John Carpenter's Films - Ranked From Worst To Best

16. Escape From L.A. (1996)

Pros * Lots of inventive action sequences * Great cast * The return of Snake Plissken Cons * Snake Plissken surfs... * Ropey CG effects * Uncharacteristically poor soundtrack

Overall Escape From New York is a brilliant 1980s action film. It was so good, and so much fun to make, that Kurt Russell and John Carpenter immediately set to work on the sequel.

Unfortunately, Carpenter was unimpressed with the script and distracted by other projects, so it didn't happen. It was only due to Russell's persistence that the film got made at all. He really shouldn't have tried so badly, because Escape from L.A. turned out to be a major disappointment. It has not aged as well as Carpenter's earlier films, despite only being released in 1996.

The film, while it has some cute moments, is just a little too cheesy (certainly moreso that the original). The action is extravagant and Snake Plissken is a fun character, but it's hard to look past the film's obvious flaws.