‘Escape’, the unclassifiable film about the man who dazzled Scorsese and wanted to go to prison

The unclassifiable is not a pejorative, as Cortés defines it this way: “It is one of our little secret prides to try to make something unlike anything else, and therefore it is natural that we should run out of references.” El Periodico. “’Escape’ is a story Broken man who decided to get rid of life and he feels that he has the right, like everyone else, to have his freedom taken away and to stop making decisions. “He wants to be told when to get up, when to go to bed, and when to breathe.” And what better place to find that than prison? “With this material you can create a comedy, a ‘thriller’, a drama or an ‘Escape’; It always makes you laugh but it always makes you worry” he adds.

A luxury producer

Scorsese’s appearance as executive producer may come as a surprise if you didn’t know. professional love The director of the movie ‘Taxi Driver’ said he felt about Cortés’ work some time ago. “Scorsese is the reason and reference for me to devote myself to cinema since my youth. He is the pagan god whose candles he lights before planning a sequence,” says the director of ‘Buried’, who managed to meet him at the Princess of Asturias Awards and became interested in his films. When he saw the script for ‘Escape’, Scorsese said no.I haven’t read anything like this. “He told me he realized it would be difficult to get funding and he wanted to be a part of it. Help it exist,” he says happily.

Casas found out three days before filming: “I haven’t met him. But he’s seen the movie, he’s seen your work, it’s like you don’t even believe it,” he confesses to this newspaper. Goya’s winner ‘Thou shalt not kill’ He states that in front of his character there are “people who do not accept what he did, who believe that he is being taken advantage of, who empathize with him, who feel sorry for him, and who see him as a villain.” child.” And he thinks that’s exactly the beauty of ‘Escape’: that you ask yourself things. “I find it interesting to create controversy,” he adds. His character shares little with the others Homophone novel by Enrique RubioThe film from which the film is inspired initially follows an 18-year-old young man with Asperger syndrome. “Rodrigo told me not to go there, that we would create our own character,” Casas warns. That’s why N is older and feels guilty about an event in the past that could explain a lot of things that have happened. Or not.

novel

“Character has nothing to do with it,” Cortés explains. “But the movie It wouldn’t have happened without Enrique’s novelThe director says that they were friends with the author of the novel and that he showed him the draft before editing. “I liked it very much, but it seemed to me that if fully adapted to the cinema, the film would turn out to be discursive, cold and essayistic. The author allowed it to betray him and create a universe in which the audience would receive the same emotions, but in a “stronger” way through the cinematographic language “He gave me permission because he knew that I would not overdo the idea, that I would invent another universe that would arise from his own, he has modifications, but the DNA comes from Enrique Rubio,” he insists.

In that universe, during the prison escape, the hero meets many other characters. “Like that Like ‘Odyssey’‘, Cortés makes his analogy. “Ulysses makes his journey and finds himself with Polyphemus, Circe, and the rest of the clan at different stages of his journey.” These are periodic but very important for getting to know N. “They show him something, they teach him something, or they try to take him somewhere, but generally they come out clipped and crazy because N cannot be manipulated.” That’s why they can rely on “strong” players of this caliber. José Sacristan (judge), Blanca Portillo (prison psychologist), Anna Castillo (sister), Willy Toledo (psychiatrist), Juanjo Puigcorbe (prison director)…

“For me, that was a huge asset,” says the director, “and in addition, I think they helped Mario improve his game, because a player is only as good as the stimulus the person in front of him gives him.” . “They make you better,” Casas admits. “You learn even more when you see huge actors with their nerves and desires,” says the actor, who shows off all his acting talent. And even dares to do it A note from the ‘Baturro hardcore’ video‘. “Instead of dreaming about Vicent Minelli with Ginger and Fred, we’re making outrageous jokes with the guards,” he says politely. A scene shot in a single take, without cuts, in which Casas is not recognized until the camera flies over him. It’s a choreography that the actor had a hard time rehearsing, but he’s proud of it. “It finally worked out for me,” he boasts.

A Kafkaesque story

Do they all sound like that? Kafkaesque? Like that. At one point, one wonders whether the director wanted to pay homage to his short film ‘Seven Scenes from the Life of a Bug’, about ‘The Metamorphosis’, which he shot when he was only 16 years old. And yes, he had thought about that while cowering in a corner of his isolation cell filming with Casas. “Like that insect played by a naked actor without any make-up,” he recalls. I also wanted to convey it somehow suffering this caused ‘Buried‘ film showing a man trapped in a coffin. “Although this is more like the opposite of ‘Embedded.’ Because this is the story of a man who wants to step out of the box. This is that of a man who wants to go to jail. “Although they are both Kafkaesque,” ​​he admits.

‘Escape’ is a bit of a reminder of what it means to travel to India. Just as there are unique moments, there are also very difficult moments that one does not want to be in. But he still believes you should have the experience. Because it was worth it.