tonypeacock-1 Reviews

The Sand Pebbles (1966)

McQueen really is the king of cool, Chinese style

[8/10 · 6 May 2024]

I am shocked that this epic film hasn't received greater recognition like films from director David Lean.

The director here is Robert Wise who somehow squeezed in The Sound Of Music (1965) whilst pre-production of this gigantic film took place.

Steve McQueen plays a US navy sailor on a gunship in a very different China to today sometime in the 1920s.

China is ravaged in a civil war and the US protects its interests that wouldn't be seen today. McQueen and his supporting ensemble including Richard Attenborough and Candice Bergen are excellent.

The action sequences, production design are filmed in an era long before the CGI sanitised film world of today. Well worthy of attention.

Elmer Gantry (1960)

I'm on my way! (to summarising my thoughts on Elmer Gantry)

[8/10 · 5 May 2024]

Burt Lancaster as main character Elmer Gantry initially drew my attention to this film along with its history of award wins and adolation amongst many cinephiles.

In a nutshell the film is based on the character Elmer Gantry, a salesman with the gift of the gab somewhat who teams up with a church preacher but who's chequered history catches up with him.

So the film is set in 1920s USA with evangelists travelling across the bible belt of the country spreading their church messages whilst also attempting to increase attendances to their churches and at the same time raise funds.

We are introduced to a charismatic salesman, hard drinking with a chequered past that includes ditching a character Lulu who turns to prostitution.

The performance of Burt Lancaster which won him an Academy Award is the main highlight of film. His eulogies, preaching, and general demeanour as the sinner with a dodgy past who becomes a preacher double act with a travelling revivalist Sister is captivating. Especially when his past is briefly revealed in a newspaper sting.

For the first half an hour or so I felt what was I watching. By the end my thoughts on the film had changed two fold as I was drawn in like a member of the audience at one of the meetings!

I've watched several of Lancaster's films and this rates highly among them.

Ryan's Daughter (1970)

A story of betrayal on so many fronts

[8/10 · 22 April 2024]

My thoughts on Ryan's Daughter (1970) can be summed up by one word, betrayal. Betrayal plays a big part in the screenplay but it can also be applied to the treatment of this film upon release in 1970 I suppose.

The film, all three hours, twenty or so is set on the western coast of Ireland, still under British rule in 1917. British soldiers occupy the island like glorified police amongst a backdrop of Repulican sentiment from the indigenous population, here a small village on the coast.

We are introduced to several characters amongst them Rosy Ryan who meets the local schoolteacher, Charles Shaughnessy and they marry.

Rosy is the daughter of the village publican, Tom Ryan. However Rosy becomes bored of married life and fmhas a love affair with a recently deployed British soldier who is a hero from his exploits in The Great War that have left him with a wooden leg and shellshock.

The story becomes drawn out at times but well filmed with sweeping camera shots by Freddie Young and an excellent score by Maurice Jarre. Director, David Lean follows the path of his previous three films in entering epic territory.

Shaughnessy has well founded suspicions of the affair and after the intermission it all comes to light. A secondary plot line of activity by the IRB and the alleged tipping off to the British of the coastal weapons smuggling is brought to the fore. Another betrayal is revealed which I am loathe to spoil.

The cast, Trevor Howard as the village Priest, Robert Mitchum as Shaughnessy and John Mills as an annoying yet likeable village idiot character, Michael are all excellent as are the supporting cast.

Now the betrayal that also sprung to my mind was the critical mauling this film received on release. So much so that it lead to a 14 year absence of David Lean from film making.

True it perhaps could have been further edited. Apparently cuts were already made. I had reservations about watching the film because of its large running time. However I urge all cinephiles who love Ireland, film stories that are engrossing and the back catalogue of Lean and the cast to check it out. I found it worth the effort and it gets a positive from me, not that I'm worthy!

The Zone of Interest (2023)

A zone of historical importance, yes but not a film

[6/10 · 17 April 2024]

The film follows the life of Auschwitz concentration camp Commandant Rudolf Höss and his wife Hedwig. Now as well as being another important historical retelling of one of the most awful events in human history it poses several questions.

We see Höss as a family man in a clean house one minute, happily married with several children. The film also touches on his Nazi professional career as Commandant of the camp that killed thousands of Jews.

