Prisoners of the Ghostland

Name: Prisoners of the Ghostland
Genre: Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller, Horror
Released: September 17, 2021
Duration: 103 min
Rating: 53
Cast: Bill Moseley, Canon Nawata, Charles Glover, Cici Zhou, Grace Feeney

2021

METASCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 33 Critic Reviews

See All

USER SCORE

Generally unfavorable reviews based on 28 Ratings

See All

3.8

VOTE NOW

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

3.8	Your Score
3.8	User Score Generally unfavorable reviews based on 28 Ratings

Would you like to write a review?

There is a 75 character minimum for reviews. If your review contains spoilers, please check the Spoiler box. Please do not use ALL CAPS. There is no linking or other HTML allowed. Your review may be edited for content. 0/5000

Check box if your review contains spoilers

Play Sound

Please enter your birth date to watch this video:

You are not allowed to view this material at this time.

Prisoners Of The Ghostland

Now Playing: Prisoners Of The Ghostland

Movie Details & Credits

Bitters End | Release Date: September 17, 2021 | Not Rated

Starring: Bill Moseley, Canon Nawata, Charles Glover, Cici Zhou, Grace Feeney, Jai West, Jeffrey Rowe, Louis Kurihara, Narisa Suzuki, Nick Cassavetes, Nicolas Cage, Saki Ohwada, Sofia Boutella, Tak Sakaguchi, Takato Yonemoto, Tetsu Watanabe, Young Dais

Summary: In the treacherous frontier city of Samurai Town, a ruthless bank robber (Nicolas Cage) is sprung from jail by wealthy warlord The Governor (Bill Moseley), whose adopted granddaughter Bernice (Sofia Boutella) has gone missing. The Governor offers the prisoner his freedom in exchange for retrieving the runaway. Strapped into a leather suitIn the treacherous frontier city of Samurai Town, a ruthless bank robber (Nicolas Cage) is sprung from jail by wealthy warlord The Governor (Bill Moseley), whose adopted granddaughter Bernice (Sofia Boutella) has gone missing. The Governor offers the prisoner his freedom in exchange for retrieving the runaway. Strapped into a leather suit that will self-destruct within five days, the bandit sets off on a journey to find the young woman—and his own path to redemption. [Sundance]… Expand

Director: Shion Sono

Genre(s): Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller, Horror

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 103 min

See All Details and Credits

Watch Now

Buy on

Stream On

Expand

Metascore

Positive:

Mixed:

Negative:

Critic Reviews

Polygon Matt Patches

Feb 1, 2021

It’s one of the director’s more mainstream efforts. What could easily devolve into a Crank-like exercise in hyperactivity is conducted with a steady hand and an appreciation for the details. Sono wants his audience to luxuriate in the brutal beauty of Boutella wielding a gatling gun. Read full review

The Playlist Jessica Kiang

Feb 1, 2021

It’s not very good except sometimes when it’s fantastic. Read full review

IndieWire David Ehrlich

Feb 1, 2021

Even when nothing else in the film makes sense, the unhinged ethos of its own creation leaves a clue behind with the clarity of a body-chalk outline. Read full review

Jordan Farley

Feb 2, 2021

Prisoners of the Ghostland exists entirely outside the norms and conventions of moviemaking. Really there’s only one word to describe it: nuts. Read full review

The Film Stage Jordan Raup

Feb 2, 2021

The actual experience of watching this gonzo dystopian samurai western is far from the shock-a-minute journey that one would expect, but even in its more banal sequences, Sono’s imaginative eye peeks through. Read full review

Richard Roeper

Sep 14, 2021

An “Escape From New York”-meets-“Mad Max” ripoff that desperately wants to be a bonkers, midnight drive-in cult classic but doesn’t have the camp value or the memorably off-the-wall storyline to make the cut. Read full review

Chuck Bowen

Feb 2, 2021

The film is a profound disappointment in part because it feels so overdetermined to live up to Sion Sono and Nicholas Cage’s respective brands. Read full review

SEE ALL 33 REVIEWS

Write a Review

User Reviews

RichardSayre

Sep 30, 2021

Nic Cage is at it again with the out of this world PRISONERS OF THE GHOSTLAND, a movie best enjoyed when you throw questions out the window and hold on for dear life. Its **** crazy, bonkers, trippy, dream-like, and pretty action packed. A mash up of Mad Max and everything that makes SionNic Cage is at it again with the out of this world PRISONERS OF THE GHOSTLAND, a movie best enjoyed when you throw questions out the window and hold on for dear life. Its **** crazy, bonkers, trippy, dream-like, and pretty action packed. A mash up of Mad Max and everything that makes Sion Sono so great, PRISONERS OF THE GHOSTLAND definitely isn't for everyone, mainly Sono and diehard Cage fans, but its most certainly unlike anything you've seen before. It relishes in the weird and the movie is that much better for it. Easily the weirdest movie of 2021. Cage delivers another delirious performance.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

