Escape

Honst review: It wasn't too bad. I saw the ratings before watching, but took a chance anyway. I lived in Thailand for a year, so that was my reason for giving it a chance. It was nostaligic for me to see the gorgeous locations from where I once visited. The plot is predictable, but acting is decent enough to enjoy it.

It's worth giving it a watch if you want to see or learn about Thailand, or if like the acting of Howell and/or Rhys-Davies.

I must say in all honesty, the plot is not a true depiction of the Thai people or the Thai culture. Of course it's a Hollywood movie, so the plot is meant to be far-fetched. Give it a watch and see what I mean.

Anora Lyn playing Kim Jordan was not impressive. She did not convey the sense of passion and intimacy required in this role. As a doctor interacting with patients, a wife concerned about her husband and as a mother of a dead child, I did not feel the connections. There were many opportunities to immerse the viewer into the plot. The result was to defocus the viewer on the subplots of the religious elements and struggles of the captain as the main theme. This role requires the talent of a seasoned actress such as Meryl Streep. The complexity of the role was very challenging and perhaps better directing would have made a difference.

This movie held my attention. I was browsing netflix looking for a decent movie for a quiet afternoon. It seems as if not too many people have seen this movie and it is worth watching. Anora Lyn was a bit lifeless at times and she could have shown some emotion as a woman just losing her child. C Thomas Howel as Paul was much better. The move opens with John Rhys Davis as Malcom being kidnapped. I thought he did a nice job of bringing out the character.

The religious aspect took me by surprise but it was not overdone. There was a nice bit of action that added to the total effect of the movie. All in all a good movie. In spite of the bland acting of Anora Lyn as Joanne.

Whilst in possession of a film crew and at least two good Western actors and three good 'bad guy' local actors, all on location in Thailand, why didn't the director make a 1st rate movie about pirates, human trafficking and kidnapping, all topically relevant themes? My guess is that having turned up on location and finding a lead actress who seems she couldn't be bothered with it all and possibly on a limited budget and time scale, he just did the best he could and went home. This is no 'Apocalypse Now', it's just about 'adequate' as very light entertainment, possibly with financial backing from a 'faith group' as the movie's over done, religious message would suggest. What I find so disappointing, is that this could have been a great movie given the location and topic. In my view, it's such a pity that a great opportunity was missed.

While it could have been better and wasn't a great movie, Escape does have a fair bit to like. Escape's far from perfect, it does raise some very intriguing questions that did encourage some thought but too many of these questions are not resolved very adequately. The spiritual/Christianity aspect on the most part is thought-provoking and powerful but it can be laid on a little too thick as well sometimes, not to the extent that it was religious propaganda but it was a touch heavy-handed in places. The story mostly works but does have a rather predictable and cliché-ridden ending and can be too reliant on coincidence. And Anora Lynn's performance is stiff and lacking in emotion.

In the acting stakes however, John Rhys Davies and C. Thomas Howell do fare far better, Davies is lots of fun and does bring a dignity to his part while Howell gives one of, in recent years that is, his better performances(his character's anguish comes across very movingly) in one of his better movies(again in recent years, after doing a lot of very bad movies that made him look like a bad actor when actually he has shown he can be good when with good material). The villains are quite scary too. The scenery is absolutely gorgeous and complimented by photography that looks like a lot of effort went into it. The music is stirring not once losing pulse or overbearing the drama or the dialogue. The dialogue is audible at least and is actually worth listening to, it does make sense and does stir some suspense and emotion without getting too overwrought. The story is imperfect of course but it had a good idea to start with and at its best it's emotionally charged and suspenseful with appropriately measured pacing and decent action. The direction is efficient enough and the characters while not fully developed are likable enough as well. The message is well-intended and while not exactly subtle it does make its point.

In conclusion, Escape does fall short of being great but it held my interest and was a decent movie. 6/10 Bethany Cox