MOVIE - S.W.A.T. - Review Rating $$$$$ (OUT OF 10)
STARRING - Samuel L. Jackson (Hondo), Colin Farrell (Jim Street), Michelle Rodriguez (Chris Sanchez), James Todd Smith aka LL Cool J (Deke Kay), Josh Charles
(T.J. McCabe), Brian Van Holt (Michael Boxer), Jeremy Renner (Brian Gamble) & Olivier Martinez (Alex Montel).
DIRECTOR - Clark Johnson (Feature film debut)
Based upon the 1975-1976 TV series of the same title.
S.W.A.T. isn't a bad movie its just not a good movie. As far as action pictures go the plot is semi-realistic (internal politics & breaking a major con out of jail) and they get a lot of the small details right. Hondo's (Jackson) failure to drop and roll at the shooting range is a realistic example of a character playing his age and a nice touch.
The problem with S.W.A.T. is that once you get over the scary resemblance between Farrell's first appearance in riot gear and the infamous picture of Michael Dukakis in a tank you are left with a movie without an ounce of tension or emotion. All the pieces are there, in this paint by numbers thriller, but none of the characters have any convincing or compelling edges.
After watching another lackluster performance by Colin Farrell (Minority Report, Daredevil, Phone Booth and The Recruit) I continue to be amazed by all the fuss over this guy. I have yet to see any demonstration of great talent. I could be wrong but I'm willing to bet he'll never win an Oscar for Best Actor. The rest of the cast, handicapped by an emotionless script, are also unable to infuse the story with any energy or sense of urgency.
Sure, there are a few good one-liners and some things get blown up, but the overall movie experience is ultimately about as intense as watching your dishes dry.
Running time - 111 minutes.
Check out my TOP 10 MOVIES OF 2003 & WORST MOVIES OF 2003 lists.
Alternative Reviews:
Roger Ebert's Reviews
Rotten Tomatoes Reviews
OFFICIAL S.W.A.T. WEB SITE
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© Copyright
2005
David Schwartz.
Last update:
2/28/05; 1:47:43 AM.
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