Review of No Escape (2015) by Ryan A — 31 Aug 2015

I really enjoyed this, and was gripped from the start. There's a sort of "dated" feel to its beginning, harking back to thrillers from the late 80s and 90s, which is in keeping with the so-behind-the-times feeling of the Nameless Country portrayed. Coming from a Third World country myself, in which scenes of violence depicted here are not far from the truth of some of its history, the movie sets a tone that, though seemingly extreme, is not unbelievable. I know many will disagree with me, and that's fine. I can only speak from my experience.

Wilson brings his trademark humour which, although worth a good chuckle here and there, is not really fitting for a movie whose content is as serious as this. People in the audience laughed - as did I, because the humour, when delivered, was delivered well. But again, not right for this movie - which shows (and hints at) pretty gruesome deaths pretty much all the way through. Lake Bell, Pierce Brosnan, and the young girls playing Wilson and Bell's daughters all do a good job. I quite enjoyed Brosnan's character for a number of reasons, but if I shared them, they would be plot spoilers.

As a father, and therefore as I tend to do, I put myself in Wilson's shoes, wondering what I would do to protect my wife and 2 girls. Perhaps that's why I enjoyed this film so much - the emotion amidst the turmoil.

Other critics speak of one-dimensional characters too often, I believe. In some movies, a bad guy is just a Bad Guy. The Good Guy and his family are just A Family. We don't have time to delve deep into their past. So I disagree with the claim by some that these characters are one-dimensional. The elements required for this kind of story are all there, making you like and hate certain characters alike. Plus, history *is* actually given to help explain certain motivations and emotions. So, again, the one-dimensional thing just doesn't add up. In the space of 24 hours, all of us could seem one-dimensional to an on-looker.

Here, we catch a glimpse into more or less a day of hell for one family in the midst of a horrifying uprising in a Third (or, as the movie corrects - Fourth) World country. Sitting comfortably on a First World sofas, some might be tempted to call this racist and so on, and that's anyone's choice. The fact is, not only is this sort of thing possible - it actually happens to varying degrees (i.e., a group of "terrorists" goes on a rampage, killing innocent people for whatever reason).

All in all, I highly recommend this movie.