Escape from New York
1981 · Movie · R · 99 min · ★ 7.0 · 81% critics
In a near-future where Manhattan has been sealed off as a massive prison, the President crash-lands inside the walls and is taken by the inmates. With the clock ticking, a hardened former soldier is sent in alone on a high-risk rescue mission, forced to navigate a brutal, lawless city to get the President out alive.
Also known as John Carpenter's Escape from New York · Escape from New York City
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Details
- Years
- 1981
- Release date
- 1981-05-23
- Language
- English
- Rated
- R
- Runtime
- 99 min
- Critic score
- 81/100
- TMDB rating
- 7.0/10 (3,526 votes)
- Box office
- $25,274,965
- Budget
- $6,000,000
About
You’ll likely enjoy this if you want a dark, scrappy dystopian adventure with a tough anti-hero and strong atmosphere over nonstop thrills; Not for you if you need constant high-intensity action or a deep plot like RoboCop or The Terminator.
Pros: grim, moody atmosphere; cool anti-hero lead; memorable synth theme | Cons: thin story; uneven tension; limited action payoff
Themes
- new york city
- taxi
- martial arts
- street gang
- usa president
- war veteran
- kidnapping
- hostage
- liberation of prisoners
- gangster
- dystopia
- anti hero
- +11 more
Cast & crew
Kurt Russell
as Snake Plissken
Lee Van Cleef
as Police Commissioner Bob Hauk
Ernest Borgnine
as Cabbie
Donald Pleasence
as President of the United States
Isaac Hayes
as The Duke of New York
Season Hubley
as Girl in Chock Full O'Nuts
Harry Dean Stanton
as Harold 'Brain' Helman
Adrienne Barbeau
as Maggie
Tom Atkins
as Rehme
Charles Cyphers
as Secretary of State
Directed by John Carpenter