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Movies that feel like Escape from New York (1981)

If you loved Escape from New York, the closest films we have are They Live (1988), District B13 (2004) and Equilibrium (2002). All three share Escape from New York's kinetic and tense feel, which is what we rank on before quality. 9 of the 12 picks below are included with a subscription right now on Amazon Prime Video, Paramount Plus Premium and MGM Plus and others, checked against today's data.

In a world ravaged by crime, the entire island of Manhattan has been converted into a walled prison where brutal prisoners roam free. After the US president crash-lands inside, war hero Snake Plissken has 24 hours to bring him back.

πŸ… 70% Rotten Tomatoesβ˜… 7.1 IMDb β†—TMDB β†—dir. John Carpenterkinetictensecerebralbleak
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If Escape from New York hit the spot, these will too

They Live poster
They Live
1988 Β· dir. John Carpenter
πŸ… 86%β˜… 7.2science fiction Β· action Β· thriller

The same hand behind both of them: John Carpenter

A lone drifter stumbles upon a unique pair of sunglasses that reveal aliens are systematically gaining control of the Earth by masquerading as humans and lulling the public into submission.

Feels alike?
District B13 poster
District B13
2004 Β· dir. Pierre Morel
πŸ… 81%β˜… 7.1action Β· thriller Β· science fiction

Both are working the same pair: martial arts, street gang

The difference: 23 years apart, and the 2000s show

Set in the ghettos of Paris in 2010, an undercover cop and ex-thug try to infiltrate a gang in order to defuse a neutron bomb.

Feels alike?
Equilibrium poster
Equilibrium
2002 Β· dir. Kurt Wimmer
πŸ… 40%β˜… 7.3action Β· science fiction Β· thriller

Common ground in both: dystopia and anti hero

The difference: Critics were much harder on this one

In a dystopian future, a totalitarian regime maintains peace by subduing the populace with a drug, and displays of emotion are punishable by death. A man in charge of enforcing the law rises to overthrow the system.

Feels alike?
Mad Max 2 poster
Mad Max 2
1981 Β· dir. George Miller
πŸ… 93%β˜… 7.6action Β· thriller Β· science fiction

Both keep coming back to the same thing: dystopia

Max Rockatansky returns as the heroic loner who drives the dusty roads of a postapocalyptic Australian Outback in an unending search for gasoline. Arrayed against him and the other scraggly defendants of a fuel-depot encampment are the bizarre warriors commanded by the charismatic Lord Humungus, a violent leader whose scruples are as barren as the surrounding landscape.

Feels alike?
The Running Man poster
The Running Man
1987 Β· dir. Paul Michael Glaser
πŸ… 59%β˜… 6.6action Β· thriller Β· science fiction

Kinetic where it counts, tense underneath

By 2017, the global economy has collapsed and U.S. society has become a totalitarian police state, censoring all cultural activity. The government pacifies the populace by broadcasting a number of game shows in which convicted criminals fight for their lives, including the gladiator-style The Running Man, hosted by the ruthless Damon Killian, where β€œrunners” attempt to evade β€œstalkers” and certain death for a chance to be pardoned and set free.

Feels alike?
Mad Max poster
Mad Max
1979 Β· dir. George Miller
πŸ… 89%β˜… 6.8action Β· thriller Β· science fiction

Both land ideas and bleakness at once

In the ravaged near-future, a savage motorcycle gang rules the road. Terrorizing innocent civilians while tearing up the streets, the ruthless gang laughs in the face of a police force hell-bent on stopping them.

Feels alike?
eXistenZ poster
eXistenZ
1999 Β· dir. David Cronenberg
πŸ… 77%β˜… 6.8action Β· thriller Β· science fiction

Kinetic action, and it commits to that

A game designer on the run from assassins must play her latest virtual reality creation with a marketing trainee to determine if the game has been damaged.

Feels alike?
RoboCop poster
RoboCop
1987 Β· dir. Paul Verhoeven
πŸ… 84%β˜… 7.6action Β· thriller Β· science fiction

Thriller with a pulse of tension, in both cases

In a violent, near-apocalyptic Detroit, evil corporation Omni Consumer Products wins a contract from the city government to privatize the police force. To test their crime-eradicating cyborgs, the company leads street cop Alex Murphy into an armed confrontation with crime lord Boddicker so they can use his body to support their untested RoboCop prototype. But when RoboCop learns of the company's nefarious plans, he turns on his masters.

Feels alike?
Death Race poster
Death Race
2008 Β· dir. Paul W. S. Anderson
πŸ… 41%β˜… 6.4action Β· thriller Β· science fiction

Common ground: martial arts

Terminal Island, New York: 2020. Overcrowding in the US penal system has reached a breaking point. Prisons have been turned over to a monolithic Weyland Corporation, which sees jails full of thugs as an opportunity for televised sport. Adrenalized inmates, a global audience hungry for violence and a spectacular, enclosed arena come together to form the 'Death Race', the biggest, most brutal event.

Feels alike?
The Omega Man poster
The Omega Man
1971 Β· dir. Boris Sagal
πŸ… 65%β˜… 6.4science fiction Β· action Β· drama

Cerebral science fiction in both cases

The difference: Leans harder into drama than Escape from New York does

Due to an experimental vaccine, Dr. Robert Neville is the only human survivor of an apocalyptic war waged with biological weapons. Besides him, only a few hundred deformed, nocturnal people remain; sensitive to light, and homicidally psychotic.

Feels alike?
Akira poster
Akira
1988 Β· dir. Katsuhiro Otomo
πŸ… 91%β˜… 8animation Β· science fiction Β· action

Both are built on the same subject: street gang

The difference: Missing the tension of Escape from New York

A secret military project endangers Neo-Tokyo when it turns a biker gang member into a rampaging psychic psychopath that only two teenagers and a group of psychics can stop.

Feels alike?
Rollerball poster
Rollerball
1975 Β· dir. Norman Jewison
πŸ… 55%β˜… 6.5science fiction Β· action

Action built on bleakness, twice over

In a corporate-controlled future, an ultra-violent sport known as Rollerball represents the world, and one of its powerful athletes is out to defy those who want him out of the game.

Feels alike?

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The best-reviewed films that share Escape from New York’s defining feeling.