Assault on Precinct 13

I hate movies that have potential and fall on their proverbial faces, and this movie came very close to biting the dust. The writing was blasé, the acting was blasé (although Laurence Fishborne was by far the least offensive), the directing was horrid ... it just wasn't done real well. The action was fine but nothing stupendous. A solid "C" if there was one ... and I have to say Ethan Hawke and Drea de Matteo really bit it with their quasi-acting in this movie - although I will have to say that I'm not sold that it was all the actor's fault, as a great deal of the wasted effort was definitely in the writing.

A solid rental. Not for box office.

Jean Richet's remake of the Carpenter thriller Assault on Precinct 13 is surprisingly entertaining. Assault on Precinct 13 (2005) loses the Carpenteresque weirdness and soundtrack, and tells the story of a remote, run-down police precinct under assault using more conventional cinematography and production. This is an achievement, but not because of the difficulty of following in the footsteps of Carpenter - because the film entertains without doing so, and because the narrative - just like all of Carpenter's films- manages to keep going without regard for the improbability of the plot. In other words, the Director kept a straight face and made the film entertaining enough to allow for a certain amount of suspended disbelief.

Strong, fast, characterization - part of the legacy of Carpenter's film - makes a big difference early on. The cast is uniformly excellent and the main characters - unusual for this genre - are all unique, believable and consistent. Fishburn plays a big bad guy incarcerated by fiat in the small, run-down Precinct 13. Hawke is the Sergeant in charge of the precinct - a man with psychological and drug problems associated with a traumatic event which opens the film. These two improbable allies must pool their resources to defend the precinct against... who?

The film is first and foremost an action film. The action is typical for the genre as of 2005 - i.e. - much of what takes place is only believable because of its entertainment value and internal consistently. Suspense is well constructed throughout the film, and the pace of the film reaches a frenetic level about 1/3rd of the way through, never letting up. The cinematography is surprisingly dissimilar to the original. Richet's film is more of a standard suspense thriller than anything bearing Carpenter's signature.

Recommended for its entertainment value, solid cast, and well-constructed (though somewhat ridiculous) plot.

I saw this remake last night and must say that it was an extremely enjoyable two hours right from the get-go. The opening of the story is one of the best I've seen in years, and throughout the acting is solid which wasn't surprising with this cast, but the dialogue was great all the way through, which you don't usually get in films anymore, and the action and building of tension was done very well by the director, his choreographers, and the composers. Top notch performance from Ethan Hawke, Laurence Fishburne, John Leguizamo, and Brian Dennehy. Very solid leading lady turn for Drea DeMatteo, as well as from Maria Bello. And the casting of Gabriel Bryne as the villain is genius although I would have liked to have seen him do a bit more on screen with Hawke and Fishburne. Overall, a solid 9 out of 10 for giving me some things in a film that I'll remember simply because there unexpected and done really well. Go see this film if you like good action filled thrillers, I promise as a filmmaker myself, it won't disappoint.

Now, before you criticize me, I have never seen the original John Carpenter version of this film. Being a huge fan, I really should see it, and after seeing this remake, I will definitely track down the original to see if it is as good as this film. I had a blast!

New Years in Detroit, a cold winter's morning as Precinct 13 prepares to close it's doors and move to a new building. There are only three people in the building on New Year's Eve, and as a storm draws closer, a criminal being transported to a maximum security center is re-routed to the deserted precinct. Only, there are some other people that would like to get closer to the villain.

Very exciting story and excellent acting by both Ethan Hawke and Laurence Fishbourne take this action over the edge. Some people may find the film ultra violent, but violence on the big screen never bothered me, so I enjoyed it quite a lot! Definitely worth a look for action fans, and fans of the original who are curious. However, those that are disturbed by violent images, would like to steer clear of this film.

I haven't seen Carpenter's original version but the remake seems like a very solid modern action crime/thriller with an interesting cast. Ethan Hawke may never be recognized as a great young actor by the vast majority of moviegoers but in my opinion he hasn't made a serious flop in his career so far.

The rest of the cast did equally well if not better at times. A special praise goes to Laurence Fishburne who gave the best performance in the movie.Overall the film has enough to offer to be considered worthy of a second view but it still lacks a few factors that could boost it further from the mass of similar movies.

...... 3/5 ......