Strangely the family home backs onto the perimeter of the camp which can be briefly seen with chimneys spewing out black smoke, barbed wire walls and heard albeit distant train noises, gunshots, and screams.

Hedwig tends to a floral garden and she sees her family home as her pride and joy despite the horrors going on so close by.

The possessions of some Jews are shared amo gst characters without a second thought.

The film tries to set some atmosphere of what is to follow with a darkened screen at the start for about thirty seconds.

The film (not the horrific events of the Holocaust) can be remembered for the production design of the Höss household and the sound effects that give the audience a glimpse of the unseen horrors.

Film loosely based on a best selling novel The Zone Of Interest. It might be better in a book medium than as a film?

Nuns on the Run (1990)

Over indulgent story of a nun's convent!

[6/10 · 15 April 2024]

A film that evokes nostalgic memories for me, watching this UK comedy at a cinema in Australia in 1990.

Robbie Coltrane and Eric Idle play a couple of cons who try to get out of the ever more deadly profession by escaping their gang boss in a Nuns convent, dressed in disguise as nuns.

Evoking some comic turns part Monty Python, part Mrs. Doubtfire and Sister Act there are some funny moments aided by a good soundtrack featuring some late George Harrison who's Handmade Films were behind production.

Dated from 1990. I mean Chelsea Football Club's ground, Stamford Bridge is shown in its full pre-investment splendour!

Robbie Coltrane is young. Pre Cracker (British TV drama), James Bond role days for him.

Idle is as funny as his Monty Python heyday.

The Eagle Has Landed (1976)

Potentially could have been a great war film.

[6/10 · 8 April 2024]

The film's plot line is based on a novel from the year before about a fictional Nazi attempt to kidnap UK Prime Minister Winston Churchill during World War Two.

It reminded me of a similar film I watched a few years ago 'Went The Day Well?' (1942) about a Nazi invasion by paratroopers of the UK in a small village. Here a similar plot follows as a Norfolk village near an isolated part of the east coastline of England which is the centre point of the action.

The film is directed by John Sturges of The Great Escape (1963) fame. The cast is ensemble as that film was featuring the likes of Michael Caine, Donald Sutherland, Anthony Quayle and Donald Pleasence.

I don't know it just didn't have that polished feel of earlier films like The Great Escape or Where Eagles Dare for that matter. It is reported that director Sturges wasn't fully committed to the project? It was certainly an entertaining watch but not one I am likely to actively repeat.

The Last Wave (1977)

Let it rain, let the confusion pour down. Mixed bag.

[6/10 · 8 April 2024]

Where does this film want to go? It has multiple angles that left me ultimately confused. The film plot begins fairly straight forward as a murder investigation/trial involving Aborigine's accused of the murder of another Aborigine. A legal aid lawyer, David Burton (Richard Chamberlain) is drafted in to defend them although he has more of a history in corporate law than criminal law.

Now that seems simple enough then the film transcends into the supernatural with Burton's dreams being at the centre alongside Aboriginal tribal mythology. Sydney and the Australian outback is being battered by adverse weather such as hailstorms that give the film a watery theme throughout.

Not only rain but overflowing baths and a sewage pipe towards the end? Add to the mix impending world apocalypse in Burton's dreams then you have a mixed bag of a film.

I'm usually all for Australian cinema but this film sadly didn't strike a chord with me despite some solid casting in Chamberlain and David Gulpilil, a great Aboriginal actor.

The Medusa Touch (1978)

Low budget Burton a hidden gem worth checking out.

[7/10 · 7 April 2024]

One of those classic little gems that I find and go against the grain somewhat in rating higher than much more established film reviewers!

Richard Burton is towards the end of his illustrious film career but still has a gravitas as lead character, author John Morlar. What makes his character so interesting is that he is seen only briefly throughout the film in flashback scenes of events in his life with deathly events. In the present day he actually lies in a coma after being bashed violently to the head several times at the beginning of the film, left for dead in an apparent murder.

The attempted murder investigation changes to attempted murder and is investigated across London by a French Detective on some kind of workplace exchange between the France and the UK? In reality the film has part French backing alongside UK producer Lew Grade of ITC fame.

Now the flashback scenes explore the hypothesis of telekinesis. Being able to move objects by brain activity. Being a football fan I can relate somewhat to it!

