Lock Up

Although reviled for his macho roles, Stallone is a shrewd star who knows his limitations; the problem is that he tends to give his audience exactly what they expect, and no more. In this tough prison drama, he plays Frank Leone, a model prisoner with only six months to serve. Suddenly transferred to a maximum security hell-hole presided over by sadistic warden Drumgoole (Sutherland) - whose custody he previously escaped - he is pushed to the edge by a systematic campaign of harrasment and beatings. Leone at first resists, but finally cracks when a psycho about to be released says he's been hired by Drumgoole to rape and kill Leone's girlfriend (Fluegel). Always at his best when smouldering before the burn, Stallone makes the most of a tailor-made role, with useful support from a gallery of multi-ethnic archetypes. Effectively cast against type, Sutherland sports a fearsome haircut and spits out hackneyed hate with more conviction than it deserves. A competent action picture, directed with considerable kinetic power.