Der Mann ohne Nerven

"Breakout" is a lightweight action film but worth a peek, especially if you're a Charles Bronson fan. It's not one of his best movies but manages to be entertaining, albeit corny, most of the time. If you want to see a great movie with Bronson in it, check out "The Magnificent Seven;" if you want to see a great Charles Bronson movie, watch "The Mechanic."

Charles Bronson gets the rare chance to exercise his comic chops in this relatively lighthearted role (I've never seen him smile and joke so much before). Apart from that, "Breakout" is nothing special, there is very little action, and after all the anticipation the actual ecsape sequence is totally unbelievable. The only other notable part of the movie is the eye-popping (no pun intended) finish to the plane field fight. **1/2 out of 4.

Tom Gries("Will Penny") directs this thin drama that casts Charles Bronson as independent pilot Nick Colton, enlisted by a desperate wife(Jill Ireland) who wants him to fly into a Mexican prison to rescue her husband(Robert Duvall) who she insists was framed by the mafia. Colton agrees for $50,000, though of course the plan doesn't go as smoothly as they had hoped...

Though this has a good cast, there is little else about this film that is memorable, and credibility isn't that high either. Some goofy comedy involving costar Randy Quaid dressed as a woman doesn't help! Tom Gries did far better with "Will Penny"; perhaps his heart just wasn't in this?

Robert Duvall must have felt like the Count Of Monte Cristo in Breakout. Not sharing in his wealthy grandfather's right-wing business type politics, Duvall is framed for a murder in Mexico while he's in Chile flown back and sentenced to a Mexican prison for 28 years. Only the fact that he's grandfather John Huston's blood saves him from execution. Or more than likely he would have been executed forthwith with all the problems he's causing.

The thought that his own family could be responsible does not even factor into Duvall's wife Jill Ireland trying to free him. For that she goes to commercial pilot Charles Bronsonto get the job done. Bronson's good for a dishonest dollar if you have enough of them. He and assistant Randy Quaid will do what they have to and in Quaid's case it involves one attempt with Quaid in drag.

Bronson proves to have a droll sense of humor in this film. The drag business with Randy Quaid is one example, another is his use of Sheree North who is married to deputy sheriff Roy Jenson and the girl needs some spending loot. Sheree has some of the best scenes in Breakout.

Charles Bronson fans should be very happy with Breakout at how he beats some considerable odds stacked against him.

I would recommend this file just so you could see a very young Randy Quaid dress up like a Mexican prostitute, but this film offers so much more. Its an excellent prison movie. The acting is very good, especially from Bronson. This is the perfect late night file.