Stars: Sylvester Stallone, John Amos, Donald Sutherland, Frank McRae, Darlanne Fluegel, Sonny Landham

Director: John Flynn

Summary: A man with six months left to serve in prison is moved to a maximum security site under the sadistic hand of a warden with a personal vendetta against him. He must risk all to stand up to the torture and degradation the warden has created.

An inmate (Sylvester Stallone) with six months left to serve in a prison sentence is moved from a minimum security site to a maximum security facility under the sadistic hand of a warden (Donald Sutherland) with a personal vendetta against him. He must risk it all to stand up to the plot of torture and degradation the warden has created.

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The 1980s was the make-and-break decade for Sylvester Stallone's career, and Lock Uptypifies the direction he took in his post-Rockyand Rambodays. It's a concept movie in the same mould as Rambo IIIjust before it, and Tango &Cashjust after. The hero (Frank Leone) is put in jeopardy (Gateway Prison), establishes a nemesis to defeat (in the shape of Donald Sutherland as Warden Drumgoole), makes a few friendships that can be sacrificed along the way (Tom Sizemore as Dallas) and does what he does in the name of love (Darlanne Flugel as Melissa). The revenge-twisted warden puts him through hell over a shared back-story. The torture ranges from being made to hold his breath in a delousing chamber to sanity-stretching periods in "The Hole". It's all about how far a man can be pushed. But being a Stallone vehicle, it's not all depressing. Composer Bill Conti reunites with the star to put the same sort of heroic fuel behind a prison-yard football game as he did for Rocky. A couple of feel-good songs pep up the love story and a montage of camaraderie in rebuilding a broken-down car. There's a healthy sense of realism achieved by having Sly doing all his own stunts and the use of a real-life prison. If the elements lead to a by-the-numbers conclusion (it's no Shawshank Redemption), remember this was some years before the actor wanted to get serious.

On the DVD: A surprising amount of footage has been assembled in the two behind-the-scenes featurettes: we see Stallone directing his own fight scenes, and how use of New Jersey's Rahway Prison came with 2,500 real inmates to keep under control. Sound bite interviews reveal Stallone's worldly philosophies, then a trailer and gallery of 17 photos round out a decent overall package. --Paul Tonks

Aspect Ratio:	1.85 Wide Screen, 16:9 Anamorphic Wide Screen
Main Language:	English
Region:	Region 2
Special Features:	Trailer, Making Of Lock Up, Behind The Scenes Footage, Sylvester Stallone Profile, Cast And Crew Interviews, Photo Gallery
Subtitles:	Danish, English, German, Italian, Norwegian, Turkish
Year:	1989
Release Date:	May 20, 2002
Runtime:	104 minutes
Certification:
Catalogue Number:	M P 035 D
Label:	Take One Collection
Keywords:	Action, General, Wide, Screen, Lock, Up, Adventure
Genre:	Action/Adventure