The film cleverly changes from a simple detective whodunit structure to a disaster film albeit with some dodgy 1978 low budget special effects as a 747 jet crashes into a London high-rise building and a Cathedral literally crumbles as the late Queen of England arrives to a packed fundraising event.

A nuclear power plant in the UK (Windscale/Sellafield) is mentioned several times as another potential disaster scene as well as a US moon mission.

With higher financial backing perhaps the film would have received more favourable reviews, who knows? What I know, despite watching a poor print is that we are left with a worthy film, worth checking out. A hidden cult film.

Burton's voice and sheer presence alone is a facet not to be missed. He still has a couple of great flashback scenes that reminded me of some of his more famous work.

The League of Gentlemen (1960)

Your only supposed to rouse the British cinema audience

[6/10 · 3 April 2024]

I was left somewhat underwhelmed by this British crime caper from 1960. Yes, I know that it is at the time of viewing some 64 years old but it has aged. Very much of the post-war British cinema period.

The basic story outline is a retired army Lieutenant Colonel Hyde (Jack Hawkins) masterminding a bank heist which includes assembling a gang of fellow ex-British army officers with their own set of military skills to carry out said heist.

The film has moments of black comedy that initially reminded me of films such as The Italian Job (1969).

I read the capsule review by Leonard Maltin who mentions a cameo by a young Oliver Reed as a ballet dancer. The film also stars such stalwarts of UK cinema such as Richard Attenborough.

The Robe (1953)

Jesus/Rome tale unfairly castigated

[8/10 · 1 April 2024]

The Robe (1953) belongs to a collection of sword/sandal/Biblical epics from the period of Hollywood. Despite some negative reviews I personally found it quite enlightening being pretty atheist.

As well as having the subject of Jesus crucification at its core it has a screenplay that deals with some of the core messages of Christianity and the conversion of a Roman military tribune, Marcellus (played by Richard Burton) to the faith.

Over the years Burton's performance has faced criticism. I disagree. He had such diversity with his filmography and roles in them.

The film should also be well remembered for a technical innovation in film, the first wide-screen presentation using the Cinemascope process. Allowing directors and directors of photography to put more detailed images in each frame.

Other notable mentions should go to Victor Mature as slave Demetrius, who also undergoes a life changing experience after a visual encounter with Christ.

Has all the usual trappings of a Roman epic including a good score, set design and sword duels.

Romancing the Stone (1984)

Don't Cry For Me Catagena! (Wrong Country)

[6/10 · 28 March 2024]

Mid eighties action adventure yarn in the mould of the Indiana Jones franchise from director Robert Zemeckis and produced by actor Michael Douglas production company.

The film focuses on a successful if naive and lonely romantic novelist Joan Wilder (Kathleen Turner) who spends the film rescuing her kidnapped sister Elaine who is being held in Cartagena, Colombia.

Along the way she faces several obstacles usually in the deep jungle fauna of the Columbian jungle sided by Jack Colton (Michael Douglas) who is an American exotic bird smuggler who is used to the jungle terrain.

A romantic bond forms between Wilder and Colton throughout the film culminating in them sailing off in the distance at the films end aboard Colton's yacht.

The film's action sequences are very Indiana Jones-esque and it's box-office success is testament to this.

Look out for maps, treasure and an annoying character played by Danny Devito who seems to be there to make up the numbers.

The Tall Stranger (1957)

Fifties B Western that has several good points

[7/10 · 28 March 2024]

I was expecting just a run of the mill fifties B Western but the film was quite entertaining for several reasons I will attempt to allude to.

1) Casting. Central character Ned Bannon (Joel McRea) is an ex Union soldier who becomes a sort of mediator between his hot-headed half-brother Hardy Bishop (Barry Kelley) who owns a big plot of land and a group of simple minded wagon train homesteaders on their way to a new settled life in California who stray onto Bishop's land after some bad advice from Mort Harper disregarding warnings given by Bannon himself.

2) Cinemascope colour photography makes this low budget film seem more upmarket as such.

3) Plenty of gunfights (and fist fights!) throughout the films typically short B running time keep the story ticking over nicely.

The film has its origins from a novel of the same name so has some good origins for its screenplay.

McRea himself endears his character to the audience like other notable 'Western' actors such as John Wayne and Randolph Scott.

Give this film a viewing, it's worth the time and a must for fans of the Western genre in particular.

