← Back to results
Escape from Alcatraz
1979 113 min United States of America PG 16+
★7.9
Drama, Thriller
Director: Don Siegel
📖 Based on the novel
«Escape from Alcatraz»
byJ. Campbell Bruce
Trailers
Description
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.
Budget:
$8M
US Gross:
$43M
Worldwide:
$43M
Starring
Clint Eastwood
Actor
Patrick McGoohan
Actor
Roberts Blossom
Actor
Key opinion
Escape from Alcatraz is widely regarded as a grounded, taut, and technically precise prison thriller that benefits from a compelling performance by Clint Eastwood. While some viewers find it less emotionally resonant or narratively expansive than modern classics like The Shawshank Redemption, it remains a definitive entry in the escape genre.
| Acting | Clint Eastwood anchors the film with a stoic, disciplined performance that makes the meticulous escape plan feel authentic and plausible. | |
| Direction | Director Don Siegel successfully establishes a grim, claustrophobic atmosphere that emphasizes the harsh reality of prison life over sentimental tropes. | |
| Screenplay | The film functions as a gritty, detail-oriented procedural, though some viewers find the lack of overt narrative twists or emotional warmth makes it feel cold. | |
| Pacing | The pacing is viewed by many as effectively controlled and suspenseful, yet a minority of critics find the movement toward the finale too swift or lacking sufficient tension. |