Tag: Metal Gear Solid

Image via Syfy Wyre

Throughout 2020 I have watched several various shows of varying degrees of caliber. Some better than others (Tiger King, the original Indiana Jones trilogy) to the not-so great (90 Day Fiancee, but shout out to my guy Big Ed). However during this time, I re-visited one of my all-time favorite classics: John Carpenter’s Escape From New York starring Kurt Russell. While Carpenter’s film did not achieve any major awards, his film received positive reviews from critics and was a commercial success, grossing more than $25 million at the box office. The film was nominated for four Saturn Awards, including Best Science Fiction Film and Best Direction. Its main character, Snake, has since become an icon in various mediums from video games to music and he is probably one of the most underrated action icons of the 21st century. That being said, I wanted to highlight his contributions to popular culture and being a diversified icon.

That glorious soundtrack: Carpenter’s work regarding sound is well-known. His work on the original Halloween is chilling and iconic in terms of nostalgia and his scores on both Escape from New York and Big Trouble in Little China hold a special place in my heart. The music is performed by Carpenter himself and is a triumphant melody of glorious synth music with Snake being the spearhead. Yeah, I might be biased since I grew up with these melodies, but his soundtracks are some of the best known tracks from the era. Carpenter has even gone on to perform these songs with his son at various venues. So obviously the diversification of the film has gone a bit further than originally anticipated.

The Metal Gear Solid connection: If you have read my earlier blog posts, you know I am a huge fan of video games. Although none might be closer to the top of my list than the iconic Metal Gear Solid franchise spearheaded by creator Hideo Kojima. In his quest to establish a signature action icon for his new video game, Metal Gear, Kojima went through a couple incarnations of the character’s image. Initially, the artwork of the original Metal Gear game the main character resembles the Michael Biehn incarnation of Kyle Reese in The Terminator. Though in his later appearances, the Metal Gear Snake resembles Russell as he portrayed Snake in the film. Later on, art director Yoji Shinkawa said that his appearance is based off Jean-Claude Van Damme’s physique and his facial appearance is that of actor Christopher Walken. In Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty Snake uses the alias “Pliskin” to hide his real identity during most of the game which is also the last name of the character in the film. Though Kojima later established that the connection to Carpenter’s film was not intentional, the roots of this relationship were definitely a great boost to each other.

Legacy: Snake’s impact on popular culture might not be as profound as other famous characters of his generation, but his niche is certainly well-deserved. His likeness went on to inspire a sequel to the original film, the campy “Escape from L.A.”, a novelization, a comic book and even a board game (got to love that 1980’s capitalism). If this blog has helped me reflect on anything, it is shedding the light on characters and stories that have inspired me in my careerand who wouldn’t get inspired by a grizzled and disgraced ex-special forces operative? I even keep a picture of Snake at my desk today, weird I know, but I am superstitious. So comment below with your favorite action movie icon!