Escape From New York: Collector's Edition

New York has become a massive hive of violence, rage, and insufferable human misery. But enough about the news. The definitive edition of John Carpenter’s bleak action flick arrives in a two-disc set that blows the original DVD version out of the water like an escaping convict. Brand-new features go a long way toward answering nagging questions—such as “Is Harry Dean Stanton still alive?”—and the commentary with Carpenter (joined by Kurt Russell), while lifted directly from the original laser disc release nearly ten years ago, proves that he’s one of the only directors who can be informative without boring you to tears. There’s even a featurette on the new Snake Plissken comic book series (a special copy comes with the set). But the highlight is “Missing Reel #1,” the original sequence that was going to open the movie. It shows the bank heist that landed Plissken in police custody in the first place. Repeat after us: “This is the Duke of DVDs! It is A-Number One.”