(1978)2.5Jason GibnerA science fiction film with tremendous aspirations yet obviously made with an extremely limited budget, Escape From DS-3 does the absolute best it can with almost nothing. Basically a prison escape movie set in space, the film brings with it all the clichés that go hand in hand with both prison and science fiction flicks yet manages to keep the two from becoming stale. It creates this miracle with a clever, no nonsense script from Peter Dawson that never becomes campy and a well-paced editing style. Also adding to the unique charm of the film is the fact that directors Allan Sandler and Robert Emenegger use only a handful of small, white-walled claustrophobic sets. Coupled with the almost nonexistent score, seeing the same sets over and over make Escape From DS-3 appear more like a bizarre sci-fi stage play rather than an actual motion picture. While the film constantly throws around big ideas like female robot sex slaves and brutal outer-space executions, the only thing holding it back are the sometimes embarrassingly low production values. It is obvious that Sandler and Emenegger took Escape From DS-3 quite seriously, and they have created a quirky little sci-fi gem that has almost been forgotten and is worth a look by a new audience.
