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Surfing a tsunami into a dystopian mall? Peak 90s action nonsense.
TMDB
59
IMDb
57
Rotten Tomatoes
57
Audience Score
39
Google
72
Watch

Escape from L.A. (1996)

campy apocalypseKurt Russell swaggerB-movie excess

Overview

AdventureActionScience FictionThriller

Into the 9.6-quaked Los Angeles of 2013 comes Snake Plissken. His job: wade through L.A.'s ruined landmarks to retrieve a doomsday device.

Flag of USUS
Content warning
martial artsearthquakesequelpost-apocalyptic futuredystopialos angeles, californiausa presidentanti heroprisonfrantic+4 more
fascism disguised as freedomcelebrity worship decayreluctant heroismAmerican decline

Standout Aspects

Practical Effects

That practical tsunami wave set piece — absurd, wet, magnificent.

Score

Carpenter's guitar-driven synths slap harder than the plot deserves.

Acting

Kurt Russell's permanent sneer carries this entire ridiculous enterprise.

Best for:Friends: Group roast night — the CGI aged like milk, drink every time Snake scowls.·Rewatch: Cult classic that rewards ironic appreciation and Carpenter synth appreciation.·Background: Chaos energy for cleaning your apartment — you'll look up for the basketball scene.
Heads up:Violence: Cartoonish gunplay, some body horror (Bruce Campbell's face-lift cult).·Sexual Content: Brief forced surgery nudity, campy dominatrix vibes throughout.
John Carpenter

Director

John Carpenter

ReleasedAug 9, 1996
Runtime1h 41m
StatusReleased

Vibe

Pacefast
Intensitymedium
Tonemixed
Feellight
Budget$50M·Revenue$42.3M
Paramount Pictures
Rysher Entertainment

Top Cast

Kurt Russell

Kurt Russell

Snake Plissken

Stacy Keach

Stacy Keach

Malloy

Steve Buscemi

Steve Buscemi

Eddie

A. J. Langer

A. J. Langer

Utopia

Bruce Campbell

Bruce Campbell

Surgeon General of Beverly Hills

Pam Grier

Pam Grier

Hershe Las Palamas

Peter Fonda

Peter Fonda

Pipeline

Georges Corraface

Georges Corraface

Cuervo Jones

Robert Carradine

Robert Carradine

Skinhead

Michelle Forbes

Michelle Forbes

Brazen

Valeria Golino

Valeria Golino

Taslima

Leland Orser

Leland Orser

Test Tube

Jeff Imada

Jeff Imada

Saigon Shadow

Al Leong

Al Leong

Hershe Gang Member

James Lew

James Lew

Hershe Gang Member

Ask about Escape from L.A.

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Deep Dive

Trivia, insights & behind the scenes

Trivia

Carpenter made this solely to reclaim copyright on Snake Plissken from the first film's producers. Petty king behavior.

Cultural

The 2013 setting and 'President for Life' satire hits weirdly harder post-2016 than intended — Carpenter's cynical Americana ages brutally well.

YouTube

Official Trailer

Official Trailer

Gallery(20 images)
Escape From ... Collection(2 films)
Escape from New York poster7.0

Escape from New York

1981

Escape from L.A. poster
Now Viewing

Escape from L.A.

1996

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