Jailbreak review – the great, ingenious, Chilean escape

The last days of Pinochet's regime form the backdrop of this exciting dramatisation of a real prison-break plot

Here is the story of the biggest prison escape in Chilean history. In 1990, during the final days of the Pinochet regime, 49 leftwing prisoners escaped from a Santiago jail via a 60-metre-long tunnel dug over 18 gruelling months with spoons and screwdrivers. Local newspapers called it The Great Escape" and An Escape for the Movies"; the event was a natural for the big screen. Jailbreak digs into this historic episode with thrilling oomph and awe.

Much of the film's pleasure derives from the ingenious ways the prisoners manage to dig the tunnel right under the noses of the watchful, sadistic guards. At one point, the crew use a pornographic poster to cover the opening to the crawl space where they would ultimately stack more than 50 tonnes of dirt. The guard takes no notice; he quips that the model is still wearing too many clothes. Later, the camera pulls back to reveal the real scope of the tunnel, all masterfully rigged with lights. Goosebumps.