Watching the nostalgic, but violent, 1980s' era prison break yarn "Escape from Death Block 13," a polished, R-rated, pastiche of pugnacious Charles Bronson tough-guy movies with lookalike Bronson actor Robert Bronzi, is a lot of cheesy fun. Unlike his four earlier epics made under L. A. filmmaker Rene Perez, in "From Hell to the Wild West" (2017), "The Death Kiss" (2018), "Once Upon a Time in Deadwood" (2019), and "Cry Havoc" (2020), the burly Hungarian born actor is now allowed to utter his own dialogue rather than have somebody else dub him. Not only does "Escape from Death Block 13" mimic Charles Bronson movies, but it also exemplifies Cannon Pictures' quintessential exploitation fare from 1979 to 1989. Anybody who went to the movies during that decade when Cannon released its films would have gotten their first glimpse of Bronson along with Chuck Norris, Michael Dudikoff, and David Bradley. Basically, "Ballistica" director Gary Jones' 104-minute melodrama amounts to harmless but hyperbolic hokum for those who crave actioneers with larger-than-life escapades. Like most synthetic 1980s' sizzlers, which emphasized brawn over brains, this cliché-riddled saga is as bombastic as anything Cannon ever made. Meantime, one of the chief attractions of Jones' independent, low-budget, B-movie knockoff is its landmark setting. Jones shot exteriors at The Mansfield Reformatory, also known as The Ohio State Penitentiary. Apart from "Escape from Death Row 13," this historic property has enlivened a number of Hollywood movies, most notably "Harry and Walter Go to New York" (1976), "Tango & Cash" (1989), the unforgettable "Shawshank Redemption," (1994), "Air Force One" (1997), "Escape Plan: The Extractors" (2019) and "Judas and the Black Messiah" (2021). Indeed, this austere prison with its macabre Romanesque architecture, which housed inmates between 1896 and 1990, adds ominous atmosphere to Jones' competently made but by-the-numbers spectacle.
Events not entirely brought about by him unravel our naïve hero's best laid plans. A Hungarian native, virtually a stranger in a strange land, Miklos Kovak (Robert Bronzi) came to America to collect $12,750 in death benefits his late brother's boss, Renda (Nicholas Turturro of "The Longest Yard"), never paid up. Naturally, Renda refuses to compensate Kovak and mistakes him for just another chiseler. Mick won't leave without the loot. Predictably, Renda's goons gang up on him, and a bruising fistfight ensues. One hare-brained Renda henchmen aims at Mick but winds up plugging one of his own pals! Sneaking up behind Mick during a lull in the mêlée, Renda coldcocks him with a shotgun. When our protagonist regains awareness, he finds himself under arrest. Naturally, when the cop-in-charge, Detective Borelli (Lyindaa Russell of "Black Mamba"), grilles him, Mick asserts his innocence. Meantime, an obnoxious FBI Agent named Langley (Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs of TV's "Welcome Back, Kotter"), berates Mick as just another numbskull. Struggling to smash an opioid smuggling ring, Borelli and Langley convince Mick that he can serve his own best interests if he acts as a snitch for them while in prison. According to Borelli, the judge presiding over the trial is married to Renda's sister-in-law. Not even a miracle can keep our wrongly accused hero from being railroaded into prison. Indeed, "Escape from Death Block 13" proves blood is thicker than justice, and Mick lands in the slammer. Before Mick's transfer to prison, Borelli reveals that his ill-fated brother Laszl0 died under suspicious circumstances at Renda's tire factory.
Mick's first night in Pleasant Hill Prison is no picnic. Three guards with taser batons march him from his cell after lock-down and stun him into submission. Naturally, Mick's first impulse is to fight back. An adjacent cellmate, Tex (Tim Lovelace of "Legion of the Night"), has already advised Mick to accept all punishment without resistance. Singeing multiple holes in Mick's chest and shoulder blades with their tasers, the sadistic guards batter him senseless, then drag him off to solitary where they dump him without ceremony. The next morning, arrogant Warden Jaclyn Barzini (Debbie Scaletta of "White Boy Rick") serves Mick decaf for breakfast and stresses his need to cooperate with her. Later, Barzini discovers Renda had Mick arrested on charges of attempted murder and extortion. When Mick enters the cell block, writer & director Gary Jones exploits Bronzi's similarity to Charles Bronson. One inmate hollers, "We got ourselves a real movie star tough guy!" Another bellows, "This cat is a real super-star." Jones appropriates all the venerable cliches and stereotypes of prison movies. He orchestrates the agile celluloid violence for maximum impact, but he relies on obvious CGI technology to make the bullets fly and the blood spurt. Ultimately, our brawny protagonist confronts the pistol-packing warden during the prison riot showdown. Mick brandishes an awesome Milkor MGL M32 A-1 grenade launcher that lobs low-velocity 40mm rounds. Cunning harridan that she is, Warden Barzini thinks Mick won't use it on her. "You'd never shoot a woman," she sneers. Before he pulls the trigger, Mick delivers a line the late Charles Bronson would have cherished. "You are a woman, but you are no lady." WHAAM!
