Arnold and Sly together at last in ‘Escape Plan’

  • By Robert Horton Herald Movie Critic
  • Thursday, October 17, 2013 7:53am
  • LifeGo-See-Do

This time it won’t be just ’80s nostalgia fueling ticket sales. Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger have gotten themselves into a decent 21st-century movie.

Not a minute too soon, as recent solo vehicles “Bullet to the Head” and “The Last Stand” tanked badly earlier this year. This team effort is called “Escape Plan,” a straight-ahead prison picture that lets the two stars do their thing.

Stallone is a jailhouse escape specialist — yes, that’s his business — in consultation with prison systems about making their facilities stronger. But when he is placed in a fearsome secret prison called the Tomb, he’s cut off from his usual support system. It seems somebody wants him out of the business.

Big Arnie is already in the joint and the two guys join forces. A handful of nicely turned revelations are spaced out along the way, and the warden (cold-eyed Jim Caviezel in quietly depraved form) is a suitably nasty antagonist.

The two stars don’t so much leap into action as hobble into the frame, but they do generate some effective banter.

A goateed Schwarzenegger looks good and brings a twinkle to most of his scenes; he even gets an extended pretend-freakout that lets him spout dialogue in his native German. (This is a much better comeback vehicle for the former governor than “The Last Stand,” it turns out.)

Whatever Stallone has done to alter his face and body has not served him well. Everything about him is overdeveloped, with the possible exception of a sense of irony — he’s like a bull, forging straight ahead through multiple beatings and questionable dialogue.

Vincent D’Onofrio and Amy Ryan contribute useful character bits, while Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson rushes through his dialogue as though thinking about his next album.

Swedish filmmaker Mikael Hafstrom (“The Rite”) whips up a few successful chase scenes, and despite the preposterous nature of some of the plot turns, he brings the whole thing to a satisfactory conclusion.

There’s something almost heartwarming about seeing the two macho stars line up for a round of gut-punches and head-banging.

And Hafstrom goes into affectionate slow motion when Schwarzenegger finds himself in proximity to a machine gun. As far as this movie is concerned, that’s like Picasso finding his paintbrushes after a long layoff.

“Escape Plan” (2½ stars)

Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger team up for a prison picture—and the good news is, it’s a decent action flick. We’ve got a cruel warden (Jim Caviezel) and a few nice plot revelations, plus the two ’80s stars doing their trademark thing. Big Arnie comes off especially well in this one.

Rated: R for violence, language.

Showing: Cinebarre, Everett Stadium, Galaxy Monroe, Marysville, Stanwood, Pacific Place, Thornton Place, Woodinville, Cascade Mall, Oak Harbor.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Brandon Hailey of Cytrus, center, plays the saxophone during a headlining show at Madam Lou’s on Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 in Seattle, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Lynnwood-based funk octet Cytrus has the juice

Resilience and brotherhood take center stage with ‘friends-first’ band.

FILE - In this April 11, 2014 file photo, Neko Case performs at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. Fire investigators are looking for the cause of a fire on Monday, Sept. 18, 2017, that heavily damaged Case’s 225-year-old Vermont home. There were no injuries, though a barn was destroyed. It took firefighters two hours to extinguish the blaze. (Photo by Scott Roth/Invision/AP, File)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Singer-songwriter Neko Case, an indie music icon from Tacoma, performs Sunday in Edmonds.

Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli
Tangier’s market boasts piles of fruits, veggies, and olives, countless varieties of bread, and nonperishables, like clothing and electronics.
Rick Steves on the cultural kaleidoscope of Tangier in Morocco

Walking through the city, I think to myself, “How could anyone be in southern Spain — so close — and not hop over to experience this wonderland?”

chris elliott.
Vrbo promised to cover her rental bill in Hawaii, so why won’t it?

When Cheryl Mander’s Vrbo rental in Hawaii is uninhabitable, the rental platform agrees to cover her new accommodations. But then it backs out. What happened?

The Moonlight Swing Orchestra will play classic sounds of the Big Band Era on April 21 in Everett. (submitted photo)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Relive the Big Band Era at the Port Gardner Music Society’s final concert of the season in Everett.

2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD (Honda)
2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD

Honda cedes big boy pickup trucks to the likes of Ford, Dodge… Continue reading

Would you want to give something as elaborate as this a name as mundane as “bread box”? A French Provincial piece practically demands the French name panetiere.
A panetiere isn’t your modern bread box. It’s a treasure of French culture

This elaborately carved French antique may be old, but it’s still capable of keeping its leavened contents perfectly fresh.

(Judy Newton / Great Plant Picks)
Great Plant Pick: Mouse plant

What: Arisarum proboscideum, also known as mouse plant, is an herbaceous woodland… Continue reading

Bright green Japanese maple leaves are illuminated by spring sunlight. (Getty Images)
Confessions of a ‘plantophile’: I’m a bit of a junky for Japanese maples

In fact, my addiction to these glorious, all-season specimens seems to be contagious. Fortunately, there’s no known cure.

2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited (Hyundai)
2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited

The 2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited is a sporty, all-electric, all-wheel drive sedan that will quickly win your heart.

The 2024 Dodge Hornet R/T hybrid’s face has the twin red lines signifying the brand’s focus on performance. (Dodge)
2024 Hornet R/T is first electrified performance vehicle from Dodge

The all-new compact SUV travels 32 miles on pure electric power, and up to 360 miles in hybrid mode.

Don’t blow a bundle on glass supposedly made by the Henry William Stiegel

Why? Faked signatures, reused molds and imitated styles can make it unclear who actually made any given piece of glass.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.