Review of Escape from Tomorrow (2013) by Keith L — 30 Dec 2013

An ambitious, full-blown-crazy (some might say batshit insane) little film. There's some stunning photography of the Disney parks in here, and the fact that the filmmakers were able to pull off a movie that looks this competent without Disney's knowledge is kind of incredible.

Beyond that, though, the film is just so damn strange and weird that it's hard to actually enjoy beyond the surface level, "How'd they do that?" sort of thing. Additionally, the story is a pretty savage indictment of the Disney company, and while it's undoubtedly effective at being that, I just really can't get behind its central thesis, which is a variant on the old Disney parks critique that underneath the "manufactured" happiness at the parks is something far uglier and seedier.

As I said, I don't subscribe to that at all (though there are plenty who do), but I give the movie a lot of credit for attempting to pull off what they did, even if it doesn't entirely click together.

Plus, there's such a bonkers, go-for-broke sensibility to the proceedings that you can't help but be a little impressed by the audacity of the filmmakers.