Who payed the critics

Too much of everything

Pretty Good

A lot of fun.

I saw this film in the theater when it was released. For more than a decade I had jobs where I worked nights and saw virtually every movie that hit the theaters in my mid-sized town, sometimes two or three in a day - even driving to other nearby larger cities that got films we didn't. I watched videos quite a lot too. This is the only movie in my entire life I've ever walked out on... ever! There was not one single character that had a single redeeming quality. They weren't just flawed, they were broken. I couldn't identify/connect with them, I couldn't relate to them, I couldn't dig up a single scrap of empathy for any of the lot of them. John Voight's character was the worst as I recall, but dear Lord the monomaniacal self-absorption of those people was simply not entertaining. And to give you an idea of what I AM willing to sit through, I've watched Blood Sucking Freaks and finished it. But these characters were totally... repellent is the only word I can think begins to describe my response with any accuracy.I watch movies to be entertained, not tortured.

The DVD of the Ashby cut of the film (which he'd donated without telling anyone that it had fifteen extra minutes) was released with great fanfare. Finally this film had a chance of being seen in the director's vision.Except that we are no better off. This is still a horrid film that goes nowhere.Ashby was a fine director who unfortunately got lost in a drug haze in his later years. Despite the enthusiasm of all concerned in the interviews on the DVD, this is a movie that runs out of steam very early. Voight plays an obnoxious character whom we don't pull for, and Burt Young is wasted as his buddy.

"Lookin' to Get Out" is directed by Hal Ashby one of the most original and underrated directors of all time, but the 1970's was his best decade directing classics like "Being There" and "Harold and Maude". In the 1980's his final decade he release minor works and then died in 1988. In 1982 he directed this film written by Jon Voight about two gamblers trying to get away of trouble after one of them lose a lot of money on a bet. Alex (Voight) and Jerry (Burt Young) go to Las Vegas and they pretend to be friends of Bernie Gold (Richard Bradford) the owner of a hotel casino and enjoy a high class hotel suite and have some fun. But Harry (Jude Farese) the guy who Jerry owes money is trying to find them. And also there's time to see some old friends like Patti (Ann-Margret) a prostitute who was romantically involved with Jerry, now living with Bernie and her daughter (Angelina Jolie, very little making her first appearance on films). It's a comedy with two lost characters running away of trouble and creating another ones. It's very different from any other works from Ashby, it's empty, pointless, easy to follow in some parts, and no great acting. But it's enjoyable to watch and more easy to follow than "Shampoo" (great film but so many confusing and long considering that is a comedy). But compared to "Harold and Maude" this is a disappointment. What makes this film good is Burt Young who has a great and funny character, finally he made something so likable as much as Polly in the "Rocky" series. His best joke in the movie is ask Jon Voight's character every time she sees a smiling woman if she's a hooker. Voight, by the way, has a few good scenes, most of the time his shouting his lines and being annoying with his partner. Entertaining in some strange level, but if you expect clever humor, interesting lines or a original plot stay away of it because you won't find it here. 9/10

This is a disappointment for anyone familiar with the classics of Hal Ashby. Jon Voight seems to feel the need to scream every line (I guess he liked what he wrote!). It's one of those films that suffers from the absence of any likeable characters.