Liotta' s performance

I always thought that Liotta would've made an awesome Terminator. He's got that ice cold demeanor down to a science. Too old now tho.

I don't really know about your question. Perhaps the warden was just sadistic enough to throw Liotta to the wolves and not give him the satisfaction of a quick death. I only say this because of how shocked/pissed he was after the fat traitor radios that Liotta had escaped Merek's camp.

The only thing I thought was overly trite about Liotta's character was the "haunted past of a military man ordered to do atrocities". Maybe I just don't like the way it was revealed with the "fire montages". It just came off as hokey and especially the way he dealt with it.

I totally agree with everything you said though. Had this movie been filmed today, there most likely would have been a love interest (tough Michele Rodriguez type or a hapless maiden-type, flip a coin), the young boy "sidekick" would have lived, etc. In my opinion, the less producers & opinions involved in the process most of the time, the better. Forget focus groups and what is conventional - unless, of course, you're just making the next popcorn Matthew McConaughey rom-com.