Escape from Pretoria// Brains Over Brawn

The morning greeted me with soft warmth and the sun seemed to rise early. It slipped through my curtains, signaling that I got my ass up but I am not one to get out of bed on a typical August morning. I’d rather draw the curtains, push open the windows to let the muggy or crisp air in—whichever one nature decided to show up with for that day—and then I climb back into bed.  With quiet in the air, I thought the mood was perfect for a movie. So I went through a list of movies I had collected from Reddit, threw a lot and it fell on *Escape From Pretoria*.  “Where have you been all my life?” I asked, satisfactorily. This movie is the kind of prison break movie that trades big explosions for sweaty palms and held breath and I absolutely loved it.  Fun fact is that it’s based on a true story and you could feel that in every detail. There’s no Hollywood gloss anywhere; just grit, ingenuity and the constant threat of being caught. **Grab your popcorn**  Set in 1979 South Africa during apartheid, the story follows Tim Jenkin (Daniel Radcliffe) and Stephen Lee (Daniel Webber), two anti-apartheid activists who get locked up in Pretoria Prison for distributing banned political leaflets.  **What exactly was their crime?** Well, they fought the regime with words. **And their mission after the arrest?** To get out. And to do it without anyone noticing. **** What fascinates me here is how they plan their escape. I’m used to insiders helping out or some tunnel digging, or maybe a riot but no. I was surprised with something unconventional, something actually mind blowing.  Tim, the nerdy one, spends weeks secretly crafting wooden keys to open the prison doors one by one. It’s meticulous, methodical and pretty genius. The tension I got from this movie was peak and it doesn’t stem from gunfights or chases but from simply watching them slide a key into a lock, praying it turns before a guard walks by.  Daniel Radcliffe^{actually my first impression of him}completely disappears into this role. He’s a tightly wound man who is aware that the smallest mistake could mean more years behind bars. And his accomplices also help add both tension and heart.  As for the pacing, it’s solid for the most part. It’s a slow burn, but in an interesting way. You definitely want it to take its time so every step of the plan feels earned. The sound design really helps too; gosh those little clicks, footsteps and rattling locks really set me on edge.  Would I recommend it? Definitely. It’s smart, tense and proof that sometimes the quietest moments can be the most nail-biting. Rating? ⅘