RE-UPLOAD - Escape From L.A (1996) - Retrospective / Review
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Escape From L.A - Retrospective / Review - originally published January 2013. Had to re-edit due to a copyright claim by INgrooves.
Get Escape from L.A on Bluray goo.gl/E8gnBP
Escape from L.A Soundtrack goo.gl/iDWfKd
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I would definitely go see a third movie. Only if Kurt plays Snake though. Even at his age, it would be badass.
Escape from Las Vegas
Snake Plisken's final run were his actions set up a new version of the U.S. with a heavy wild rest feel.
Well first one was escape from New York : a part of the city was a prison
Second was escape from LA : a part of the state is a prison
Well in the third one let's up the anti and it is called Escape from USA : the whole country is turned in to prison🤔😉
@@sannakarppinen4163 So a documentary then?
amen.....me too
escape from l.a so underrated & unappreciated. ive always wanted kurt russell to play snake again in Escape from earth
it is man. that final basket ball scene is just so great and then when Russell shuts down the system just as the President's daughter is about to be executed. I have not seen Escape from New York but this is just great.
l agree
An Old Man Plissken movie would be fucking awesome.
Yeah, like Metal Gear Solid 4
Carpenter made an 80’s movie in the 90’s. At the time, people weren’t appreciative of that style. I remember going to see it with my dad when I was 14. We both loved it.
As someone who never saw escape from New York, I find escape from LA to be a lot of easy, cheesy, popcorn fun 🤷♂️ far from perfect, but entertaining? Absolutely!
I like to think of Escape From LA. As a parody of Escape From New York
EFLA is a digital sequel to an analog original . Both low budget .
I love Escape from New York and L.A. John Carpenter is one of my favorite directors.
True story. I was a Substitute Teacher for a Gym class one day and they had a basketball court. It was a small class about 5 students and some were doing calisthenics (*sp?) but one guy wanted to play basketball. So as he’s practicing in the court he asks for a challenge. I tell him, “LA Rules?” He is intrigued and asks what the rules were. I give him the Snake Plissken basketball challenge (not telling him where it came from) and he’s excited to try it. It took him two attempts but he got it.
Escape from LA holds it's age very well and it's political satire has no equal. I don't understand why people panned this movie so badly.
agreed.
It’s because people can’t pick up on the satire
Robocop is a better satire.
@@gregbors8364 That is more like about companies and consumerism. This one is not.
@@Zodroo_Tint I love John Carpenter’s work, but this movie pales in comparison to Escape from New York and I remember feeling pretty let down when I saw it on opening night in a theater. As for satire, I think it’s a little too on-the-nose and I also believe Carpenter’s own “They Live” is much better in that regard. That all said, Bruce Campbell’s cameo in this is the high point of the movie IMO
Get Escape from L.A on Bluray goo.gl/E8gnBP
Escape from L.A Soundtrack goo.gl/iDWfKd
Originally published January 2013 but was claimed by INgrooves recently. This a company who rarely ever reads copyright disputes and just denies them so I've had to re-edit the review. The end trailer has been changed and I've made a few adjustments throughout the video for example I removed the Siskel and Ebert clip. Nothing has changed with the audio part of the review so don't get confused thinking it's a redux. its one of my early reviews and not one of my finest but I'd rather re-upload it then let INgrooves claim it.
Oliver Harper so sad ... I thoroughly enjoy all of these retrospectives. Keep it up and keep them coming.
Just gives me a reason to re-watch and re-like :)
Oliver Harper srsly mate - thank you so much for your reviews! great work
I've only ever received one copyright strike which I resolved. Don't get copyright claims confused with take down notices. It had nothing to do with using Siskel and Ebert clips.
I like the Siskel and Ebert parts, they're a concise but illustrative way to reflect general critical sentiment at the time.
I think the concept of Escape from New York works better as a satire. I guess if you are going in expecting a serious film like New York, you'll be disappointed. Yes, it's ridiculous and over the top. Story wise I find the idea of a US President becoming a theocrat dictator more interesting. Certain elements of this film have arguably come to pass in some form.
