Bullet Points: Breakout (2023)
2023’s Breakout is the latest action film from Director Brandon Slagle (Battle for Saipan) and the latest in a long line of “Die Hard Clones”…
- Burning Rubber: As the movie begins Vincent Baros (Kristos Andrews) and his friend have just stolen a large sum of money and are burning rubber on the streets of Los Angeles. Vincent realizes they are being followed and when the chase stops, Vincent finds himself in a shootout with who he believes is the hired muscle from the guy he just ripped off… but it isn’t until after he fatally shoots the “hired muscle” that he finds out he was actually an undercover cop with the LAPD. And that’s the type of thing that will land you in a maximum security prison… in this case Val Verde State Penitentiary.
- Daddy Issues: Louis Mandylor plays Vincent’s estranged father Alex Baros. Alex spent most of Vincent’s childhood serving his country on special ops missions, which explains Vincent’s daddy issues and the poor choices he made that landed him in prison. Alex goes to visit his son in prison and Vincent can’t control his anger for long, as a helpless Alex can do nothing but take it.
- Max Power: Elsewhere in the prison, we are introduced to Max Chandler (Brian Krause, Homestead) at his parole hearing… Max was formerly with the LAPD bomb squad but a bad psych evaluation changed the course of his career and life forever. Max used his bomb expertise to target those he felt were destroying society, which explains why he is in prison now and why he has no chance in hell of ever being paroled. The Max Chandler character is some of Brian Krause’s best work. Like any great villain, Max does not view himself as a villain. Max’s actions are completely justified in his mind and speaking of his mind…
- Die Hard in a Prison: Max Chandler’s master plan begins to unfold moments after his parole is denied as his team of rogue prison guards help him take over the prison Max offers his fellow inmates the chance to join his cause or to run free… the prison employees and any visitors inside the prison will be taken hostage and not released until Max’s demands are met. Vincent is among the prisoners who decide to join Max, which makes it even more intriguing when Alex ends up being the obligatory “fly in the ointment” in this “Die Hard in a prison scenario”… especially when Max offers $1 million dollars to whoever can bring him the dead body of Alex, after Alex uses his military training to systematically eliminate members of Max’s team.
Director Brandon Slagle’s love of the golden age of action shines through as he presents his “Die Hard clone” with a twist…. Louis Mandylor once again proves to be one of action cinema’s ultimate utility players… Breakout was my first exposure to Kristos Andrews and I would not be against seeing him in more action roles in the future… Last but not least, the unforgettable work of Brian Krause in Breakout is what stood out the most to me and is the movie’s greatest selling point.
Breakout is now available on DVD and Digital from Uncork’d Entertainment. These Bonus Bullet Points are now available right here and right now…
- Familiar Face: Breakout has the sad distinction of being Tim Sizemore’s first posthumous role. Sizemore played the cop in charge, Chaz Coleman, who found himself dealing with both Alex and Max on the phone as the highly volatile situation unfolds inside Val Verde State Penitentiary.
- The Name Game: Not to be confused with 1975’s Breakout starring Charles Bronson and Robert Duvall or 2013’s Breakout starring Brendan Fraser and Dominic Purcell.
- The Smiths: For you drinking game enthusiasts… take a shot every time a prison guard with the name of Smith appears on screen.
