Escape from New York

1981
R
1h 39m

IMDb RATING

7.1/10

162K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

1,558

Adrienne Barbeau, Donald Pleasence, and Kurt Russell in Escape from New York (1981)

In 1997, when the U.S. president crashes into Manhattan, now a giant maximum security prison, a convicted bank robber is sent in to rescue him.

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B-Action Dystopian Sci-Fi Urban Adventure Action Adventure Sci-Fi

In 1997, when the U.S. president crashes into Manhattan, now a giant maximum security prison, a convicted bank robber is sent in to rescue him.In 1997, when the U.S. president crashes into Manhattan, now a giant maximum security prison, a convicted bank robber is sent in to rescue him.In 1997, when the U.S. president crashes into Manhattan, now a giant maximum security prison, a convicted bank robber is sent in to rescue him.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.1/10

162K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

1,558

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 6 nominations

Videos4

Through the Lens: Defining Carpenteresque and Why It Belongs in the Dictionary

Photos230

222

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
Kurt Russell has stated that this is his favorite of all his films, and Snake Plissken is his favorite of his characters.

Goofs
During the sequence where Snake is being chased by the Crazies (and is about to shoot an oval pattern in a wall so he can break through), his eye patch shifts enough to reveal a perfectly good eye. This is commonly regarded as a mistake, but it is not; the novelization of the movie explains that Snake still has his left eye, but he wears the patch due to a paralyzed iris, making it extremely sensitive to light.

Quotes
Bob Hauk: You going to kill me, Snake?
Snake Plissken: Not now, I'm too tired.
[pause]
Snake Plissken: Maybe later.

Crazy credits
The Avco Embassy logo does not appear in this movie.

Alternate versions
Collector's edition laserdisc (during director commentary) shows cut scenes of high-tech bank robbery which led to Snake's conviction and eventual prison sentencing to New York.

Connections
Edited into The Needle (1988)

Soundtracks
Bandstand Boogie
Music by Charles Albertine
Courtesy of Cherio Corporation

User reviews438

Review

Featured review

SF action classic!

'Escape from New York' ties with 'Assault On Precinct 13' as my second favourite John Carpenter movie (#1 being 'The Thing'. Of course.) I find it hard to be objective about this movie. Like 'The Omega Man' you either love it or you don't. Kurt Russell rocks as Snake Plissken, a cross between Roger Zelazny's Hell Tanner and Clint Eastwood's Man With No Name. He is one cool dude. Spaghetti western favourite Lee Van Cleef is well cast as Snake's nemesis, and b-grade fave Tom Atkins ('Maniac Cop') and Carpenter semi-regular Charles Cyphers ('The Fog') are excellent as his sidekicks. The rest of the cast is equally impressive, and includes cult legend Harry Dean Stanton ('Repo Man'), veterans Ernest Borgnine ('The Wild Bunch') and Donald Pleasance ('Halloween'), soul singer Isaac Hayes, and the buxom Adrienne Barbeau ('Two Evil Eyes') to name a few. 'Escape from New York' is an SF action classic from an era when ideas and character were more important than big budget FX. Personally I'd take this over the Star Wars series any day of the week. Beware the sequel though, it's a major disappointment...