The Escapist

"The institution at the center of this film is a decaying old-school prison with heavy keys and paint flaking off the bars, and seemingly run by the ginger mafia. There’s no bullet-proof glass or high-tech surveillance here, just the same elements and familiar archetypes that made The Shawshank Redemption and even The Great Escape, well, great."

"Opening with a close-up of Brian Cox’s wonderfully craggy face and Leonard Cohen’s ‘The Partisan’ on the soundtrack, prison movie The Escapist promises much... It doesn’t quite deliver on that set-up, but deserves kudos for ambition and intensity."

"Shapes a standard prison-break drama into a metaphysical study of freedom and reparation."

"Not for all tastes, but if you ever wished that Guy Ritchie could re-capture his initial potential, The Escapist is a good fix."

"Grim and brutal prison drama's massive twist feels like a cop-out."

"Lusciously shot, and economical in the edit, i found by the closing credits I had rather enjoyed The Escapist."

"It makes for an unexpectedly welcome form of dramatic escape: the character study breaking free from a hoary old movie genre."

"All of this mayhem keeps us watching, but it would be hard to describe the experience as pleasurable."

"At last, a British crime movie that’s as good as its pitch sounds: Brian Cox trying to break out of prison. Do you need to know any more to want to see it?"

"This is a highly recommended thriller."