ALL SCI-FI

[The Spike]

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I was kind of inclined to headline this as being the movie guaranteed to make highbrow film fans froth with incredulity. That anyone could enjoy such a derivative, tongue-in-cheek, low ambition piece of schlock, is surely cause for venomous spleen venting from the serio film brigade. They call them guilty pleasures — but the thing is, I just don't feel guilty about having such a wonderfully fun-filled time with the Luc Besson produced Lockout.

Plot? Well it's the future, and basically Guy Pearce (Snow) is wrongly convicted of a crime and sentenced to do stir in stasis until whenever.

But up in space at the MS1 prison facility, home to all the maniacs found in Demolition Man, the president's daughter, do-gooder babe Emilie Warnock (Maggie Grace), is suddenly taken captive and it's a big hostage situation.

This looks like a mission for a serious hard bastard type! Well Snake Plissken wasn't available, so they get Snow, who is bulked up, full of wise cracks, and has a point to prove. Guess what follows? Yep, complete popcorn frenzy as Pearce and Grace cut a swathe through MS1 and have a date with coolness personified.

On the way, via a truly gorgeous sci-fi affected Blu-ray print, we will tick off the homages and influences and compare notes with our viewing partners about how it's a Snake Plissken movie but with Shane Black type dialogue. While those who are partial to a bit of sci-fi design are well served here, because even though these might be the worst CGI effects ever during a chase scene (that mercifully only runs for 50 seconds), the space ships, sets, and Torsion System sequence prove that you don't need Michael Bay type bucks to please the eyes.

From the quite brilliant and hilarious opening interrogation beat down, to the big reveal and punch line, this Besson produced piece is serving popcorn with a smile to a certain segment in the film watching populace.

With bits of the Snake Plissken movies, Fortress, Die Hard, Commando, Demolition Man, Minority Report, Last Boy Scout and any other quip laden dude/wronged man-on-a-mission movies, Lockout clearly lacks originality.

But seriously, as anyone involved playing it as anything other than a sly homage movie? No, they weren't. Pearce is great fun in the role, but he isn't trying to woo the highbrow crowd's votes for films of the year. Anyone viewing it expecting something cerebral should feel more guilty than those who stand up to say they had a great time watching it. Ingem Ferem. 7/10
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The quality of mercy is not strnen.

[Bud Brewster]

(from Wikipedia)

Lockout (also known as MS One: Maximum Security) is a 2012 French science fiction action film directed by James Mather and Stephen St. Leger, and written by Mather, St. Leger, and Luc Besson. The film stars Guy Pearce, Maggie Grace, Vincent Regan, Joseph Gilgun, Lennie James, and Peter Stormare. Lockout follows Snow (Pearce), a man framed for a crime he did not commit, who is offered his freedom in exchange for rescuing the President's daughter Emilie (Grace) from the orbital prison MS One, which has been overtaken by its inmates, led by Alex (Regan) and the psychotic Hydell (Gilgun).

Principal photography took place in Belgrade, Serbia. It was released on April 13, 2012 in North America.

(Now that's what I call a synopsis!)

This is definitely a movie I want to see -- unless somebody gets on the radio and talks my enthusiasm right down to a safe landing on the runway of reality. I loved Guy Pearce in the great remake of The Time Machine, and I've never seen him in anything else, so I'm looking forward to this one.

Unfortunately Blockbuster@home, or Stagevu has this movie. But Amazon offers it for $12.99. I suppose I could buy it, watch it, and then return it if I didn't like it. I don't return merchandise unless I feel I have a legitimate reason to do so (such as a flawed DVD). But Amazon allows it's customers to return items they aren't satisfied with, for a small fee.

In fact, when I attempted to return Sneakers a few months ago because I regretted buying it (and hadn't even opened it), Amazon informed me that because I was such a good customer I didn't have to send it back -- and they refunded my money!

A few weeks later I opened the DVD, watched it, and . . . loved it.

If somebody out there has seen Lockout and can recommend it, I'll take a chance and buy it from Amazon.
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Update: Netflix did finally get this one, and I watched it. I don't remember being quite as impressed as you were, Spike, but it was indeed enjoyable.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Bud Brewster]

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Another trailer for a fine movie that would be much more enjoyable to watch if it didn't do that annoying "slide show" thing with the hated scene — dark screen — scene-dark — screen method.

But I am tempted to watch this movie again, if for no other reason than to view some of the great FX shots longer then 1.0 seconds.

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__________________ Lockout Official Trailer


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[orzel-w]

[Krel]

I just watched the movie,and I really liked it. Although, did it ever clear up, the giant space station crashing down onto the eastern seaboard of the U.S. in eight hours situation? After all, that was a little bomb the Marine stuck on the station. It should have produced a lot of debris to rain down on New York.

It set you up for a sequel, with the chip in the lighter. I don't know how it did at the box office, but I'm sure the law suit they lost killed any chance for a sequel.

David.

[Bud Brewster]

[tmlindsey]

The film is an enjoyable enough popcorn action flick, but the lawsuit forever associated with it is ridiculous.

https://variety.com/2016/film/global/john-carpenter-plagiarism-case-luc-besson-lockout-1201826597/
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"Have you never wondered what it would be like to walk between the ticks and tocks of Time?"

[Bud Brewster]

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Just those of us he didn't know about the aforementioned lawsuit, here's what it says at the website Tim provided. :

But we all know what they say. "Plagerism is the sincerest form of flatter."
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John Carpenter Wins Second Round of Plagiarism Case vs. Luc Besson Over ‘Lockout’

Luc Besson - Picture Perfect/REX/Shutterstock

ROME — A Paris appeals court on Friday found French director-producer Luc Besson guilty of plagiarizing John Carpenter’s 1981 cult classic “Escape from New York” with the 2012 space-set movie “Lockout.”

The court ordered his EuropaCorp production company to pay 450,000 Euros ($502,000) in damages to the U.S. horror helmer, according to a report on French news service BFMTV.

Besson, who is France’s most international director and recently drew applause at Comic-Con with footage of his big-budget sci-fier “Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets,” had denied the charge. The suit was brought by Carpenter and his “Escape” co-writer Nick Castle in 2014.

Besson did not direct “Lockout.” He co-wrote it with Stephen Saint Leger and James Mather, who co-directed it. His EuropaCorp produced the film at the center of the plagiarism suit.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)