The Escapist

2008, Drama, 1h 43m

45 Reviews 10,000+ Ratings

critics consensus

A tense, smart prison break movie, The Escapist is a sharp debut from director Rupert Wyatt. Read critic reviews

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The Escapist Photos

(L-R) Brian Cox as Frank Perry and Damian Lewis as Rizza in "The Escapist."

Joseph Fiennes as Lenny Drake in "The Escapist."

(L-R) Joseph Fiennes as Lenny Drake, Brian Cox as Frank Perry, and Liam Cunningham as Brodie in "The Escapist."

Brian Cox as Frank Perry in "The Escapist."

Damian Lewis as Rizza in "The Escapist."

(L-R) Joseph Fiennes as Lenny Drake, Brian Cox as Frank Perry, Liam Cunningham as Brodie and Seu Jorge as Viv Batista in "The Escapist."

The Escapist (2008)

View All Photos (28)

Movie Info

Fourteen years into a life sentence, convict Frank Perry (Brian Cox) plans to escape from prison after learning his daughter nearly overdosed from heroin. With the help of fellow prisoners, Frank begins digging tunnels that will lead to the outside world. As Frank and his friends dig, he fends off Rizza (Damian Lewis), a fearsome gangster who runs the inside of the prison, and his brother, Tony (Steven Mackintosh), a junkie with designs on Frank's cellmate, Lacey (Dominic Cooper).

Genre:

Drama
Original Language:

English
Director:

Rupert Wyatt
Producer:

Adrian Sturges, Alan Moloney
Writer:

Rupert Wyatt, Daniel Hardy
Release Date (Theaters):

Apr 1, 2009 limited
Release Date (Streaming):

Jan 26, 2010
Box Office (Gross USA):

$13.0K
Runtime:

1h 43m
Distributor:

IFC Films

Cast & Crew

Brian Cox
Frank

Joseph Fiennes
Lenny

Liam Cunningham
Brodie

Seu Jorge
Viv Batista

Dominic Cooper
Lacey

Steven Mackintosh
Tony

Show all Cast & Crew

News & Interviews for The Escapist

Critics Consensus: Fast & Furious Is Running On Empty

Critic Reviews for The Escapist

All Critics (45) | Top Critics (17) | Fresh (29) | Rotten (16)

Full Review… Joshua Rothkopf Time Out

Full Review… David Stratton At the Movies (Australia)

Full Review… Paul Byrnes Sydney Morning Herald

Full Review… Ben Mankiewicz At the Movies

Full Review… Ben Lyons At the Movies

Full Review… Joe Neumaier New York Daily News

Full Review… David Harris Spectrum Culture

Full Review… Kaleem Aftab The National (UAE)

Full Review… Don Groves sbs.com.au

Full Review… Drew McWeeny HitFix

Full Review… Julie Rigg MovieTime, ABC Radio National

Full Review… Simon Weaving Screenwize

View All Critic Reviews (45)

Audience Reviews for The Escapist

Oct 29, 2014

For those who have seen more than two or three prison break movies in their lives, this mediocre film won't offer anything new even if it believes to be doing something pretty smart and profound with an annoying flashback structure and a silly Ambrose Bierce twist in the end.

Carlos M Super Reviewer
Nov 30, 2012

Set in a British prison, filled with all the usual convict suspects (including Damien Lewis and Steven Mackintosh woefully miscast as sadistic underlords!), this is unusual primarily for Brian Cox being the lead (which he fills capably), the setting, and the twist at the end (borrowed from a famous Ambrose Bierce tale). Nothing unusual then, but well done for the main part.

Kevin M. W Super Reviewer
Jul 04, 2012

really well made prison escape movie full of interesting characters. Brian Cox is the driving force behind the film and offers a performance that is criminally underrated. great direction if only a few to many unnecessary flashbacks. Wyatt is a filmmaker to watch for the future.

Brendan N Super Reviewer
May 07, 2012

A very well executed, original, and ambitious prison drama, full of great performances all around, especially from the criminally underrated Brian Cox. The prison atmosphere is captured well, dark, gritty, and depressing; the film did a great job conveying a sense of realism. The filmmakers do perhaps become too self indulgent at the end, but the middle 2/3 are so strong, that the ending is more of an interesting misfire than something that really takes away, significantly, from the film. Above all, it's tense throughout, smart, and done well. 4/5 Stars

Jeffrey M Super Reviewer

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