The Escape is a 2018 drama about an ordinary woman who makes an extraordinary decision which will change her life forever.
Marriage. It’s not for everyone, even as society holds it up as one of those key pieces in success at being a productive member of the human race. As such, it makes for great cinema fodder with filmmakers taking to expressing its ups and downs in all possible genres. Have you seen War of the Roses lately? Still so good. Now, into the mix comes Dominic Savage‘s newest film The Escape, which sounds more like a car-chasing action flick than a romantic misadventure, but is almost as chaotic with a breakdown so complete and so authentic, it has a breathless quality to it that makes this one to watch.
Tara (Gemma Arterton) and Mark (Dominic Cooper) are in a phase, having been to the alter years before and now raising a family in a modest home with a modest living. Mark is the breadwinner, with Tara at home with the two young children, her routines ever so slowly wearing her down, dreams of being an artist withering away on the vine. From a distance, she would seem to be on the golden path as it were, but inside, she is bitter of her husband’s freedoms and the lack of support to get what she desires. With that in mind, she makes a jarring choice, one with harrowing ripples.
“I’m not happy,” says Tara in bed one day, being the first sign to Mark that things are not right, though we’ve seen the days go by with increasing weight. It’s this pressuring daily existence that Savage captures well at the start of The Escape, the idea that stay-at-home moms have it hard a tough sell since any mom (and yes, dad) will surely roll their eyes and say, “get on with it.” However, Savage, who wrote the screenplay, is careful to let us understand that Tara is more than just rattled by motherhood.
What’s further interesting is how Mark is fleshed out, not so much ‘the bad guy’ in all this, despite some apathy and misgivings about the mental state of his wife. It’s surprisingly well done. Savage gets oppressive with the crushing layers of burden on Tara, though that’s kind of hinted at right from the opening moments, and for some this might be too much. Not to spoil where it goes, but she ends up in Paris and seems unable to unspool herself from her would-be but undiagnosed depression. We are not meant to dislike or fall from empathy with her, and as such, feel a longing for her to make her return, but Savage ends up getting a little stuck in the mud here, even when a new man enters her life.
The Escape is led by a terrific performance from Arterton who just hasn’t found the mainstream success she seemed so destined for, but once again proves she is a fearless actor. She strips herself bare of the Hollywood glamour and utterly pours out her heart in an often disconcerting portrayal of despair. She is every reason to watch.