This one is, for the most part, the same thing as Escape from NY; some could argue that this was lazy from Carpenter. Well, it may be the case but... Personally, I think Escape from LA's ending is way better and for that reason alone, this is a film worth watching.
Granted the ending was pretty good, but I wouldn't go as far as saying on that alone is it worth watching.
Escape from New York aged better due to lack of CGI and animorphic wide screenshots looks just so much better. Escape from LA looks a bit more cheap especially with the framing but it's still fun movie
The thing I like about this film more than anything is that it basically is a parody of action films in general, and on that level it works.
a parody of its own parody of the concepts of a future reality as envisioned at the time...a meta-parody
It is a parady but not just a parody.
It plays it straight. The movie is ridiculous and yet it never breaks immersion.
It ends up being a better overall film than most of the garbage in the genre it paradies.
10/10
@@alext5497 for real I don’t know how people couldn’t tell that based on the trailer being over the top
What I would really love to see is a Snake Plissken origin movie. Set it decades before Escape from new York and Have it set during his time with special forces leading up to his life of crime. pretty much showing how he became the badass he is now. It would be like Snake Plissken: Year One.
I remember being disappointed seeing it for the first time, carbon copy of the first one, worse special effects, after the first one I was like, "was cool, but nothing spectacular, the sequel must look better as it was done later, with better technology". It wasn't, I almost hated it. But after all those years I LOVE IT!! And the surfing scene, from total garbage became my favorite. I see it almost as it's some freaking experimental animation movie :D It's so ridiculous it's a priceless gem. Still prefer the first one, but the second one has so many brilliant moments. And the ending :D I guess my biggest issue with watching both for the first time, I didn't get they were satires and pastiche.
And if they weren't meant this way, it's better to view them as such for the real appreciation :D
This film was very ahead of its time and with some of the political issues happening, it's ironic that this seemed to give us a heads up. Still think it is very underrated and love the soundtrack
at3479 God knows how many times I listen the soundtrack with my cousin :) greetings from South America
at3479 I especially love the Dukes Theme.
at3479 ... I don't think the movie got the near future right. I'd say it's far more likely that we're heading towards socialism than a theocracy.
Two consistencies throughout my life are:
1- The U.S. keeps moving to the left... regardless of who is president.
2- Yet people keep mistakenly thinking it's moving to the right.
Even with Trump in the White House, a supposed right wing megalomaniac (I'd say he's more of a populist in actuality) he just signed a spending bill that might as well be written by democrats.
And polling data, even among Christians, shows that people do not want a theocracy in this country. (Those tend to happen in the Middle East. Not in the Western countries.)
+Mr.Reality - Oh, fuck me, I didn't know Nostradamus had a TH-cam account. Mind telling me the winning lottery numbers, Mr. Fortune Teller? You seem pretty fucking confidant in your abilities.
Well, that didn't make much sense. Would you like to argue for a bit? I could go for a good argument, I have some time to kill until the water boils. Be my guest. Would you like to go first?
Bankok rules...
Draw!
That complete breakdown of the movie at the end of this video really gives a beginning to end sum up that I really respect. Thanks for this video, subscribing
it amazes me that this had a similar budget to independence day, that looked like an A grade Hollywood blockbuster - this always seemed like a cheap B grade movie
that is the charm of the movie. B grade production values with A grade idea. But did it have the budget of Independence ? Where did the money go ? In Russell's fee ?
Independence Day had 75 million in budget, this movie only had 50.
@@aeterna789"Only 50 million" Pleany of movies that look better with less. I love Carpenter but visually it's a bit cheap looking.
First r rated movie My dad rented for me ....from the " all video" mom and pop style VHS rental store near my house.. dad paid 1 dollar for 3 days rental and we watched it all 3 nights in a row during dinner ....man the good old days ...miss you dad
0:07 Down in the left corner Rutger Hauer, i will never forget his appearance in one of the all time high movies, the Hitcher (1986).
Pretty sure this movie was shot on stock made out of 100% sarcasm. It's a brilliant parody and I love it to death. =)
I was far from disappointed when I saw this for the first time,I was shocked at how amazing it was and how disappointing it is that we never got a third film,unless you count ghosts of mars
I think Snake's slipups are due to his long time out of the special forces, age and his desperation to complete his task. He needs to directly attack the leader since he can't waste too much time with his goons.
