No Ordinary Fool

This story of an escape bid from jail may not sound fresh enough for dedicated followers of the Prison Break series on television. As I am not one, I found this film to be a cross instead between the old-fashioned appearance of Porridge and the prison-jungle realities of Oz.

While Frank (Brian Cox) may bear a modest physical resemblance to Ronnie Barker’s Fletch, there are not too many things to laugh about in his existence. Indeed, he receives his first letter in 14 years to inform him that his beloved daughter has become a junkie and has almost died twice in recent days from her addiction. Utterly distressed, Franks hatches a plan for how he can escape to be with her and recruits two other inmates who he thinks have skills that will prove useful in the bid.

The film intertwines two linear narratives throughout. One tells of events leading up to the escape, while the other follows the escapees as they put their plan into action. While the plot is fairly predictable early on, director Rupert Wyatt works in some nice dramatic twists and turns to keep the audience entertained.

One successful achievement of the film is how it recreates the claustrophobic, pressure-cooker environment of prison life. This is helped in no small part by the film being shot in the cramped and Spartan confines of the nineteenth-century Kilmainham Jail in Dublin.

This is a film that achieves on a variety of levels. Firstly, it does entertain and things certainly do not go as planned throughout. Secondly, it explores some worthy themes in fraternity and freedom. However, it is its non-preachy portrayal of the soul-destroying futility of incarcerating people beyond the point where they have hope for another life that has to be the film’s most powerful and lasting legacy. This film may well not prove to be another Shawshak Redemption in terms of mass popularity. However, it still resonates in its own way about retaining one’s humanity and dignity despite being incarcerated for many years.