Fortress

"In the year 2017, one corporation is building a fortress for the ultimate takeover... your mind."

1992 1h 35m EN

😐

6.1

MID

★6.1TMDB · 778

ActionThrillerScience Fiction

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

In the future, the inmates of a private underground prison are computer-controlled with cameras, dream readers, and devices that can cause pain or death. John and his illegally pregnant wife Karen are locked inside "The Fortress" but are determined to escape before the birth of their baby.

“In the year 2017, one corporation is building a fortress for the ultimate takeover... your mind.”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Cast

Christopher Lambert
John Henry Brennick
Kurtwood Smith
Prison Director Poe
Loryn Locklin
Karen B. Brennick
Clifton Collins Jr.
Niño Gomez
Jeffrey Combs
D-Day
Lincoln Kilpatrick
Abraham
Tom Towles
Stiggs
Vernon Wells
Maddox

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Stuart Gordon
Writers: Steven Feinberg, David Venable, Terry Curtis Fox
Languages: English
Countries: Australia, United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 84% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

34 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: Australia, United States of America.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Fortress (1992) Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Stuart Gordon, shot by David Eggby. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Tim Wellburn shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Christopher Lambert and Kurtwood Smith and Loryn Locklin carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "In the year 2017, one corporation is building a fortress for the ultimate takeover... your mind.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Stuart Gordon directs. David Eggby behind the camera. Tim Wellburn cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in Australia, United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Earned back only 84% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
234 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3International production across 2 countries: Australia, United States of America.
4Part of the "Fortress (1992) Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
5Directed by Stuart Gordon, shot by David Eggby. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Editor Tim Wellburn shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Christopher Lambert and Kurtwood Smith and Loryn Locklin carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "In the year 2017, one corporation is building a fortress for the ultimate takeover... your mind.".
9IMDB entry: tt0106950 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Classified under 9 themes, including "prison", "future", "escape", "cyborg".

The technical file

Cinematography: David Eggby
Editing: Tim Wellburn
Production design: David Copping
Costume design: Terry Ryan
Makeup / hair: Margaret Archman
VFX supervisor: Paul Gentry
Sound: Lance Brown
Stunt coordinator: Glenn Boswell
Runtime: 95 min · 1h 35m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $8,000,000
Box office: $6,739,141
Return: 84% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Fortress (1992)

Part of

Fortress (1992) Collection

A 1992 Australian-American science fiction film which was followed by a sequel in 2000.

Also by

Stuart Gordon

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

Filipe Manuel Neto2023-08-15
★ 5/10
This average quality film has creativity and some good qualities, but it can't overcome all the problems it faces. I didn't have very high expectations when I decided to see this movie. I knew that it was a film set in a future that, for us, is now past (the year 2017) and that it was yet another film about a prison break. I also knew that it had been a success in Europe, especially on the VHS market, and that it had been forgotten since the end of the tapes and no one was talking about it anymore. So, I decided to take a look, see if it was worth it, and I liked what I saw. It is a creative film, made by people with ideas and the ability to come up with imaginative solutions, based on a competent cast, and which made good use of its short budget. The script takes us to a high-security prison, built underground in the United States desert, in order to accompany a couple who have just been arrested for trying to have a second child, something prohibited by the “one-child policy” then in effect. strength in the USA. Sentenced to the outrageous sentence of 31 years in prison, they are placed inside that place, where everything is controlled by a computer and depends on a vicious and sadistic director, and on the computer system itself, which sometimes seems to have a life of its own. Even the dreams of these inmates are controlled and censored via a mechanism installed in the gut, and that could kill them if they step over the risk (literally). The script has a serious problem: it is based on an old premise that is prison escapes. We've seen a lot of them already, because almost every great fugue in history has been adapted for the screen in some way. However, the film tries to get around the problem with doses of imagination and creativity that futurism accepts well. The graphic violence of some scenes can also bother some people, but I think I've even seen worse. But be warned: we have everything from exploding intestines to half-human androids with a misshapen appearance. There is an investment in visual effects, special effects, make-up, quality sets and costumes, and this investment has paid off. Unfortunately, the cinematography is not very good, it is even below the standard of the time the film was made, but I coped well with it. Stuart Gordon gives the film a well-executed, effective direction, managing to take full advantage of what he has to work with. Christopher Lambert, the eternal McLeod, is in excellent shape here and does a solid job, even if the role is simple and effortless. Kurtwood Smith is an efficient villain, cold and worthy of our contempt, but he also provokes some sympathy for his quest for a certain warmth that his character has lost. Loryn Locklin is also a welcome addition, but I felt several times that the character had little to do and was limited to being a damsel in distress. Tom Towles, Clifton Collins Jr., Vernon Wells, Jeffrey Combs and Lincoln Kilpatrick provide effective support, but they can do no more.

Production companies