Well, I watched both movies at the movie theaters when both were released. There are many things I don't like about both movies, but you won't catch me turning off Escape from L.A. when it comes on the television.
I just re-watched it and it was still just as good, and I didn't even miss the At The Movie's segment.
I saw this one first so it was all new to me I saw it as a 8 year old in the 90's so I loved it
Michael O'Rafferty saw it at 7. Parents took me to watch it at the cinema when it came out
There is a sequel that is space based and it's called Lockout. The character is just not called Snake Plissken.
It's not a sequel in any way. The director's were fans of Escape from new york, that's all.
Ghosts of Mars may be what you're thinking of. That was supposed to be Escape from Earth starring Snake Plissken. But since Escape from LA bombed, it was reworked and became a different movie.
I love this movie, I don't care what anyone says. People these days are too concerned about bullshit things like special effects looking realistic. I care about an entertaining story and great characters. This movie has that.
For real! People act like there was never a test pilot phase for cgi.
Yeah who cares if a movie is well made. Rubbish story that appear to have been written by a ten year old. Bad special effects, terrible acting. Who gives a fuck, shit gets blown up, that's what matters.
You being entartained by jingling keys like a baby doesn't mean everyone else is to concerned about bullshit. Maybe it's just you who's a baby.
If you saw the first film, this "sequel" does not have great characters nor an entertaining story.
@@basquat76 Thanks for your rude yet hilarious comment. 😂😂😂
However I believe you mean to use "too" not "to" in this context.
@@W3S3333 Well this isn't really my language, so this whole to and too gets a bit confusing. I always just go with to.
The ending of the film was the best. Snake knows the game and decides that humanity needs to start again. Reboot so to speak. I though the film still had more potential and agree with most of your points. If Russel does another version I would go see it.
Why does Snake always need to rescue someone? Why can't he just be thrown in prison and the whole movie can be about trying to get out.
The only parts I disliked was the basketball sequence and the surfing part...everything else was golden right down to that awesome ending
fun fact about the basketball sequence.. Russell made all of the shots himself including the full court shot
the basketball sequence and the surfing were there for fun and intentionally over the top and cartoonishly silly in the logic department...and one of the reasons i like them so much...especially the surfing...classic
How do you not love the surfing scene. What is wrong with you.
Those scenes are the greatest besides the ending, like huhhh?!
I'm sorry I can tolerate certain schlock Escape from New York but L.A was just too much everything about those sequences were horrendous
great Review! Please do Assault on Precinct 13, would be really cool, fanbase is massive :)
Any plans to do a FreeJack (1992) Retrospective?
I loved that movie!
Totally forgot about it until I read your comment, I guess that'll be the next movie I watch.
I personally loved Escape from L.A. and find it to be more enjoyable than Escape from New York, but that's me and I do understand why some folks weren't happy with it. I remember when the trailers started coming out for it when I was like 10 and mom said that if I wanted to see L.A. that I'd have to watch New York first so we rented it on VHS, and I liked it but it didn't hold my attention, STILL I did go to Escape from L.A. wearing a purple tank top, camo pants (borrowed from my cousin) an eyepatch, and mom used her eyeliner to give me "scruff" basically I cosplayed to L.A. lol.
In Oliver's retrospective review
Of escape from new york
He says Ghosts of mars was supposed to be a 3rd movie
But was retooled for a different actor
Ice cube
Woulda been awesome to see Kurt in that role.
Shirley also did the soundtrack for Memiors of an Invinsable Man
This was the second film where I was sold a Bruce Campbell movie and I only found a momentary cameo (the first film was the abysmal Congo)
Despite your tearing apart of both movies, I still love them both.
Any plans for a Tango &Cash review in the future?
1996: no way LA will be like this.
2023: well i guess i was wrong.
Any plans to do a Stargate (1994) Retrospective?
Yes a review on Stargate will happen next month!
Excellent! :D
Charlie Sheen's Arrival should be one to check out :D
thanks i was looking for it, like this movie a lot and saw it before the original
Oliver, how about a R/R of Excalibur or The Abyss?
Thanks.
