It has low-lifes living in the future, but there really isn't much high-tech and governments are still in control (not corporations). So do you consider Escape From New York to be cyberpunk?
Apparently the movie was an influence for William Gibson:
Escape from New York never made it big, but it’s been redone a billion times as a rock video. I saw that movie, by the way, when I was starting “Burning Chrome” and it had a real influence on Neuromancer.
But that doesn't immediately make it cyberpunk. After all, Gibson was also influenced by hard-boiled detective novels and that doesn't make those cyberpunk.
I could see the argument for this either way so I'm curious what your thoughts are.
It's streaming on Roku Channel and Freevee (Amazon Prime) if you haven't seen it before.
Yes, but that didn't happen until after Escape From LA ended. Prior to that, it may have looked end of the world inside the prison but society outside was still functioning.
I don't know. I throught the whole city looked like that. It's honestly been well over 20 years since I last saw it, so I've probably forgotten some parts. But the tone and aesthetic I remember was a very post-apocalyptic vibe