Escape from Alcatraz
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San Francisco Bay, January 18, 1960. Frank Lee Morris is transferred to Alcatraz, a maximum security prison located on a rocky island. Although no one has ever managed to escape from there, Frank and other inmates begin to carefully prepare an escape plan.
What critics thought
Escape from Alcatraz landed as one of the best films of 1979, with critics marveling at Don Siegel's stripped-down, almost wordless storytelling and Eastwood's uniquely physical screen presence. The one consistent complaint, even from admirers, was that the ending arrives too abruptly — leaving audiences slightly shortchanged after a masterfully sustained buildup.
“For almost all of its length, 'Escape from Alcatraz' is a taut and toughly wrought portrait of life in a prison. It is also a masterful piece of storytelling, in which the characters say little and the camera explains the action”
Roger Ebert·RogerEbert.com
“very entertaining and well made. The principal problem is a too-quick ending that catches us by surprise.”
Gene Siskel·Chicago Tribune
“Mr. Eastwood fulfills the demands of the role and of the film as probably no other actor could. Is it acting? I don't know, but he's the towering figure in its landscape.”
Vincent Canby·The New York Times
“A delight for cineastes, 'Escape From Alcatraz' could serve as a textbook example in breathtakingly economical, swift and stylish screen storytelling.”
Kevin Thomas·Los Angeles Times
Genres
Biography, Crime, Drama
Cast & Crew
Don SiegelDirector
Clint EastwoodFrank Morris
Patrick McGoohanWarden
Roberts BlossomDoc
Jack ThibeauClarence Anglin
Fred WardJohn Anglin
Paul BenjaminEnglish
Larry HankinCharley Butts
Bruce M. FischerWolf
Frank RonzioLitmus
Fred StuthmanJohnson
Hank BrandtAssociate Warden
Jerry FieldingComposerEscape from Alcatraz
San Francisco Bay, January 18, 1960. Frank Lee Morris is transferred to Alcatraz, a maximum security prison located on a rocky island. Although no one has ever managed to escape from there, Frank and other inmates begin to carefully prepare an escape plan.
What critics thought
Escape from Alcatraz landed as one of the best films of 1979, with critics marveling at Don Siegel's stripped-down, almost wordless storytelling and Eastwood's uniquely physical screen presence. The one consistent complaint, even from admirers, was that the ending arrives too abruptly — leaving audiences slightly shortchanged after a masterfully sustained buildup.
“For almost all of its length, 'Escape from Alcatraz' is a taut and toughly wrought portrait of life in a prison. It is also a masterful piece of storytelling, in which the characters say little and the camera explains the action”
Roger Ebert·RogerEbert.com
“very entertaining and well made. The principal problem is a too-quick ending that catches us by surprise.”
Gene Siskel·Chicago Tribune
“Mr. Eastwood fulfills the demands of the role and of the film as probably no other actor could. Is it acting? I don't know, but he's the towering figure in its landscape.”
Vincent Canby·The New York Times
“A delight for cineastes, 'Escape From Alcatraz' could serve as a textbook example in breathtakingly economical, swift and stylish screen storytelling.”
Kevin Thomas·Los Angeles Times
Genres
Biography, Crime, Drama
Cast & Crew
Don SiegelDirectorClint EastwoodFrank MorrisPatrick McGoohanWardenRoberts BlossomDocJack ThibeauClarence AnglinFred WardJohn AnglinPaul BenjaminEnglishLarry HankinCharley ButtsBruce M. FischerWolfFrank RonzioLitmusFred StuthmanJohnsonHank BrandtAssociate WardenJerry FieldingComposerStream
Rent & Buy