Habibiehakim

Sep 22, 2021

7.5/10
I really really wanna give the movie a higher rating than Nicolas Cage's previous movie, Pig, but it is what it is, unfortunately at in the end, the movie still cannot reach that point, but did i still prefer Pig than this?, No, because somehow someway Prisoners Of The Ghostland is7.5/10
I really really wanna give the movie a higher rating than Nicolas Cage's previous movie, Pig, but it is what it is, unfortunately at in the end, the movie still cannot reach that point, but did i still prefer Pig than this?, No, because somehow someway Prisoners Of The Ghostland is simply a better movie, and besides all of that, Prisoners Of The Ghostland is strongly perform by Nicolas Cage and Sofia Boutella, the color, the cinematography, special effect, and Japan as always been a perfect location, Prisoners Of The Ghostland still delivers a good action packed, not perfect in the storytelling and that's the big issue in the film, but it's still worth watching, overall, Prisoners Of The Ghostland is pretty good.… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

TheQuietGamer

Nov 23, 2021

An intriguing pairing of Nicolas Cage and one of Japan's most notoriously wild directors that seemed poised to be the next Mandy. Playing out like a live-action oddball anime, this samurai western black comedy can certainly be delightfully strange at times. Yet, what keeps it from reachingAn intriguing pairing of Nicolas Cage and one of Japan's most notoriously wild directors that seemed poised to be the next Mandy. Playing out like a live-action oddball anime, this samurai western black comedy can certainly be delightfully strange at times. Yet, what keeps it from reaching the same heights as other of the Matchstick Men star's wackier outings like, say, Willy's Wonderland is that its peculiarity is really all it has to offer.

Sion Sono was intent on packing every scene with as many eccentric sights as possible, so there's always something interestingly bizarre to look at and I was left consistently impressed by his ability to direct such elaborate clutters of madness. The vast majority of it though occurs without meaning. An enticingly goofy opening gives way to a lengthy middle portion where the plotting hits a brick wall and only a few noteworthy moments can be found (all of which involve the lead's ballsack), before eventually picking up again in the action-packed finale. This causes the curious flourishes and outlandish visuals to often feel like filler content designed to pad out the length rather than anything of actual significance. Particularly inspired filler, but filler nonetheless.

If you're like me and check out Cage's work just to see whatever kind of ridiculous crap he's getting up to next, you'll get a sense of satisfaction out of knowing you watched what may very well be the weirdest release of his career thus far. It's weirdness without substance however so its staying power compared to his modern successes such as Color Out of Space is limited. Perhaps even being one of the more forgettable entries in his catalog overall, outside of the one or two instances where it delivers some of the most memorable Cage-isms to date.

6.6/10… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

umaumai

May 28, 2022

I’ve seen a lot of “films” trying to come off as high art. This was one of the most laborious things I’ve ever watched. I don’t mind the setting, visuals, the FX or the acting, but it needed to be filmed significantly better, and have a less “video” aesthetic, for it to earn how pompous itI’ve seen a lot of “films” trying to come off as high art. This was one of the most laborious things I’ve ever watched. I don’t mind the setting, visuals, the FX or the acting, but it needed to be filmed significantly better, and have a less “video” aesthetic, for it to earn how pompous it was coming off. It’s not horrible and at many times it was entertaining and different. However, it was trying way too hard to be different for the sake of being different. It has a story, but it’s more stream of consciousness how it gets from place to place as the plot moves forward. There might be higher meaning in a lot of the dialogue that is spoken, but it’s lost in the silly chanting and antics that are happening in every other scene. I swear it was like a cast of people try to out “Nicolas Cage” the actual Nicolas Cage.… Expand

0 of 2 users found this helpful02

JLau

Oct 5, 2021

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. It's a weird Japanese-western alternate universe and a girl has gone missing in the wasteland so they send out detained bank robber Nick Cage in an suit that will explode within five days if he does not find her.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

MetacriticOnur

Sep 17, 2021

bad
[ bad ]

adjective, worse, worst;(Slang) bad·der, bad·dest for 36.
not good in any manner or degree.

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

imthenoob

Apr 11, 2022

Made it about 20 minutes in and I shut it off. The movie is honestly pure garbage. The plot is total nonsense, The "acting" is laughable at best, and I truly could not click out of it fast enough.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

SEE ALL 15 REVIEWS