No Escape (1994) – Filmsack Show Notes

INTRO

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Oh hi,

This week on Filmsack we can find NO ESCAPE from this 1994 Action/Sci-Fi outdoor prison movie now fleeing from its one hundred and fifty-eight minutes of level 6 penal punishment and sockless feet on Amazon Prime. I am going  Lord of the Flys away from this penitentiary peninsula like an outsider on the insider of the look on Baby Dillion’s face when I stabbed him. His mouth said kill him so I could escape but his eyes said.. why you ded me friend?  Baby Dillon Down. Baby Dillion Down.

Anywho, I was spending a lot of time thinking about what I did to land myself on this penile colony and I decided I would put all that energy into designing a thing to make this shit hole even shitter. So if you don’t mind. Stand here and hold this bar of wood as I fit you for a Ring Of Broken Glass neck platter and have my assistant set up the leg calf agitator… aka broken glass and pointy sticks on a board that whacks you right in the wince maker when I pull this hemp rope. Hmmm.. maybe I do belong here. 

Randy, Will you stand with me on the wall? You know… for moral support.. gosh you have dreamy eyes.

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BRIEF

No Escape (1994) is set in the year 2022, where prisons are run by private corporations, and prisoners who prove too violent or rebellious are exiled to the inescapable island of Absolom. Ex-Marine John Robbins (Ray Liotta), convicted of killing his commanding officer, is banished to the island and must navigate its two main factions: the vicious Outsiders led by the sadistic Marek (Stuart Wilson), and the more civilized Insiders led by the benevolent Father (Lance Henriksen). Directed by Martin Campbell, this film blends action, survival, and a dash of social commentary about corporate prisons and human nature.

Rated: R
1994 ‧ Action/Sci-Fi ‧ 1h 58m

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Social Media Post

No Escape (1994) – I don’t think we are in the 100 acre wood anymore Mr. Robbins. Oh Bother. #ButWhoGivesAShit