Triple Cross (1966)

Safe, potential to be a better film

[7/10 · 24 March 2024]

The film has an excellent true life story about Eddie Chapman. His exploits during World War Two are an excellent read and offer great potential for a film about his exploits.

Director Terence Young of 1960s James Bind films fame brings together an ensemble cast like a Bond alumni. Lead by Christopher Plummer who plays his role adequately but a pound shop Sean Connery from said Bond films.

The film drags in places and with better direction and casting could have been a great war film. As it is, what we have is a very average film of a story deserving a classic film. A shame because in places the story is suspenseful, makes you think as Chapman crosses the English to the Nazi's, then vice versa all for personal gain as well as for King and country? A film that is crying out to be remade?

Dead of Night (1945)

Early Ealing Portmanteau perhaps the earliest?

[6/10 · 23 March 2024]

The film Dead Of Night is a unique British film upon release in 1945. Unique in that it was produced by Ealing Studios, more famous for their comedy output but Dead Of Night is more of a supernatural horror film.

Unique in being a portmanteau type of film, an anthology of several stories weaved into a central arc, a household gathering and the structure being used many times again particularly in British cinema.

Here we are told the recurring dreams of an architect who recognises the assembled people at a country house he has been invited to do some initial work at altering.

The guests are assembled like a game of Cleudo and have several supernatural stories that are made into short films. Some of the stories are pretty mundane in my opinion yet some are quite interesting. Good, I'm thinking a ventriloquist and his mental state before murder and a lady who purchases a grand looking mirror from an antiques store before it causes some repercussions in her marital household.

A third segment concentrates on a racing driver who crashes and sees an undertaker saying 'room for one more' in his hearse before said driver later has a premonition about the driver as a bus ticket conductor shortly before the double decker bus crashes off the road and plummets down an embankment.

The fourth I have little recollection it is so uninteresting!

Interesting structure for a film, that yes you more than likely you have come across but this is an early example. Also a very early British entry into the 'horror' genre although it is tame compared to what I consider a horror.

Road House (2024)

Surprisingly interesting remake.

[7/10 · 23 March 2024]

Remakes can go either way. Some are quite good rehashes of older more often than not well-liked older films, some are a disgrace to the original. It is a sad indictment on Hollywood that they have to be produced me thinks. Is there no original ideas?

Roadhouse is a remake of the 1989 film of the same name starring Patrick Swayze as a door man called Dalton, called in to clean up a rough as hell Road House establishment. It's quite a decent film and a what's the word I'm trying to think of? A different film that Swayze was making at that time in his career.

The new Roadhouse has the same story arc with a few adjustments that make it quite an original watch. The character of Dalton (Jake Gyllenhall) has an interesting back story in this version.

The advancement in digital effects is plain to see, especially in the action and fight sequences which this film thrives on. The late Swayze would have been incapable of such capability me thinks?

The screenplay slightly varies from the original allowing this film to thrive only with the same title and plot basics of the original. A sort of Road House for a new CGI sanitised generation? It passed my test.

Anyway it got me thinking about remakes in general. Hollywood has used them for decades so it's not a new phenomenon.

Mad Money (2008)

Crime 'comedy' is just palatable

[3/10 · 23 March 2024]

I can't really add much thought to this review. For Mad Money is a supposed crime drama cum comedy about three unexpected employees of the U. S. Federal Reserve stealing paper money notes about to be shredded.

It failed to hit a note with me being watchable yes but hardly stimulating in its crescendo of a middle class woman nearing retirement (Keaton) having financial problems, getting a cleaning job at the main U. S. bank that destroys old paper money, then hatching a plan to steal it. The unexpected criminal begins to enjoy her new criminal activity and continues despite the reservations of her husband (Ted Danson), and one of her partners in crime (Queen Latifah).

The investigation is frankly laughable and you realise the whole film is a fictional mess. Another one to avoid again.

Carry on Behind (1975)

Carry On from Behind the times

[5/10 · 22 March 2024]

I've always been a fan of the 'Carry On' franchise of films but I must admit to quietly ignoring the last few films until now. A sort of so bad it has to be watched phase of self-flagellation film watching wise!

So what has turned me off this particular entry? Well the production stills make it look like a cheaper (is that possible?) version of Carry On Camping (1969). With half the regular gang missing for various reasons.

