Breakout


release year: 1975
genre: action
viewing setting: home DVD, 4/5/10 and 1/10/04

synopsis: An innocent man is thrown in a Mexican prison for 28 years, so his wife hires a carefree pilot to break him out.

impressions: This was a pretty laid-back Bronson action film. He never picked up or used a gun, and he was constantly cracking jokes and conning people. As is typical with movies from the 1970s, the mechanics behind the plot weren't always explained in a clear way, but this didn't slow the movie much.

things to watch for: At 1:32:24 a man meets a large propeller.

something this movie has that no other movie has: Randy Quaid disguised as a woman.

acting: This is a humorous, devil-may-care, half-con-man role for Bronson, and he pulls it off well. Robert Duvall shows very little as the innocent prisoner. Jill Ireland does a good job as the distraught wife. A young Randy Quaid, at perhaps his skinniest weight ever, is Bronson's sidekick. Sheree North (who came up in the 1950s as a potential successor to Marilyn Monroe) is eye candy as a slinky friend recruited to help with the jailbreak.

final word: Good humorous Bronson action movie.

back to the main review page