I was older when I first saw it and it was still fun despite the silliness.
My number #1 guilty pleasure movie!
love your channel :)
Great review. The Thing is the scariest movie i ever saw. Love my Kentucky boy, John Carpenter.
I would have loved to see a third movie with Kurt back as Snake but the big rumor going around is that the writers and producers want to do another one with his son Wyatt Russell as Snake, which would honest to God be the next best thing.
I'll be honest. I enjoyed them both. The Cyberpunk feel and Russell's solid performance made this feel like a transition.
It was basically a "hello world. Welcome to New York" message.
I know what John Carpenter was trying to go for in this movie, but I think there was a lot of missed potential. The idea of a movie set in a futuristic Wild West that is the ruins of Los Angelas was an awesome idea. I just think the parody concept didn't age too well. This movie was a product of its time. During the 1990s, creating self-aware parodies of movies that were popular in the prior decade was a trend in Hollywood. Some movies did it better than others. This was not one of those movies that did it better. I would have liked to see an actual sequel where Snake actually had learned lessons from his experiences in New York and had progressed as a character. Also, given that this was an older Snake Plissken, it would have added a lot to the movie to see how aging has affected him. The stakes would be higher since it would be a lot harder for him to do the things he used to do. In fact, if parody is what John Carpenter wanted, this movie should have been a straight up western film set in the future.
With that being said, there are things I like about the movie. All the characters are great even though some of them are parodies of characters in the previous movie. The costumes and set designs are great. Going with the future Wild West concept, Snake Plissken's new outfit does make him look like a cowboy from the future. It is also an outfit of its time (which isn't a bad thing). Black leather and long jackets was popular in the 90s (as we would later see in the Matrix) whereas his outfit from Escape From New York with the sleeveless shirt and the army fatigue would define the action heroes of the 80s. The way the sets are designed, this movie screams 'the future' a lot more than Escape From New York did. Finally, the soundtrack kicks a lot of ass, especially Snake Plissken's theme song which sounds like a modern rendition of a song from on old western.
I really loved the ending with the matches!
Oliver are u going to do carpenters last Three? Vampires, Ghosts of mars and the ward?
As a huge fan of Escape from New York I remember being disappointed in this movie. The bad CGI and the basketball scene still remains it's worse parts. However it's not a terrible film. I just had high expectations. I will say one scene I changed my mind about was the surfing scene, in the theater when I saw that I groaned, but now I love it. I will say Escape from LA had a great ending. I am curious about what took place in Cleveland.
Looking at the comments, I'm possibly one of the very few people who prefers Escape from LA over New York, due to me actually watching them in reverse order XD. Don't get me wrong, I knew LA was the sequel, it's just that for some reason in my country (South Africa), whenever they would start showing old movies again on TV, Escape from New York would rarely appear. But Escape from LA had more reruns.
Escape from NY was a classic serious gritty sci fi thriller ! Escape from LA took turned Snake into a comical character, almost cartoonish. Great way to wreck a sci fi icon.
Both movies are sci fi apocalyptic but also when u stop and think about it scarry too
Oliver what do you think about Robert Rodriguez directing the remake of Escape from New York?
John Carpenter seems happy, If Carpenter gives Rodriquez his approval then it's fine with me.
Very under rated movie. Why isnt this talked about more ? Great action Fcking cool Hero and awesome music !
God i Love this movie
It's definitely a flawed film which is a shame considering the character has so much potential. I discovered it pretty late and found it entertaining as a B-movie but felt there were some bizarre decisions that made it feel goofy in tone compared to the first. Escape from New York had a great look and atmosphere that made it feel more grounded and serious, whereas LA felt more like a parody.
Do you not remember 1996 cg? Pretty much on point for the time.
I love Escape from LA. Anytime it’s on TV I watch it. The basketball scene is great. The Dr’s harvesting body parts always freaked me out. And Steve Buscemi was awesome.
Just watched it this week. :D Your video that is.
