StudioCanal, out now

It’s 1997 and Manhattan Island has been turned into a maximum security prison where the inmates are left to fend for themselves. But when the President of the United States’ helicopter crashes within its confines only Snake Plissken can save the day.

John Carpenter’s future western noir has long been available for home entertainment in the UK, but never in such a handsome edition. StudioCanal, as with their other Carpenter releases this year (The Fog, They Live, Prince of Darkness) have procured brand new 4K scans from the 35mm original camera negative approved by the Cinematographer Dean Cundey. And it really is a glorious print, which has been receiving cinema exhibition in the UK. As with a lot of Carpenter’s movies there’s a lot of night work, and the HDR on the UHD really does give it some definition.

Kurt Russell is fantastic as one-eyed anti-hero Plissken, snarling like Clint Eastwood’s Man with No Name in a cast that also includes genre legends Lee Van Cleef, Ernest Borgnine and Donald Pleasance. This set also includes Carpenter’s pounding soundtrack score as a separate disc and worth the purchase price for this alone, though you also get art cards, a poster and booklet with stills and an essay by Kim Newman.

The Blu-Ray discs contain an HD version of the movie and two audio commentaries- Kurt Russell and John Carpenter, Producer Debra Hill and production designer Joe Alves, while the second disc is purely for special features. New documentary ‘Purgatory: Entering John Carpenter’s Escape from New York’ (52 minutes) includes interviews with writer Nick Castle, cinematographer Dean Cundey, composer Alan Howarth, production designer Joe Alves, and other production staff.

Verdict: An excellent movie gets the ultimate upgrade. Carpenter fans have really been spoilt this year with improved prints and special features. This set is probably the best yet. Let’s just not think about the sequel. 10/10

Nick Joy