SPOILER-FREE
This is Michael Bay’s best work in 19 years. This film is Rated R and has a runtime of 2 hours and 16 mins.
Ambulance is about 2 brothers who lose their crew in a deadly heist, hijack an ambulance with wounded hostages and recruit gang members to help them evade the entire LAPD.
So the action in this film has elements of Heat, Speed, The Town, Den of Thieves, Bourne Ultimatum, Wrath of Man, Die Hard with a Vengeance, Equalizer 2, 21 Bridges, Paul Walker’s era of Fast & Furious, the Bad Boys franchise–
In fact, one of the greatest highway chases ever shot is in Bad Boys 2, which was directed by Michael Bay. The action in Ambulance took all of those films up a notch.
It takes a good 12 to 15 minutes to establish the principal characters and build the world around these antiheroes. But then the film gets right to the action. And it’s a nonstop ride after that.
Michael Bay got new, sophisticated drone equipment and went nuts. He wanted to show them off and he did.
I’ve seen some criticisms about the drone shots and how nauseating the ride was. If I wait in line for an hour to ride a roller coaster, I want the thrill. Likewise, if I’m gunna pay $20–25 to see a 2-hour action film in IMAX or Dolby, I want all the turbulence. And this film gives you your money’s worth.
The drone shots were doing screwballs, triple axis and aerobatic maneuvers, and that’s what I paid for. It’s Bayem. You’re in the action. You feel like a member of the crew robbing the bank. That’s what I paid for. That’s what I came to see.
The weapons.
You ever see actors with guns in some of these movies– how you can tell right away that they went to the range 2 days before the director yelled, ACTION? And how the guns look like props?
The actors in this film were so convincing. Everybody was gripping their artillery like they knew what they were doing. Bump stocks were well positioned. They were holding their hammers like they were ready to bust off. It looked like these were well-trained cops and villains who’d been operating weapons for years. It was very believable. It didn’t look like they were acting at all. Even the extras looked like the real deal.
The actors:
Jake Gyllenhaal is funny. Who knew? His comedic timing was perfect. The jokes weren’t hilarious, his delivery made them funny.
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. He continues to give award winning performances no matter what project he’s in. He gave a stellar performance.
Eiza Gonzalez. You can tell her lines were written one dimensionally. But she elevated the words off the page and became that senior paramedic who wants to make it home alive.
The two actors that had the best dialogue were Garret Dillahunt and Olivia Stambouliah. They were the scene stealers of the film. They had great chemistry throwing lobs at each other. She had the best one-liners. I wanna see more from her. Soon as I got out the theater, I Googled her.
I’d like to see a prequel of their characters.
So this was filmed on Skid Row, which has an overpopulation of homeless people. Skid Row is minutes away from the Federal Reserve branch downtown.
It was glaring, the lengths feds will go to protect money over people. Money that’s insured by the FDIC/The Fed. Cops were willing to sacrifice pedestrians and the entire city of LA to get back a few million measly dollars. They were protecting the hostages, too, but not more than they were protecting that money.
CRITICISMS
Editing… Gyllenhaal’s stunt double looked nothing like him. Soon as you see it, you’ll know what I’m talking about. The double looked nothing like Gyllenhaal. And it’s like Bay just shrugged it off. It’s hilarious.
There’s a huge Mastiff in the film. I believe it’s Michael Bay’s personal dog. One of the cops doesn’t immediately notice the dog, even though in earlier scenes the dog’s smell was mentioned. Also, you can see the dog’s set handler in different angles of the shot.
The lettering on the Ambulance was mirroring inverse. That’s an amateurish mistake. Platinum Dunes has access to the best technology in the business. Even we civilians have access to Adobe Rush and Final Cut Pro. Bay, himself, complained about the editing.
There were issues with continuity, but it’s not distracting enough to expound on.
The finale is too preachy and too long. But, I’m glad there was some redemption in this movie full of antiheroes.
My grade for Ambulance is B.
See this film in the theaters. It’s a wild ride that I think you’ll enjoy.