Amazing
Are you planning on reviewing Stanley Kubrick films? I'd really like to hear your take on Eyes Wide Shut
I love it and don’t understand the bad criticism at all
I’ve watched it as a kid in the 90s for the first time and many times afterwards .. And I watched it again last night .. I still find it a very cool movie to watch 🙂
The more things change the more they stay the same 🙌🏻
can we have a retrospective review on the movie Speed starting Keanu reeves
I saw Escape From LA as a teen and I was a fan of stuff like Beavis & Butthead, Rob Zombie and wrestling so I found myself having fun with it. I watched Escape from New York much later. Definitely a good movie in it's own write but since I didn't see New York first, the similarities hurting the film worked the other way :P Much like how I enjoyed Evil Dead 2 before seeing the first but most people agree the second one was better.
Regardless, I would love to see Snake Plisskin again. Dont know how a recast would feel. Maybe an old man Snake or an entirely new person who comes across Russel (like Blade Runner 2049). I guess you could say it would rehash the sending someone against their will cliche but maybe a merc who has to find Snake and bring him back for judgement.
Bruce Campbell kind of looks like Robbie Rotten in this film
Snake Pliskin: The only man who can give Ripley 8 from...*that* movie... -._-. a run for her money in a one on one basketball game. lol
Snake is my favorite Anti Hero character he reminds me of a better Punisher I wish he continue in graphic Novels. I want them to Continue Snake in Continuity! Kurt Russel is one of my favorite actors in this is my favorite character he play its so Well if they do a remake do it Justice! if I wanted to be someone in is Demeanor because this is my favorite Anti Hero character! Escape from L.A. is my favorite from the First time.
I just saw it tonight. Of course, not as good as the first one, but it had some good moments as with the holograms
C’mon Oliver… you should know this: the CGI is kept to a Play Statio level deliberately! Snake pilots the submarine with a computer joystick! John was spoofing the fashion of the moment, foreseeing that it would have become the main thing to go for in the future, as unfortunately is today.
Even back when this came out, I thought that there's no way LA is big enough to house all the people encapsulated by that list of supposed undesirables but now It obviously wouldn't do the job. lol
I dont know, I think this one did the whole "apocaliptic" stuff alot better, except for the CGI of course
I dig this movie! Awesome soundtrack!
Yes! There are so many great bands on the soundtrack it’s not even funny
I love this movie
But I did see it before the NY one
is this the new Upload 2021 tv series?
I saw this before Escape From New York so the fact that it's basically a remake didn't bother me. The CGI was really bad even for it's time though.
Not a patch on the original but so enjoyable to watch kurt is great as always as snake
I HATED this movie when it came out, but I didn't get where they were going with it. This is the kind of movie I always hoped the SyFy channel movies would be. A silly, comic book style, action romp, with lots of crazy characters and situations. I actually quit like it now. It's a lot of fun.
It's a definitely a guilty pleasure for me, it's ridiculous and doesn't do much new but it's surprisingly enjoyable.
They should remake Escape From New York with Wyatt Russell.
Awesome
2:43 that shot looks like a 32X game or something.
I guess Trump really did go through with building the wall....
have you seen Machete Kills?
Dude, "Mr. Reality", I saw you trying to pick up kids at Chuck E. Cheese yesterday. Sit the fuck down and shut the fuck up
@@TheTrueCaptainAwesome you're very angry and so edgy I'm afraid I'll get a cut just reading your comments.
@Bradley Coates Exactly. It baffles me that people still think the country is moving towards the right and that conservatives are somehow the Authoritarians. These people can't see the truth while they're stuck in their echo chamber.
If he builds one around Cali, ill vote for him all over again.
lol the surfing scene closed the deal for me. escape from ny is one of my all time favs and had high hopes for part 2 but it was unwatchable imo.
I tried to view this video and it seemed like it got taken down by some hackfrauds. This was strange, considering I thought the industry response to your videos was generally pretty positive.
Please please please review "The Big Lebowski". I know it's not a block buster but it still makes me laugh now.
I love the Big Lebowski but never felt compelled to review it.
fair enough, I suppose it doesn't lend itself to a detailed review as not being a blockbuster type. I was always curious as to who dreamed up such a crazy film and how it was pitched to studio heads. Thanks for replying anyway. I'm loving your channel, so informative and interesting
Jesus. I didn't remember how bad the CGI was.
Kurt Russel? its all in the reflexes baby.
