Review of Escape from L.A. (1996) by Dathan R — 11 Oct 2012

As amusing as some of its notions may be, none are developed into sustained running jokes. Snake Plissken may have escaped from the Big Apple but he can't get out from under the wreckage of this franchise-killing sequel. Fifteen years after Escape From New York, Kurt Russell dons the eye-patch again as the gravel-throated cowboy noir badass. John Carpenter's lazy satire of '90s new morality ("no smoking, no drinking, no drugs, no women, no red meat"). A monumentally misconceived sequel, Escape from L. A. is the huge, shonky blemish on the magnificent history of John Carpenter and Kurt Russell. With fatally clunky satire and none of Escape From New York's seedy menace, the film utterly blunts Snake Plissken's edge. Neat cameos - Steve Buscemi, Peter Fonda, Bruce Campbell - liven things up, but by the time Snake surfs cinema's shoddiest CG wave, you'll wish you had patches over both eyes. Snake deserved better. Apart from a few good characters, this is really not up to scratch in most departments especially the ludicrous plot.

VERDICT: "Not So Hot" - [Negative Reaction] These films are truly terrible films. They are not the worst things ever made, but they are definitely awful and should not be seen by anyone. (Films that are rated 1.5 or 2 stars).