Shandaken,
NY was originally partly carved out of the town of Woodstock (as in the big
muddy music fest), but its sheriff seems to think it is nestled somewhere in the deep south.
The troglodytic lawman is about to fire his two witless deputies—probably his
only defensible action in the entire film. To regain their badges, they will
attempt to recapture a fugitive convict, but the plan gets rather complicated
when they start to suspect he is innocent. Justice gets clumsy and oafish in
Zach Golden’s The Escape of Prisoner 614 (trailer here), which opens this
Friday in New York.
Thurman
Hayford is the more confident deputy, whereas Jim Doyle is the nebbish dweeb,
but between the two of them, they have not recorded an arrest in years. They
argue that means they have been completely effective keeping Shandaken
crime-free (they got that line from Marla at the diner), but the Sheriff is not
buying it. However, when they take a call from the warden warning Prisoner 614
is loose in their jurisdiction, they head out to capture him.
Somehow,
they manage to do exactly that, but the more they hear from their prisoner, the
more they doubt the fairness of his trial and appeal. Of course, the Sheriff
will not want to hear any of that when he catches up with them.
Tonally,
this film is an absolute disaster area. Issues of race and injustice are heavy
themes that demand serious treatment, but here they are basically window
dressing for a slapstick buddy comedy. 614
plays like an ill-conceived cross between To Kill a Mockingbird and The
Apple Dumpling Gang, with Don Knotts and Tim Conway.
Even
the ordinarily reliable Ron Perlman cannot salvage 614. In fact, all the glowering he does as the Sheriff starts to
come off as lazy shtick. He is still more watchable than either Martin Starr or
Jake McDorman as the underwhelming deputies. As the titular escapee, George Sample
III looks like he can hardly believe he is in this uncomfortable situation,
which we can’t blame him for.
Whatever
Golden was going for didn’t happen. It all looks modern day, but it feels like
he is going for a period vibe. Presumably, he wants to make a statement, but
the broad, sloppy humor drown it out. Not recommended, The Escape of Prisoner 614 opens this Friday (4/27) in New York, at
the Village East.
