Escape From L.A. Details

Working from the book by Richard Rashke, this is a compelling account of the escape from a Nazi death camp deep in the Polish countryside, concocted by a cabal of Jewish workers and Soviet soldiers. Over 250,000 million people died in the Sobibor gas chambers. In comparative terms, the fact that over 300 prisoners fled from this hellhole may seem slight. But their achievement remains one of the most audacious acts of courage in the entire Second World War. Alan Arkin is excellent as ringleader Leon Feldhendler, while Rutger Hauer and Joanna Pacula head a superb ensemble cast. But the key component is Jack Gold's directorial restraint and the film was deservedly rewarded with two Golden Globes.

No more than a weary rehash of Carpenter's Escape from New York; the plot has aged in the 15-year gap between the two movies, and one might have hoped that its star and director would have moved on to something less stale.