Don Siegel did much to establish his reputation with Riot in Cell Block 11 in 1954, and he went back behind bars for this tough and compelling reconstruction of the only successful escape from San Francisco's notorious island prison in its 29-year history. Driven stir crazy by the strictures of warden Patrick McGoohan's regime and the brutality of his fellow inmates, Clint Eastwood plans an ingenious bid for freedom with Fred Ward and Jack Thibeau. Blessed with expert performances, Siegel shoots the preparations with an attention to detail that exerts as strong a grip as the events of the escape itself.

San Francisco Bay, January 18, 1960. Frank Lee Morris is transferred to Alcatraz, a maximum security prison located on a rocky island. Although no one has ever managed to escape from there, Frank and other inmates begin to carefully prepare an escape plan.