Writers: John Erick Dowdle, Drew Dowdle
Stars: Lake
Bell
Storyline:
When Jack (Owen Wilson) finds an opportunity to move to Southeast Asia to head his water manufacturing company's
new plant there, he immediately jumps at the opportunity and moves his family
there. When they get there; they seem to be having problems, the electronics
don't work and rarely any cars are seen in the streets. When he goes to the
market the next morning, he finds himself caught in the middle of a violent
rebellion headed by armed rebels executing foreigners. Jack must get back to
the hotel and with the help of a mysterious British "tourist" (Pierce
Brosnan), must get his family to the American Embassy in the midst of the chaos.
But is there any escape?
Details:
Official Sites: Official Facebook | Official site [Japan ]
Country: USA
Language: English
Release Date: 26 August 2015 (USA ) and more
Also Known As: The Coup and more
Filming Locations: Chiang
Mai , Thailand
User Reviews:
John Erick Dowdle's "No Escape" is a taut thriller,
nicely edited and strongly paced, resulting in a film that knows exactly how to
get your adrenaline up and your movie-going senses tingled. Dowdle has been a
strong force in the horror genre ever since his seldom-seen, largely unreleased
debut "The Poughkeepsie Tapes" came onto the scene in 2007. Since
then, Dowdle has proved his ability to direct claustrophobic thrillers such as "As
Above, So Below" and "Devil," solidifying his filmography as
dynamic and rounded, especially for a horror/thriller director.
"No Escape" is his most mainstream project to date,
with a bigger scale than his previous films and bigger stars as well. Set in
Southeast Asia, we focus on Jack (Owen Wilson), his wife Annie (Lake Bell ), and
their children Lucy and Breeze (Sterling Jerins and Claire Geare), who are
moving to Asia for Jack's new job. Not long
after being in the land, Jack's morning walk to get a newspaper results in him
racing back to his hotel, following an all-out war between law enforcement and
natives in the cluttered streets. Riots, looting, and inexplicable violence
break out in the streets and Jack and his family must find a way to Vietnam where
they can declare asylum. They seek out the help of Hammond (Pierce Brosnan, who
provides darkly comic relief in many scenes), a skilled survivalist who is seen
traveling on the plane with them to Asia, who assists in finding them temporary
places to stay amidst all the madness.
Assertions have flown over the alleged "racism" of
"No Escape"'s story, due to the negative portrayal of Asian natives
and the constant danger and sanctity of this white family being challenged, in
addition to being the prime concern, throughout the course of this picture. I
bring this up not to challenge the position, for it is somewhat valid, but how
come films like "Taken," which is operating on the same playing field
as this film, isn't as slammed as this film is? Was that picture just too
entertaining for the subtext to be noticed, or were we too distracted by Liam
Neeson in that film to really care?
"No Escape," however, can claim more than "Taken"
can as film because "No Escape"'s strengths come in the regard of its
editing and camera-work, two things I was worried about walking into this film.
Chaotic action films like these are ripe for sloppy aesthetics, which can, in
turn, ruin any ability to see the action, let alone really care about what is
happening to the characters. Dowdle and editor Elliot Greenberg are smart about
how they shoot and edit this film, never settling for anything other than shots
and editing tactics that allow for immersion and clear placement for the
audience. In addition, Greenberg's editing provides some elements of structural
pacing, which work to "No Escape"'s favor, especially during the more
chaotic scenes.
The only element that subtracts from what "No Escape"
does so uniformly well with its aesthetics is the convenience of the plot. Throughout
the film, characters are put in compromising positions, including one scene at
the end that comes so close to making this film great and almost entirely
amoral, but finds ways through miraculous scenarios to get them out of harm's
way in the nick of time. This ostensibly comes from writers John Erick and Drew
Dowdle's dueling desire to up the film's stakes but simultaneously back down
and not make things too drastic. For as heartless as some scenes of the film
can be, it would've only been fitting to see some of the more serious, morally
corrupt scenarios to follow through.
"No Escape" still works as a basic, fulfilling
film; a pulsating action film with various elements of a thriller directed by
someone with an evident list of ideas and edited by someone who understands the
value of pacing and crystal-clear editing.
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