances in screen history. Here he exudes the successful appearance of a business owner in high priced suits and camel hair coat. His attitude is one of slowly simmering anger that almost never boils over. This subdued façade that his character puts on makes him feel all the more dangerous.

Chastain also turns in a great performance. Her character moves from one emotion to the other, at first being the supportive wife and then flipping over to a more manipulative player in the events that take place. She wants what is best for her family, her husband, and is willing to do almost anything to insure that this happens. As with Isaac, her performance is subtle and suggestive, with an underlying sense of danger at her core. Combine these two performances and you have a married couple that will do whatever it takes to become successful.

The movie received plenty of praise when released but seems to have fallen under the radar of most movie theaters. I don’t think it even played in any of the local main theaters here where I live. That’s sad because far too often I find the newest blockbuster playing on 5 of the 20 theaters in the local megaplex. And with 3 movies like that it limits the number of different films playing so we miss out on many great movies that way. Thank goodness we can make up for it via DVD.

The movie meanders along at a steady pace and features less action than one would expect with a title like this. But don’t let that fool you. What you get is a complete story that holds your interest from start to finish. It is definitely worth watching.

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MANNY: LIFE AND TIMES OF A LEGEND

I’ve never been a huge boxing fan but I do appreciate the skill that it takes and that many don’t recognize in the sport. It’s not a case of two men beating the hell out of each other but of two combatants at peak physical form judging their opponent, strategizing about how the other man will move and swing, developing the stamina to remain on your feet for an entire fight and learning to be fast enough to hit and fast enough to dodge when the need arises.

There have been a number of fighters that have captured the imaginations and love of those who follow the sport, among them Muhammed Ali, Sugar Ray Leonard and Mike Tyson. But of late the name that comes around more often than not is Manny Pacquiao. The eight division champion’s story fits the mold of many a Hollywood film, but it’s true. And as he nears what many consider the ultimate fight of his career with Floyd Mayweather in May, this documentary of his life arrives in a timely fashion.

The movie opens with more current events and fights but soon takes us back to where it all began. As a young boy in the Philippines, Pacquiao grew up dirt poor in a shack with several brothers, sisters and his mother. At an early age he set out to help take care of his family by helping pull in fish nets along the beach near where he lived. Sometimes going hungry, he left for the city to find a way to take care of his family and he began his boxing career at 16, lying about his age since you had to be 18 for a license.

His rise to fame and stardom may have begun in the Philippines but it didn’t take long for him to get noticed. As the options for opponents dwindled down to none, he soon found his way to the United States. Finding a trainer and a manager he was on his way to his first championship. But just like those Hollywood movies about the sport, it actually is filled with managers and the like who will take advantage of their fighters and he had that happen as well.

Through it all he continues towards the top. He continued to fight his way to the championship and became a huge money making industry. Through it all he tried to give back to his homeland. He also paid his respect to God. At least on the surface. While the movie doesn’t dwell on it, the mention of cheating on his wife, drinking too much and gambling all occur. But eventually that changes too with a recommitment to both his God, his family and his country.

Don’t worry, this is not a spoiler situation where everything about the movie is revealed in a few paragraphs. There is more depth to the story to be taken advantage of by watching this film. It holds your interest from start to finish and offers and inspiring tale of the rise of someone to the highest peak who began with nothing. It shows the ups and down of the boxing business through the eyes of one of the most famous boxers living today.

Before watching this film I had only heard the name of the man. Now I know more about the character and what brought him to where he is today. It will inspire you enough that when his next bout comes you’ll most likely be in his corner and hoping he succeeds with another win. In terms of documentaries the movie offers a well-paced, well edited film that never gets boring.

MANNY is a movie that will entertain and inform the casual viewer and allow them to see what went into the making of this boxing champ. If you’re a fan of the sport it will be a movie that you will want to add to your collection, making it a permanent addition. If you’re a fan of all sports you’ll want to check it out. And if you’ve never heard of Manny Pacquiao now is your chance to learn about the man behind the name.

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