‘Escape’: Masao Adachi’s fugitive biopic salutes a kindred spirit

Satoshi Kirishima was the happiest-looking fugitive in all of Japan. For nearly half a century, his smiling visage (fresh-faced, glasses, long hair) was a fixture on police posters nationwide. It was hard to believe that he was a wanted terrorist who’d taken part in a bombing campaign waged against Japanese corporations by an extremist left-wing group in the 1970s. He looked more like an off-duty pop idol.

In “Escape,” Masao Adachi’s fictionalized biopic about Kirishima, one of the first things the fugitive does after going on the run is to give himself a haircut. He also resolves to stop smiling, which is a smart move. It’s no spoiler to reveal that he would manage to evade capture for the rest of his life, only disclosing his true identity a few days before his death in 2024.

Based on the few known facts about this outlaw’s life on the run, Adachi has fashioned a spirited existential drama that’s more interested in dialectical theater than generating suspense. The director’s interest lies in what kept Kirishima going during his decades-long flight, and why he chose to blow his cover at the end of it all.

It’s a respectful, even admiring, portrait — but that should come as no surprise. Adachi, a mainstay of the 1960s Japanese New Wave who quit cinema the following decade to join the Japanese Red Army, is more than sympathetic to the cause.

Now 85, he’s still as committed as ever to a radically political cinema. This is the guy who made a docudrama about the man who killed former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, “Revolution+1” (2023), on such a quick turnaround that a rough cut was able to be screened on the day of Abe’s state funeral.

“Escape” is a little more finessed, relatively speaking. Whether thanks to the involvement of veteran cinematographer Yutaka Yamazaki or simply to improvements in camera technology, it doesn’t look as frowzy as Adachi’s other work from the past two decades.

The film finds playful ways to dramatize its protagonist’s mostly internal struggles. It moves freely between dreams and reality, as Kirishima debates ideology and tactics in real and imagined encounters with old comrades, strangers and even his own doppelganger. A narrative voiceover provides further insights, while going out of its way (sometimes pedantically) to set the record straight.

“Escape” loses some momentum during its latter half, as the issue of whether its hero will be able to evade detection gives way to the question of how he should go on living. It’s a story of how idealism endures in the long run, which is something Adachi would know about. References to major news events — and Kirishima’s recollections of them — serve mainly as markers of the passage of time.

The quality of the performances varies, but Kanji Furutachi is excellent as the older Kirishima (taking over from Rairu Sugita, who plays him as a younger man). He conveys both the conviction of a true believer and the mild derangement that comes from spending far too much time with only yourself for company.

While Adachi has spoken in interviews about how he wanted to understand his subject, the film could also be seen as a reflection on its maker. When Kirishima declares, “I will continue to fight!” as he skips off into the light at the story’s conclusion, it could be Adachi talking — though, hopefully, the old revolutionary isn’t quite finished yet.