Nothing like escape from New York which is still awesome to this day.
Say what you want about this movie, but the ending just kicks so much ass.
"So what are you going to do?"
"Disappear."
Hey oilver!,when are you going to review spiderman 2?
Later this year mate.
I wish there is one more escape from movie. Here is an idea for ESCAPE FROM AMERICA with Old man Snake Plissken.
A few decades after the Earth shut it down in 2013. Snake Plissken is living his life in the mountains but the rebels found him and offered Snake to do one last mission. “The rebels” are the survivors post EMP apocalypse and refuse this tyrannical worse new version of America that is now the “New World” of America because not only they recovered first from the technological war than any other countries but they also developed new technologies as well, such as mind control technologies and advanced artificial intelligence.
So basically America runs the world now.
Snake after seeing that his past actions just made NWA stronger agreed to do the mission. But now he is old and slow but with a little help of a special nanotechnology suit thanks to the rebels that stole from the base of the NWA. Snake is able to recover some of his prime ability’s.
The mission? Infiltrate the headquarters and stole and retrieve the original prototype of mind control technologies by the NWA. Would Snake help them? Why the rebels want the mind control technologies?
MAKE IT HAPPEN!
Its a good movie
Honestly, and this may seem antithetical for writing or movie making, but the fact that the Escape from: _______ movies having effectively the same beats and story made them that much more enjoyable for me and works on a number of levels. Firstly, the world building is pretty solid as the U.S. is shown to be going down a downward slope as the first movie made part of a megacity, Manhatten, a maximum security prison where there are no guards to keep order and the island is sealed off to where the prison is run by literal mob rule and anarchy given the high rise in crime rate that called for condemning a city and future inmates to suffer there which might serve as a deterrent for crime and a means to remove "undesirables" from the nation and sort of lays the ground work for the sequel's story where something similar happens but its taken to an even greater extreme where people who aren't Christians, people who enjoy simple drugs like nicotine and alcohol, people who have sex for fun or even eating red meat are condemned, showing us an even worse America that actually sounds appealing to many Americans given the fact its supposed to be a "morally correct" nation that enforces their beliefs onto others by force. Secondly, both scenarios have Snake completing his mission and betraying the people who forced him into service as an expendable special forces soldier that was a hero in Leningrad prior to being disillusioned by the United States, their leadership and governance turning the nation from the "land of the free" into a hell hole of self righteousness where power is abused by the corrupt government. He gets the mission completed but sabotages the authorities by messing with their tape on nuclear fusion and replacing it with a cassette playing a song and embarrassing the President internationally in New York, then again by using a hologram to fuck with the President and the military police wanting to defend their borders from invasion and Snake sabotages the world and goes off to enjoy his life as a free man while he left humanity in darkness by using the satellite EMPs to ruin everything electronic in the world.
Thirdly, the first movie addressed the extreme response to extremely high crime rates, showing the justice system has failed the people and the Government's "solution" is cruel and unusual so we're seeing a decline in classic American values through the violation of constitutional rights in a city that was a major player in the revolutionary war and a founding state for the United States which should be seen as politically and historically sacred, only to become bastardized by modern American leadership. Then its followed up by the nation becoming ruled by a theocratic dictator which ironically shows an even greater decline in American values, using L.A. as the setting for the exiled citizens for not conforming to the strict laws that violate the 1st amendment right to religious beliefs and the pursuit of happiness of the constitution. America has been going from "the land of the free" and a nation promising equality and prosperity, which has been on the decline represented by the higher crime rates and then banishing people who would not fit in with the bible belt with the weird addition of the banning on red meat consumption. There are themes here and while the story and Snake's own situation are virtually the same, the backdrop for these events have been radically changing from the first movie handling an extreme situation by using an extreme answer but still a nation that is American, followed up by an America that is hijacked by religious fundamentalist, abandoning the old system where the President is apathetic to the people that died so he may live and displaying a lack of concern for citizens in New York because the people who died were mainly "criminals" and therefore not important like the Government officials are. Then he is followed up by a man who made himself apathetic to anyone who doesn't live in accordance to his religious or "moral" standards and even wants his daughter killed for not meeting his standards while also running away with a tool that could this new America that requires surveillance and fascistic enforcement of his laws onto the American people. Snake's story is the same but the story of America in this universe where it becomes a dystopia.
