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Following a name change a months of production delays, the movie that finally teamed up Hollywood's
two biggest action stars was finally released nationwide on October 18, 2013. Produced on
a budget of $70-million by Swedish filmmaker Mikael Håfström, I can only hope this picture
does better than similar films these days. Ostensibly nothing more than a 115 minute
vehicle to get Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzegger on-screen in their first "true"
co-starring role together, this picture honestly accomplishes more than it needed to. Stallone
stars as a professional escape artist who intentionally incarcerates himself for months
a time... only so he can find weaknesses from within maximum security prisons, and report
back to his clients. The unlikely but intriguing premise begins with a cold-open showcasing
Stallone's unique talents in action... before he's kidnapped and sent to -- you guessed
it -- a supposedly escape-proof prison. It's inside this curiously designed, airplane-hangar-sized
prison that he meets and befriends Arnie, and seeing these two old action dinosaurs
duke it out is a true delight, especially when the former Governor chides, "You hit
like a vegetarian!". Never known for their acting chops, the two brawny men still do
a convincing job in the lead roles, and play off each other with ease. Jim Caviezel plays
a sharply-dressed, stereotypical *** warden, Sam Niel is briefly featured as the prison's
conflicted doctor, and Curtis '50 Cent' Jackson attempts to keep his acting career afloat
with a small supporting role as a wise-talking tech guru. Plot holes aplenty, things are
far more confusing and complicated than necessary, but individual sequences actually work really
well here, like Schwarzegger distracting guards by shooting in German so Stallone can slip
out of his solitary confinement cell undetected. From Sly's heavy punches, to Arnold's chain-gun
shooting spree, fans of the old-school action genre will definitely have fun with as the
picture hearkens back to iconic moments of yesteryear. The music, sound effects, and
visuals are hardly noteworthy, but Håfström's directing occasionally impressed; balancing
extreme close-ups with time-ramped wide-shots, and a frantic montage. Although it gets credit
for its original, non-sequel premise... if not for the big-name talent, this is a nothing
more than a leisurely paced action film with few surprises. But that said, I wouldn't mind
watching this again if I caught it on basic cable while flipping channels. "The Escape
Plan", "Shallow excitement for action fans."
Right to the rate-o-matic now... a SIX. For a film that was essentially thirty years in
the making, I was definitely hoping for more, but I still enjoyed the experience for what
it was, I thought it was GOOD.