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'Lock Up': Stallone's Dumbest? I kinda liked it...

Okay, so I just rewatched 'Lock Up' (1989) the other night, and I’m prepared to be crucified for saying this, but… I kinda enjoyed it? I know, I know, it's Stallone at his most melodramatic and the plot is thinner than day-old coffee. The whole setup with Warden Drumgoole being this cartoonishly evil prison overlord who just hates Frank Leone because... Leone embarrassed him is just laughably stupid. And the dialogue? Lord have mercy on our ears. But still... There's something undeniably watchable about it. Maybe it’s the sheer, unadulterated '80s-ness of it all. The sweat, the muscles, the comradery, the random explosions of violence – it's all just so over-the-top. And while the whole 'innocent man framed' thing has been done to death, Stallone does a decent job portraying that quiet simmering rage. Plus, Donald Sutherland, even as a complete psycho, elevates the material slightly. That scene where he's taunting Leone in the workshop is genuinely creepy, even if it doesn't make a lick of sense that he'd just... walk in there alone. Maybe he felt safe because Stallone was busy building a car instead of, you know, escaping. I'm not saying it's good, mind you. It's definitely not 'Rambo' or 'Rocky'. But it's so ridiculously bad that it ends up being…entertaining? It's like a guilty pleasure that you know is terrible for you, but you can't help but indulge in anyway. Plus, the ending is so ridiculously over the top with Stallone throwing Drumgoole into the electric chair that it provides at least one hilariously satisfying moment. I dunno, maybe I'm just a sucker for cheesy action flicks. Anyone else secretly enjoy this one, or am I completely alone in my cinematic depravity?

danthecritic
3 months ago
3 comments
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