Escape from Tomorrow

Look, it's a bit of a journey but when you really get this movie, it's troubling. 1st off this movie is unnerving in a way I haven't seen in quite some time simply for being sheerly strange. Like, I though of David Lynch a lot while viewing this and simply, it is a portrait of what it's like to go to these parks as an adult. I went to Disney last summer as an adult and lemme tell you...every family is like this. Dad = pervert sleaze Mom = Nag Kids = stupid. Straightforward as that. Now addressing the cat flu thing, this kinda stuff happens there. People bring all sorts of weird diseases to that place. As far as I can tell, this movie paints a picture of what it's like to be there. What it's like to see this world of creativity and fun from the outside. From the lenses of a hand-held. Why is this movie good? Because it's right. Then, the next guest arrives for their week in Hell.

The idea of a man finding out he's been laid off or fired on the last day of his vacation, then suffering a mental breakdown has an interesting appeal. However, the plot was uneven (some mental breakdown, some interest in way-to-young women, some random interludes with older women). The guerrilla filming was great, but the story of mental breakdown could have (should have) been better, instead of being a random set of stories of a degenerate man who isn't faithful, and puts his needs above his family's. Based on descriptions, I expected a story about mental breakdown due to stress, but instead, it's more about the guerrilla filming style. He should have spent more time on the script.

You ever wonder what it would be like if Terrence Malick vacationed in Walt Disney World, drank moonshine and had an acid flashback while on It's A Small World, and then immediately afterwards stared at Spaceship Earth while a bunch of kids ran by? That's pretty much this film. I like the idea of the film fine, and it's cool to see all the little areas in Walt Disney World that I know so well (I may have been in this film and not even known it), but the film gets lost in its own thematic context. Is it's message that our instabilities will follow us even in so-called safe havens? Is it a pandemic allegory? Is it a sexuality parable? Not that it can't be all of those, but I don't think even the movie knows what it's talking about. Beyond that, the film is positively horrendous, with laughable attempts at psychological terror and ambiguity, unbearable dialogue and acting, groan inducing imagery (Don't make me mention the Siemens "semen"), amateurish photography and editing (which I do still understand given the film's shooting circumstances), appalling special effects, ear grating music choices, and structuring so incompetent, it can't even keep its own locations straight. If the movie is taking place in Disney World, WHY ARE YOU ALSO JUMPING TO DISNEYLAND FOOTAGE?! I could spend hours picking apart the geographical errors alone, but that's secondary at this point. Escape From Tomorrow is a classic example that it doesn't matter how original your story is if the actual execution (which should matter above all else) is awful.

My high review of this will likely make it stand out (and possibly not in the best way), but hear me out- this movie is the punk rock of cinema right now. It simply doesn't care. It's dark, twisted, hilarious, unnerving, and very Terry Gilliam. This isn't a movie to be looked in very deeply (as admittedly the symbolism is a bit confused and the plot takes a very strange turn), but it's fascinating, strange, and incredibly entertaining. It's certainly not a movie one will forget about quickly. It breaks the basic rules of film and never comes off as pretentious- it pokes fun at itself, and not in an annoying way. It's strange and fantastic. Recommended in general, but highly recommended to film buffs and fans of the bizarre. Definitely worth a watch.

Based on the published storyline I was expecting a low-budget, home-move style, shallow Disney-bashing with perv undertones. Not so. Though set in the empire of the mouse, the tale goes beyond the familiar fantasy world, drawing us in and submerging us in an anxiety ridden, nightmarish landscape where reality and fantasy merge. Black and white alienates us from childlike enjoyment and reminded me of what Lon Chaney said about the face of a clown in the moonlight. We realize that without familiar touchstones of reality our imagination, once adrift from the safe moorings of our everyday life, is easily guided and can become lost. As our hero and the storyline begin to spin out of control your only thought is 'What the ....!?' Ultimately, once you have visited and so been transformed you will wonder if you ever leave.