What makes it work is that we're already going to know what Snake's situation will be and that the outcome is Snake wins and gets the last laugh. But what they did in the sequel was they made things even more absurd and this series could work as an action comedy where the fun is in seeing how much sillier the same story can be told, while also observing how much America is shifting from the vision of the founding fathers into a nation barely even recognizable, which allows it to make commentary while having a running joke being that the plot is effectively the same from beginning to end while the background world serves as a sort of true story. If they were to continue the themes on how America is failing and continue the themes of the first 2 then a third movie should be "escape from Houston" where the background is that there is a second American civil war between two extremists factions where one is authoritarian right and the other authoritarian left and the one thing both sides agree on being that people who aren't choosing to join a side be condemned to an internment camp in Houston where the people are centrists, are more on the Libertarian side of the poli-sci chart or apolitical and kept there until a victor emerges and the party that wins gets to forcefully convert the people sent to Houston into party loyalists. This would reflect America's inability to make meaningful compromises or have 3rd parties given even a chance to speak because of the two party system. Snake gets called in because the two political leaders chose to meet in Houston to discuss peace terms and having a ceasefire while doing so, only for the two leaders to be captured and held hostage. The remaining political and military leaders know they can't just send in a joint task force which will likely kill each other before reaching the leaders where the one the remaining members support is saved while the other is killed, so who else would they call on but the apathetic Snake who doesn't like either side but will do his assignment after being told his life is on the line. Snake is given a device on him where a small nuclear bomb will go off if he doesn't save the leaders before his deadline. Snake infiltrates Houston, which has formed a micronation that is composed of liberals/progressives that want incremental improvements, conservatives who believe in the values of the older America, Centrists, apolitical people, and then libertarians who range between green and yellow with a moderate leader this micronation and wants all of Texas for their new nation to thrive and prosper, they hear about Snake and intend to capture hi m alive so he could train their people to fight but Snake knows he cannot risk capture or else the nuke goes off. He meets a girl at the start, she gets killed after helping him out briefly (like in the other movies), Snake encounters an old acquaintance who did him dirty and owes him a favor he cashes in on there to complete his objective (again, like in the movies), Snake encounters the militia and the micronation leader and then they play a game of cards or ping pong that Snake wins narrowly with the agreed outcome being that he either joins their micronation if he loses and gets the Civil War leaders back. A fight ensues, followed by a chase where Snake drives either a stolen smart car with the two leaders struggling to use most of the small seat for themselves during the chase out of the micronation, or using a pickup truck where he goes mudding to escape. Snake is chased by people who aren't listening to the Houston Commune's president who is ordering them to stop. Snake gets back in time to disarm the nuke. His betrayal is giving the people who sent him copies of surveillance footage of the two leaders arguing and the reason they started the civil war was because Russia supported one group while China supported the other, causing the leaders Snake just saved to be executed for betraying their parties and the interests of America in favor of appeasing a foreign power and the ceasefire ends, Snake's revenge is one the Houston Internment Camp's president helped him out with and he walks away as the civil war rages on. Somewhere in the sequence Snake could say something like "Left....Right.... Thats a pattern for pointless marching." or something along those lines where he chides the people who pressed him into service by stating their war is pointless because its going to end the same no matter the victor because the only thing different about them is the rhetoric. He does his whole "call me Snake/The names Plisskin" bit, roll credits.
And them bam, we have a movie series where the joke is that the true story is actually going on behind the scenes that lead up to Snake being pressed into service against his will and the outcome is him sabotaging the people who hired him because they suck.
I'd like to see a continuation of the world turned off, kind of how the tv show 'Revolution' did, that show had a very good concept but it just didn't seem to go the right direction.
I thought LA was satisfying. Saw it before NY. The scene that throws off the whole movie is the basketball scene because it is directly in the middle
I do wonder what happened to John Carpenter in the 90s.....Every one of his 80s movies is quality, and each one has it's unique vibe - so it wasn't like he only excelled at doing the one thing.
Hope they make Escape From Bremerton .