Yes, it is similar to Camping but has an archaeological angle that makes it sound intellectual, which it is far from. The cast that are left deliver the typical entendres that are a staple of the franchise.

Kenneth Williams is on top form as the archaeologist despite the audience having to witness his backside in one scene.

I liked the guest star Windsor Davies in a very Sidney James sort of role. Other cast regulars such as Joan Sims, Bernard Bresslaw, Kenneth Connor and Peter Butterworth make for a funny, if average Carry On. What a shame that the films in this era failed to match the series heyday from the late 1960s/early 1970s.

Watched, however I will probably never watch again.

Bullitt (1968)

Stylish yes, but fails to reach Dirty Harry San Francisco highs.

[8/10 · 21 March 2024]

Now I immediately began drawing parallels between this 1968 police thriller set in San Francisco. A film about a Detective who goes off the standard operating procedures somewhat. The film that sprung to mind in my review was Dirty Harry (1971).

Here the Detective oozes cool in actor Steve McQueen and the film's style. It's photography, editing, a very jazzy music score by Lalo Schifrin and location shoot are stylish in every way. 'Dirty' Harry Callaghan is tougher and grittier in my opinion.

The film has gained notoriety over the years for a ten minute car chase. It is good and action packed, don't get me wrong but perhaps a tad overrated?

Bullitt lacks the quotes that made Dirty Harry notorious punk! However it is still a good film and well worth a viewing.

It is interesting seeing how air travel has changed from 1968 when the film was released. There appears to be seamless transfer from the departure entrance to the gate. No security!

I was drawn to this film, not for Steve McQueen interestingly enough but British director Peter Yates. I had watched Yates earlier British film, Robbery (1967) that also has a car chase albeit smaller in scale.

Magic (1978)

Early Hopkins provided a foresight to characters to follow

[7/10 · 20 March 2024]

I was taken aback by a very young Anthony Hopkins as a magician who we see snap at the start of the film on stage because the audience are rudly ignoring his act.

However Hopkins (Corky) adapts his act to include ventriloquism using a rude puppet called Fats in his act. An act that develops more popularity and even the attention of television executives and an agent, Ben played by Burgess Meredith (of Rocky fame).

Corky seems to talk to Fats at an alarming rate in 'ordinary' conversation exhibiting mental health symptoms in the process that Ben notices with deadly consequences.

Added to the mix of the screenplay is a love story where Corky is reunited with a childhood sweetheart, Peggy (Ann Margret). Again the puppet becomes involved in the love match with deadly consequences.

Hopkins exhibits signs with the Corky role that he would go on to repeat 12 years later to great acclaim as Hannibal Lecter in Silence of the Lambs (1991).

All in all a highly deserving thriller from director Richard Attenborough that should be watched. The score by Jerry Goldsmith adds to the tension.

The Stranger (II) (2022)

A strange Australian thriller

[6/10 · 19 March 2024]

The film is loosely based on a real life murder investigation in Australia so I don't want to cause any upset with my somewhat negative thoughts about this film.

I say negative in that I found it very slow developing as others have alluded to. Indeed I failed to develop an attachment to the film in its first act. It does require a degree of concentration to the plot lines that are developing.

The film has a bleak subject matter, that of a murder suspect, suspected of abducting a teenage boy and murdering him several years before. An investigation that brings together undercover interstate Australian agencies.

The performances DO develop as the film goes into its second and third acts and my score for it increased.

It's Australian but Mad Max, Wake In Fright it ain't. The only facets I could share from Mad Max in particular were the suspect facial hair of the lead actors!

A slow burner yes. Try and persevere is my advice.

The Royal Hotel (2023)

Film that provides a modern twist to the outback bar genre

[7/10 · 17 March 2024]

I went into this viewing completely blind apart from a sneak 30 second look at the trailer. It being an Australian film, a film industry that releases countless films I like this does not disappoint.

Two Canadian student types, Hannah and Liv are on a sort of working holiday, ending up as bar staff at an outback bar called The Royal Hotel in the middle of nowhere. The locations and atmosphere of the Royal Hotel instantly evoked memories of Australian cinema like Wake In Fright (1971).

The bar is frequented with the usual cast in such films of loud, drunk, sexually frustrated locals who are very freaky and disturbing in their behaviour towards Hanna and Liv with some violent consequences and tension.