SHOW NOTES

• You don’t suppose they really mean No Escape do you? Cause I wanna escape.
• No Guards. No Walls.
  In the year 2022, a ruthless prison warden has created the ultimate solution for his most troublesome and violent inmates: Absolom, a secret jungle island where prisoners are abandoned and left to die. But Marine Captain John Robbins, convicted of murdering a commanding officer, is determined to escape the island in order to reveal the truth behind his murderous actions and clear his name.
• Escape from Absolom
• Ok… love the music already…  oh and then they made it suck.
• What am I looking at here? 3 soldiers on a platform at attention. I assume these are toys?
• Based on The Penal Colony… haha… yeah it is.
• Not toys.
• To hell! Shot that guy right on the platform.
• Now Liotta has to peer out a tiny future train window slot. Window Slot Seat please. Eyes front… you are not allowed to look at the pretty red surface? Is this Mars? Earf?   EYES FRONT
• Leviticus Level 6… not level 4… not level 5… but 6. Maximum Security Penitentiary.
• man… we really thought a lot was going to change from 1994 to 2022
• You have come here because society has no use for you… now look at my giant Snope Nope looking head. No rehabilitation. Just a holding pen. Death is the only way out. You are condemned. Accept it or die…  I will take the fast pass.
• Nice Sony CRTs
• Have escaped 2 level 5’s already. DNA test shows you don’t like authority. Congratulations, you found a home.
• I’m very good at the business… For all intents and purposes you are dead.
• Break a rule and you will find the is life after death. Very painful life.
• Anything to add? Don’t ever turn your back on me again. Eye rolls
• So far I am not a fan of Ray Liotta as a character… when am I getting the empathy.
• Come on… get up… hut hut hut… here is your bread.
• Take it…but don’t eat it. 
• They know everything about your brain… your impulses. Don’t think. 
• TAKE THIS FOOD!! good good… oh god don’t eat it!!
• They are coming to get me man.. they are coming to take me away.. 
• nooo… don’t put me on the surgical stage room strapped to the x.
• Hording food is a major infraction… no more… no less.
• The punishment is the electric fork. You get the electric fork. You will execute the punishment… 9 more please.
• I don’t think you know me well enough to doubt me.
• That is one angry helicopter. Double blade transport ship!
• Someone forgot to give this movie even a sliver of joy.
• T-1 over Absolom.. Drop him close to sector 4.
• Wait… so my choices are… sit in a tiny prison cell with no more no less food and constant monitoring… or drop me off in the jungle to fend for myself. Absolom here I come!
• Who do I attack first? The bolo guy! Bop!
• I would still take the jungle that think they are apes over prison.
• Hey… isn’t that the guy from Battlefield Earth?
• Isn’t this beautiful. 200 outdoor rooms. Heated hell hole. Do you take plastic? we take all forms of payment… I think he is referring to the sex. I’m sorry I am being rude.
• Let’s pretend to this is a vacation resort… we will do a whole improv thing. 
• 5 minutes in the pool with Ralph. Director of aquatic activities.
• Ralph likes to lick it. Ralph took a a hit.
• I could use a guy like you. We have an opening.
• Average life expectancy is 6 months.
• I’ll stay.. if you promise to hire another life guard.
• That was a very silly thing to do.
• I like being chased through the jungle
• I think you upset the captain. Jungle screams 
• Is Ray Liotta wearing socks?
• This is what I was made for… the killing.
• You can eat whoever you can catch.
• Did Arnold leave that booby trap there?
• Arrow to the ass thigh.
• I got darted and landed flat back in the water. Ouch.
• He looking dead.
• Chainmail… how did they get chainmail.
• MC Hammer recovery pants.
• Ahh yes… the old “Stop, look and resume what you were doing.”
• Hey, you don’t ever go in there… ever. 
• I am known as the father here. 
• Outsiders vs insiders.
• It has been appropriated 
• I’m not a joiner anymore.
• Mr. Robbins. In the 100 acre wood. With Winnie the pooh.
• You are on an island. 200 miles off the mainland… 
• 600 outsiders.. 98 insiders.
• Stay here and do your share… or have fun out there.
• I am Tom King. I host the newcomers.
• Nasty case of the Trenchmouth.
• What do you want Ethan Hawke.
• Ernie Hudson is watching you with his Bamboo eye google.
• Hey… that  crate is floating away… and bashed against the rocks.
• Wet dreams… that is what I call this place… cause I am weird.
• Merchandise on hand… you die… I get your boots.
• Size 44 fruit of the loom. 
• I got a bad case of the Liotta Leg.
• I don’t take orders anymore.
• You know what I want.. too big spoonful’s please.
• Supply Drop. The outsiders get the drops.
• 2 of your finest 12 day old. Piss off…. Brain Spasm… it has taken years.
• That liquor is going to be fuel for sure.
• That is the bells… everybody has to go to the gate.
• He was warned for a second time.
• A capital offense… the penalty is banishment… byyyyeeeee
• That’s not funny… but decapitation is hilarious.
• it’s a Christmas Party… I made you a hat.
• Most of these guys can’t read.
• Lets make this personal… just me and Dad.
• Santa with a moss beard.
• Bubble gum for all.
• Now I have a toast…  to all our victims… may they rest in peace.. downer.
• Father has the Ying to the Yang scar.
• Forgive yourself or you won’t survive.
• Will you stand with me on the wall?
• it ain’t god up there… it is a satellite.
• They came by sea… and by air… 
• Who is watching?  As long as there is not too much fire.
• this is like the lost boys for the criminally insane.
• Father going to take you out with his cane.
• The old man, the boy, the warrior?
• I’m an action hero!
• Hey you guys.. I’m on firrree!
• They hit us like this 2 or 3 times a year.
• Not just any soldier. He is speical forces.
• It’s so hard to say.. goodbye… Now lets have a bonfire.
• noooo… not the burning of the bodies… He got the flashbacks. His killing was justified.
• If the public found out… they would shut ’em down.
• The father was a surgeon.. and a young beautiful wife. Overdosed his wife.
• Transmission from the island. Code 7. Who is the snitch.
• Blew up your boat… and your little wet dream too.
• You didn’t know them… they were in the caves… training… they earned it.
• are his glasses literally coke bottle bottoms.
• We need a distributor.
• I appreciate the support… but you still can’t have my shoes.
• No more gangs. I have a bag of heads.
• I really want to be in charge. Ok. Good. Bag of heads… drop. Heads of state.
• Damnit Casey. Oh well.. he ded.
• Little boy in the 3 bears?
• Rats.. why did it have to be rats.
• 1 arrow 2 necks.
• Yes.. hello… yes I designed the broken glass neck ring with hold bar that doesn’t do anything with calf leg stabbing action.
• My mouth says kill me so you can survive but my face say… you stabbed me… why? oh why.
• Shame about the boy.
• Why are you doing this ugly? Redemption.
• I’m just telling you the facts.
• 13 years we ain’t leaving.
• You guys go. It is 6 to 1. I like the odds of 1 against all.
• I’m dying… from Hodgkin’s and not the stabby staby?
• You got a terminal case of “Don’t tell me what to do.”
• You can’t change the past.
• I want you to be there leader… give to someone who will save theses people. It has all the recipes.
• Man. They think hiding the heat was hard before… wait till they fire up a V8.
• FIRE… FIRE.. I am burning up on the inside with the things that I have done.
• Source of bioweapons fire… it was too easy. I should have known better.
• I told him… but I followed orders. 322 women and children and they covered it up. They even gave me a medal.
• No one wanted to hear the truth… that is why I have to get back. Because I can’t live with it alone anymore. Let the truth come out… all of it.
• The Truth will set you free. 
• Village full of Turkey.
• What’s on the pole? What’s on the pole? Dead Head.
• Where Dey?
• Nobody here but us Turkeys and pissing pigs.
• Mass Extermination Event.
• Ohhh… somebody gonna see dat.
• Damnit Marek… die already.
• Surprise… It is Father… stabbed him in the same hole.
• ok.. he ded.
• I got your rocket launcher.
• Tonight we will bury the father. Tomorrow we start all over again… ahhh man.
• They really like stabbing people on the right side under the ribs.
• Is this how you talk to him? This calculator? Palm pilot?
• The warden is coming… he is coming straight away. 
• King nipples.
• One, Two, Three, Four .. Five… wait… don’t forget the King!
• All I need is a Helicopter.
• Watching Baby Hawk die was sad. Baby Hawk Down… Baby Hawk Down.

