A One Mann’s Movies review of “Ambulance” (2022).
Michael Bay is to calm and quiet movies as Will Smith is to polite Oscar debate. “Ambulance” is possibly the most Michael Bay-est film of all time: two rollicking hours of adrenaline-fuelled action that leaves you breathless and in need of paracetamols at the end of it. But I have to say, like last year’s “Nobody“, it is a blast of a movie that totally exceeded my extremely low expectations.
Bob the Movie Man Rating:
Plot Summary:
Other than having a new driver (Colin Woodell), it’s a pretty average day of bloody drama for hardened LA paramedic Cam Thompson (Eiza González). But when a bank heist involving the Sharp brothers – Danny (Jake Gyllenhaal) and a reluctant Will (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) – goes pear-shaped, Cam and an injured cop (Jackson White) are held hostage and involved in a mammoth police chase across LA.
Certification:
Talent:
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Eiza González, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II.
Directed by: Michael Bay.
Written by: Chris Fedak. (Based on the Danish film “Ambulancen” written by Laurits Munch-Petersen and Lars Andreas Pedersen.)
Twitter Handle: #AmbulanceMovie.
“Ambulance” Review:
Positives:
- This one could either be seen as a positive or a negative… possibly depending on how close you sit to the cinema screen! For, in true Michael Bay style, the camera doesn’t stay still for a second. But this time he has discovered drones! And uses them in the most creative ways. The camera zooms around and down skyscrapers; in and around car chases; and (apparantly anyway) at one point out of the ambulance through a bullet hole in the back window! It’s dizzying. It’s creative. It’s dizzyingly creative. The cinematographer here is Roberto De Angelis in his first feature film: although he was on the camera team for “Baby Driver“, of which this is quite reminiscent at times.
- This could have been A.N.Other action movie, but has more emotional depth and moral ambiguity than you would expect from a Bay movie. As with the “Oceans” films, I was never entirely sure whether I should be cheering for the “bad guys” or not. The family/financial tension behind war-hero Will’s out of character actions leads to a pretty moving finale. The depth of the tragedy unfolding for the young family makes your moral compass whirl like a ceiling fan!
- The movie boasts a highly competent core cast:
- Jake Gyllenhaal chews up the scenary wonderfully as Danny Sharp. He is, in turns, utterly charming and utterly ruthless, reminding me somewhat of Hans Gruber! But he’s also quite three-dimensional, in his love for his brother and in having the intelligence to know that keeping certain people alive is in his own best interests. I thought it was a cracking performance.
- Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is also great as Will Sharp. Abdul-Mateen is quietly building up a pretty strong CV with memorable past roles in “The Trial of the Chicago 7” (at Bobby Seale), “Us” and “Aquaman”. Here, the script gives him a chance to really reflect the personal conflict between his loyalties towards his family, his brother and in ‘doing the right thing’.
- Eiza Gonzáles, memorable from “Baby Driver“, plays an extremely strong female character. She is the real hero of the piece, and gets a beautifully lit ‘hero-walk’ into the sunset.
- The music by Lorne Balfe is dramatic, bombastic and totally fitting. It’s very heavy on the bass though. At times, I thought my fillings might be coming loose!
Negatives:
- Make sure you pick a BACK ROW seat at the cinema (as I had). Otherwise, I think you might suffer from motion sickness! Depending on the cinema you see it in, it is also extremely loud! (I saw it in Cineworld Whiteley Screen 1, which is notorious for having the sound turned up to 12!).
- The film is at one point extremely gory in a medical way! You have been warned. (But this sequence is only a couple of minutes long and well signposted, so you can just shut you eyes if needed!!) What’s more of a negative is the outcome from that scene. The ‘patient’ seems to recover a little too easily, stretching credibility up to and beyond breaking point!
- At 136 minutes, the film is too long. The story could have been usefully compressed into 100 minutes. “Nobody” was just 92 minutes and was a better film as a result.
Summary Thoughts on “Ambulance”
I thought this could prove to be borderline unwatchable. But I was really pleasantly surprised. It was an action movie blast from start to finish, and I thoroughly enjoyed the ride. It reminded me in many ways of the classic “Die Hard” or “Speed”. Recommended.
Trailer for “Ambulance”
The trailer is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7NU-STboFeI .
