There are a lot of films that I’ve watched once and really enjoyed but for one reason or another never watched again despite wanting to.
For this reason I’ve started compiling a list of these movies as and when one pops into my head.
Once such film is a great thriller with a surprising cast…
No Escape (2015)
I watched this when it first came out and really enjoyed it. Unfortunately Mrs Screen Room Movie Blog thought it was a “one watcher” and dismisses a rewatch every time I bring it up.
Since I’ve been working lates this week (I get a bit more “me time” on that shift) last night I decided to give it another watch.
If you haven’t seen it, it’s a tense action/thriller starring Owen Wilson (Wedding Crashers), Lake Bell (Man Up) and Pierce Brosnan (GoldenEye) among others.
This is what it’s about according to the internet:
American businessman Jack Dwyer (Wilson), wife Annie (Bell) and their two young daughters arrive in Southeast Asia to begin a new life. As his company plans to improve the region's water quality, the family quickly learns that they're right in the middle of a political uprising. Armed rebels attack the hotel where they're staying, ordered to kill any foreigners that they encounter. Amid utter chaos, Jack must find a way to save himself and his loved ones from the violence erupting all around them.
This is yet another underrated film that seems to have escaped (pun intended) a lot of people.
It’s one of the most tense thrillers I’ve seen in recent years and it does a really effective job of conveying the family’s desperation and fear.
You could be forgiven for any confusion regarding the casting of Owen Wilson in a serious movie like this, not to mention Lake Bell who also tends to favour comedy, but believe me they’re excellent! So good in fact that you have to wonder why they don’t do more dramatic roles. I guess it’s like the saying goes, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”.
Pearce Brosnan is a welcome addition to the cast too, playing a character that could quite easily be related to, or inspired by his former stint as Bond. His presents adds a certain credibility to a film that some might otherwise avoid because of the two lead “comedy actors”.
Watching this movie last night though it occurred to me how easily it could be picked apart and turned into a political correctness nightmare. Sure, some of it’s questionable like the way it portrays South East Asians as merciless killers, and perhaps the fact that Lake Bell’s character, Annie is waiting for Owen Wilson’s character, Jack to save the day through most of the movie rather than take the “strong, independent woman” stance, but it works. And, IT’S A MOVIE!!
Unfortunately, people feel the need to question and criticise everything these days, regardless of whether or not it’s necessary. Sadly this movie was the victim of some of that. If you’re not one of those people who gets offended by ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING though you’ll probably enjoy it.
It actually reminds me in a way of The Impossible (2012). They’re very different films but both are set in the same part of the world and are about a family’s intense struggle to survive (that’s another great film worth checking out if you haven’t already by the way).
If you haven’t seen this or it’s somehow passed you by unnoticed, I definitely recommend giving it a watch - especially if you like a gripping thriller that’ll have your heart racing right up to the end credits.
Seen it? Let me know your thoughts.
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