The film being of the horror genre has a crescendo ending which I won't spoil but is a good ending in my opinion.

They certainly make good thriller films in the land Down Under!

Carry on Emmannuelle (1978)

The film is not Carry On Confession Love Crazy!

[4/10 · 14 March 2024]

It has taken me many years to painfully sit through this film. Previously I ejected the DVD after 5 minutes.

The film is ideologically part of the original run of Carry On 'comedy' films but the other reviews on here touch on it's many omissions and failures (not contraceptive).

Many of the original 'regulars' that had become staples of the successful franchise are missing for various reasons that are well documented. A shame because I could imagine some scenes where they would have improved the film.

The film, although still relatively low budget does seem to have moved on from the innocent entendres of earlier films. Obviously trying to unsuccessfully compete with other 1970s UK comedy films of a more adult nature such as the Confessions films.

The scenes with the few regulars left are quite good and sad at the same time. Although the sight of a body building Kenneth Williams nearly made me choke my tea.

There are 'modern' scenes flagshipping British Airways Concorde aircraft spoilt by silly cartoon like scenes of its nose becoming erect. A sad way to end the franchise until 1992.

It got me thinking if stars such as George Cole, Dennis Waterman and Ronnie Barker could have rekindled the franchise into the 1980s? We will never know.... The producers could have inserted a Sid James (died in 1976) laugh into the credits for nostalgia?

Anatomy of a Fall (2023)

Anatomy of a mystery. Conclusions the film struggles to provide.

[8/10 · 10 March 2024]

I usually like my films to provide conclusive answers to things like murders and death. In fact to anything! Be warned in this death mystery you mainly aren't being fed much conclusive evidence.

We follow a mysterious death in the French Alps as a novelist couple Sandra and University lecturer Samuel reside at a chalet with their visually impaired son.

Samuel falls to his death from the upper floor with devastating consequences where after initial investigation wife Sandra is made the primary suspect and a courtroom drama ensues including a tape recording of the couple's fiery relationship. Add to the mix that the main witness is the visually impaired son.

The French/English movie plot has death, a courtroom drama, foreign language with subtitles and plenty of thought processes to contend with the lack of conclusive evidence.

The film is pretty long but keeps the viewer engrossed throughout. The courtroom scenes are pretty different to your usual legal angle being French. Don't be put off some scenes are cleverly shot in English.

I never thought I would be endeared to such a film but I couldn't leave the screen. The plot, the cast, the French legal angle, the film towards the end where the son takes the stand are all highlights. A film I recommend wholeheartedly.

King Richard (2021)

King Richard of USA tennis, not England!

[7/10 · 10 March 2024]

Biopic of the Williams' sister's of tennis and their childhood and in particular their father, Richard Williams (an excellent Oscar worthy performance!) by Will Smith.

Richard Williams is portrayed as an annoying, loving, determined influence on his five daughter's and in particular the tennis talent of Venus and Serena Williams.

I say annoying in a good way. He (Richard) in some scenes just goes over the too and has to be reined in by his wife.

As in all these films I don't know how much h is true such as a crescendo that ends with Venus journey onto the professional tennis tour. Richard also wants to protect his daughter from the influence of dark forces that have ruined the career of other young stars.

Will Smith's performance is good. He battles at all stages the system, in that I mean a white orientated tennis circuit in the USA. The ending shows he (Richard) is ultimately right.

Even for non experts of tennis there are elements of the film that will appeal to everyone. A typical underdog sports film as has been seen so often! In some ways I don't know where else this film could have gone.

On the Yard (1978)

Prisoner Cell Block H it ain't.

[5/10 · 1 March 2024]

The film is a typical prison yarn that ticks all the boxes of your prison film which lowered its rating to me somewhat. It brought nothing new to the genre, albeit being from 1978.

The daily routine of the prisoners including recreation time 'on the yard' was a bore just as much as the prisoners mundane daily routine I would have thought.

All the usual tropes of the genre including the inevitable parole hearing, top dog (although said character is never referred to as top dog), murder, cruel guards are all here.

The film tries to bring in a bit of extortion, murder and ingenious escape attempt aboard a hot air balloon to excite its audience but by that stage I was in a slumber watching it. I mean take the said escape attempt in a hot air balloon. The balloon is just slowly rising from the prison in full view of the watch towers lights. Why didn't the guards just shoot it down?