Assualt On Precinct 13

DVD Poster

The Matrix Trilogy style of film being my cup of tea for action flicks, i bot the 2nd-hand dvd for the sake of ethan hawke (to fill my library of his works) and chucked it aside for a few wks. i watched all the other movies dat were bot w it and left it for the last, and few wks lagging. well, i dun sucker for gun fights and explosions w/o the appeal of cyber-ism.

aniwaes, i was taken over by the show. the action part was up to the mark, and wat makes this remake so gd was how it puts depth into the characters, something that was always missing in other action-packed shows.

yup, i haf never watched the original film, but ever since this remake made it to the big screen, it garnered all critical claims, except for a box-office smashing outcome.

the story took place in a remote precinct of detroit police station which would be moving after the New Year's. As it went, there were only 3 people on duty, a sarge (Jake), a retiring veteran and a secretary. along the way comes jake's psychiatrist (whom he allerged to have a torch for him, which otherwise makes a special trip to his post on NYE unusual), a another colleague and an envoy which escorts several criminals including local mafia Bishop.

the psychiatrist dun she look like nicole kidman??

oh... so as usual, ethan's char Jake is rather cliche. he is a fallen cop who was still trying to come to terms for an undercover failure 8 mths before which saw the deaths of his 2 colleagues (which was where the shrink comes in). and the conflict arose when the envoy in which Bishop was in had to call in to Precinct 13 due to a severe snowstorm. and the spark that got the show going was when a team of 'mobsters' came to assassinate Bishop.

so the show is staged, 8 people trapped in a police post in a factory-dominated precinct, caught in a snow storm confronted with a team of killers who were capable enough to severe communications and electricity and to command snipers and V-5 troopers to the scene.

the irony of all, was the fact that their opponents were the police. turns out dat Bishop had a dealing with a high-ranking officer whom he had fallen out with. following his arrest, the officer duvall knew that Bishop will spill the beans between their dealings and sets out to eliminate him while he was under arrest.

so it was an action-psycho flick with a dash of horror. what with formidable special ops who could penetrate into the building to try to wipe out every living person in there. if precinct 13 was a horror mansion, those troopers are the ju-on and sadako.

ethan hawke looking not-so-cool...

aniwaes, so Jake decides that if they were all to be alive, they had to stand on one line, police and criminals. the criminals were armed and they managed to deter the intruders by foiling their 1st attempt to siege.

things went wrong after the success. 2 petty criminals tried to make for it to escape jail terms, but were taken down by the snipers. and in the midst of the mayhem created by them, the psych and a female criminal were sent to take a vehicle and break out to call for help. unfortunately, duvall had already laid an ambush.

the final showdown came after the betrayal from the retired cop. he led them through an old sewer to 'escape', which was actually a plan to send them to duvall. the group manages to break free and Jake, Bishop and Duvall had a showdown in a forest-chase.

at the end of the movie, i guess the only ones living were Jake, Bishop and the secretary.

ethan hawke acting cool... as usual =P

yup, i can give all the synopsis, but it takes one to experience the tension of being trapped in the post, especially having to fight alongside with people with opposite interests. fear, suspicion, betrayal, trust, and trust misplaced, guilt and chivalry; bad guys are not all bad and good guys not perfect.

simple truths that lay unconcerned in everyday lives.

if you can stand the gun fights and explosions (with a level of gore that was played down, cos i believe point-blank shots in the head will mean no head for the victim), then i recommend this show for the gem buried underneath the action.