Mind you, Robert Bronzi could have been Bronson's middle-aged stunt double. He dresses like Bronson did in "Mr. Majestyk" (1974) wearing a golf hat. He slugs it out in a bare-knuckled boxing match with an inmate in the tradition of "Hard Times" (1975) where Bronson duked it out as a Depression Era underground brawler Finally, at fadeout, Bronzi makes the same finger pistol with his hand that Bronson used at the end of "Death Wish" (1974). Of course, anybody who has seen an actual Bronson movie won't be fooled by Bronzi's facsimile resemblance. Mostly, "Escape from Death Block 13" qualifies as the kind of larger-than-life, low-budget kitsch that should cater to B-movie afficionados.
Events not entirely brought about by him unravel our naïve hero's best laid plans. A Hungarian native, virtually a stranger in a strange land, Miklos Kovak (Robert Bronzi) came to America to collect $12,750 in death benefits his late brother's boss, Renda (Nicholas Turturro of "The Longest Yard"), never paid up. Naturally, Renda refuses to compensate Kovak and mistakes him for just another chiseler. Mick won't leave without the loot. Predictably, Renda's goons gang up on him, and a bruising fistfight ensues. One hare-brained Renda henchmen aims at Mick but winds up plugging one of his own pals! Sneaking up behind Mick during a lull in the mêlée, Renda coldcocks him with a shotgun. When our protagonist regains awareness, he finds himself under arrest. Naturally, when the cop-in-charge, Detective Borelli (Lyindaa Russell of "Black Mamba"), grilles him, Mick asserts his innocence. Meantime, an obnoxious FBI Agent named Langley (Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs of TV's "Welcome Back, Kotter"), berates Mick as just another numbskull. Struggling to smash an opioid smuggling ring, Borelli and Langley convince Mick that he can serve his own best interests if he acts as a snitch for them while in prison. According to Borelli, the judge presiding over the trial is married to Renda's sister-in-law. Not even a miracle can keep our wrongly accused hero from being railroaded into prison. Indeed, "Escape from Death Block 13" proves blood is thicker than justice, and Mick lands in the slammer. Before Mick's transfer to prison, Borelli reveals that his ill-fated brother Laszl0 died under suspicious circumstances at Renda's tire factory.
Mick's first night in Pleasant Hill Prison is no picnic. Three guards with taser batons march him from his cell after lock-down and stun him into submission. Naturally, Mick's first impulse is to fight back. An adjacent cellmate, Tex (Tim Lovelace of "Legion of the Night"), has already advised Mick to accept all punishment without resistance. Singeing multiple holes in Mick's chest and shoulder blades with their tasers, the sadistic guards batter him senseless, then drag him off to solitary where they dump him without ceremony. The next morning, arrogant Warden Jaclyn Barzini (Debbie Scaletta of "White Boy Rick") serves Mick decaf for breakfast and stresses his need to cooperate with her. Later, Barzini discovers Renda had Mick arrested on charges of attempted murder and extortion. When Mick enters the cell block, writer & director Gary Jones exploits Bronzi's similarity to Charles Bronson. One inmate hollers, "We got ourselves a real movie star tough guy!" Another bellows, "This cat is a real super-star." Jones appropriates all the venerable cliches and stereotypes of prison movies. He orchestrates the agile celluloid violence for maximum impact, but he relies on obvious CGI technology to make the bullets fly and the blood spurt. Ultimately, our brawny protagonist confronts the pistol-packing warden during the prison riot showdown. Mick brandishes an awesome Milkor MGL M32 A-1 grenade launcher that lobs low-velocity 40mm rounds. Cunning harridan that she is, Warden Barzini thinks Mick won't use it on her. "You'd never shoot a woman," she sneers. Before he pulls the trigger, Mick delivers a line the late Charles Bronson would have cherished. "You are a woman, but you are no lady." WHAAM!
Mind you, Robert Bronzi could have been Bronson's middle-aged stunt double. He dresses like Bronson did in "Mr. Majestyk" (1974) wearing a golf hat. He slugs it out in a bare-knuckled boxing match with an inmate in the tradition of "Hard Times" (1975) where Bronson duked it out as a Depression Era underground brawler Finally, at fadeout, Bronzi makes the same finger pistol with his hand that Bronson used at the end of "Death Wish" (1974). Of course, anybody who has seen an actual Bronson movie won't be fooled by Bronzi's facsimile resemblance. Mostly, "Escape from Death Block 13" qualifies as the kind of larger-than-life, low-budget kitsch that should cater to B-movie afficionados.