• Cast & Crew:

  • Ray Liotta as John Robbins: A decorated ex-Marine with a dark past, banished to Absolom for killing his CO.
  • Lance Henriksen as “The Father”: Leader of the Insiders, who’ve established a peaceful community on the island.
  • Stuart Wilson as Marek: Sadistic warlord commanding the Outsiders.
  • Ernie Hudson as Hawkins: A vital member of the Insiders, friendly but tough.
  • Kevin Dillon as Casey: A younger prisoner who befriends Robbins.

• Setting & Premise:

  • Corporate-run prison system, year 2022.
  • Inmates “disappear” to Absolom if they can’t be controlled in standard prisons.
  • No guards, no walls—just unrelenting wilderness and hostile tribes.

• Tone & Themes:

  • Action-heavy survival narrative.
  • Commentary on privatized prisons and brutality vs. community building.
  • Tension between civilized order (the Insiders) and savage chaos (the Outsiders).

• Production & Style:

  • Directed by Martin Campbell (future GoldenEye, Casino Royale).
  • Jungle-based set pieces, booby traps, gritty cinematography.
  • Feels like a mix of Escape from New York vibes with a jungle twist.

• Key Scenes & Highlights:

  • Robbins’ arrival on Absolom, immediate hostility from Outsiders.
  • Contrasting life among the peaceful village vs. Marek’s violent clan.
  • Final showdown pitting cunning strategy vs. raw brutality.
  • Robbins’ arc from lone wolf to protective ally of the Insiders.

• Legacy & Reception:

  • Mixed reviews upon release, praised for Liotta’s intensity and engaging action.
  • Has developed a modest cult following for its 90s dystopian flair.
  • Stands as a precursor to other “prison island” or “battle royale” narratives in modern sci-fi.

• Fun Trivia:

  • Filming took place in Queensland, Australia—harsh conditions for cast and crew.
  • Martin Campbell would go on to direct big hits like GoldenEye (1995) and Casino Royale (2006).
  • Original title in some markets: “Escape from Absolom.”

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