Upamanyu Biswas
Directed by Mikael Håfström, ‘Escape Plan’ chronicles the exploits of a veteran prison escape artist, Ray Breslin, who runs a private security firm known as Breslin-Clark. When a top-secret contract from the federal government arrives on Breslin’s doorstep, the protagonist has to decide whether he wants to take it or leave it. Concern starts spreading among the group as they learn the off-grid nature of the facility Breslin has to break out of and the lack of surveillance they have over the prison. Once there, the escape artist starts questioning his decision after witnessing the extreme practices within the facility administered by the psychopathic warden and its ominous designation, the Tomb. SPOILERS AHEAD.
The Impossible Task of Escaping the Fictional Tomb
The Tomb in ‘Escape Plan’ is a fictional prison crafted by scriptwriters Miles Chapman and Arnell Jesko. It is a prototype facility constructed to house disappeared prisoners who are deemed as a major threat to ordinary people. However, after entering the institute, Breslin learns that it is a shady operation run by the malicious Warden Willard Hobbes. After reading Breslin’s works, Hobbes designed the facility to be impenetrable and inescapable. Additionally, it is not as legitimate as it seems from the outside, as its practices are borderline inhumane and susceptible to the whims of Hobbes, who has an iron grip over the facility. Later, the protagonist learns that The Tomb is, in fact, a prison on a carrier ship in the middle of the ocean.
In the past, several detention centers have been designated colloquially as The Tombs, like the New York City Halls of Justice and House of Detention and Manhattan Detention Complex North Tower. All of them were linked to the Manhattan Detention Complex, which was a former municipal jail in New York City. While the fictional prison in the movie may share its name with a real-life prison complex, the similarities between them are sparse beyond their monikers. The Tomb from ‘Escape Plan’ is a mobile facility built inside a carrier ship that roams around the Earth’s oceans, which separates it from the conventional structure of the Manhattan-based prison. Moreover, it is considered a state-of-the-art modern prison with no shackles to the past.
‘Escape Plan’ was filmed across a multitude of locations, which helped authentically weave the different backdrops. However, a lot of the scenes in The Tomb, specifically some of the fight scenes between Breslin and Drake near the end, were filmed on the bulk carrier RICAN. The production team also utilized the facilities of Spiderwood Studios in Austin, Texas. It is possible that a lot of the interior shots of the Tomb were recorded in the studio environment as it offers more versatility. The location is undoubtedly the film’s primary setting, as it sets up the stakes of the thriller and the high-octane environment necessary to push the protagonist to his limits. Outside of its narrative prominence, however, it is a fictional prison with no ties to reality.
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