"What the actual * did I just see?" was the first thing that went through my mind upon finishing this film. Terrible acting, poor cgi, an unbelievable plot (I get it; it's supposed to be out there, but this was waaaaay too far out there), and WEIRD, WEIRD, WEIRD. It was like they'd studied David Lynch's material and then decided to make a B-movie homage. If anything at all, this should be straight-to-television, and not the pay-per-view kind either, but the SyFy channel at best. It's got a freaking awesome title that suggests the film is going to be equally fantastic, but my gosh, if it isn't the biggest letdown aside from various poor book-to-movie adaptations, or the Green Lantern, then I don't know what is. There is literally no amount of money that could make me watch this movie again. If seeing this movie is the difference between getting laid, then call me Steve Carrell, because I'm going to be keeping my v-card. That's my take on this movie. I rest my case.

My first thought was what the *beep* did I just watch? It was however, a very interesting, well made film that, to me anyways, didn't make much sense. At times hilarious, genuinely frightening, surreal, and creepy, this black and white film seems to tell some sort of message about Disneyworld, though I'll be damned if I know what it is. That's all I'll say about the movie, which in fact takes place in Disneyworld in it's entirety. If David Lynch and Terry Gilliam had a baby, and that baby grew up in an insane asylum watching Disney movies day in and day out, this is the film I would expect that individual to eventually write and direct. I'd also like to add that the movie had nothing to do with pedophilia, as at least one other review suggests. The topic isn't even touched on. I wasn't bored for a minute and I would definitely recommend this one to any fans of fantasy/horror. 8/10.

Just as a preface, I'm a huge fan of Disney World, I've gone there multiple times and I appreciate and love nearly everything about it. From the atmosphere, the technology, and just the overall experience, I find it to be a wonderful place. Anyways, for those who don't know, this was a movie entirely shot in…Disney World/Land which that alone is absolutely mind blowing. The movie could have been complete crap and it still would have been interesting but it was still an actual decent movie regardless of plenty of muddled plot/symbolism stuff that doesn't entirely make sense. It is the last day of Jim White's (Roy Abramsohn) vacation at Walt Disney World with his wife (Elena Schuber) and two children (Katelynn Rodriguez and Jack Dalton), he wakes up to find out he has been fired from his job. He keeps the news to himself and just wants to enjoy his last day at the Magic Kingdom with his family. We quickly come to realize that Jim is a bit of a pervert, he is obsessive about following two teenage girls (Annet Mahendru and Danielle Safady) throughout the day. And remember, this entire thing is shot in the Magic Kingdom. People are there. Real people. Not extras, nothing of that sort. Each shot I just keep thinking to myself, "How?" How did they manage this? How did nobody realize it? It's absolutely insane. Jim constantly sees images of horrifying images on It's A Small World, Winnie the Pooh, etc, etc. As the viewer, we have no idea what is real or what is in his head. The movie constantly has images of confusion. We, for ourselves, have to ask what is real. The special effects aren't that great but I give the movie the benefit of the doubt. It's a low budget movie, again, SHOT IN Disney WORLD. That alone makes this movie a significant feat. The last 30 minutes will make your head explode from wondering what is actually going on, the insanity of the entire movie, and just questioning the fact that this movie exists. The movie has plenty of things that just don't make sense. But, then again, I don't care. Again, I give this movie way too much of the benefit of the doubt but I can't help but not. It deserves it just because of how insane the last 30 minutes really are. Also, Jim is having a mental breakdown which only really helps make the movie slightly more substantial in it's confusion because we have to guess as to what is actually real. The last 30 minutes are truly like a strange, insane, David Lynch movie or something of that measure in it's pure weirdness. This movie is something that everyone should watch, it's risky in nearly every way and I'm glad to see that Disney didn't sue them. Sure, the movie had moments of bad acting, special effects, etc. (but, it's surprisingly well-shot for the most part), it doesn't matter though because of how wonderful this movie is in terms of experimentation. I may have some bias, I will admit. As a huge fan of Disney World, I loved it. I wouldn't be surprised if some people were offended by it if they were huge Disney fans but I wasn't really in anyway. It wasn't really offensive and more satirical essentially. Poking fun at. But, seeing all the rides and the park on screen in this weird, slightly psychotic, and horrific way made me laugh/enjoy the hell out of it. Overall, it has it's problems of bad special effects, acting, plot/symbolism that doesn't entirely make sense but EVERYONE should see this to actually believe it's even real.

👍

source: Escape from Tomorrow