Ambulance

As I grow older, the idea of watching even one of Michael Bay's better films feels like a shortcut to a headache. 6 Underground encapsulated this nicely with its assault of visual and loud noises so the idea of two bank robbers hijacking an ambulance during a getaway in LA didn't sound all that appealing but some reviewers were offering a kinder reception to Bay's 2022 action flick Ambulance so I thought I'd see if it was worth a shot. Well, I can safely say from the get-go that it is much better than Transformers: The Last Knight thank the Lord...

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II stars as a former serviceman and veteran who is struggling to make ends meet, and he has a wife and child who depend on him while the bills rise. With little to any job offers, he turns to his adopted brother (Jake Gyllenhaal), a professional criminal, who is preparing a bank heist and who is need of an extra pair of hands. Unfortunately, the heist goes horribly wrong and the two find themselves hijacking an ambulance, carrying a medic and wounded police officer, and must now use their wits to escape the LAPD.

If one can look beyond some ludicrous drone shots, Ambulance is a surprisingly restrained action flick from the master of Bayhem himself. With a lean budget of $40 million and shot during the pandemic, I found Bay's remake of the 2005 Danish film of the same name to be fast and exciting with very good performances from the cast, particularly Gyllenhaal enjoying the opportunity to go fully unhinged. The action is frenetic but just about works for the story and script offers offers some good beats of drama and humour throughout. 

However, the way this is shot and the editing can still be nauseous. The first act also feels quite rushed as it just so happens Yahya's character asks for a job minutes before the crew are about to leave to rob a bank, and this is about 20 minutes too long. There's a whole side plot with a cartel that pads the film out excessively and their addition sees the film lose its focus. Action films that revolve around a limited location work best when they keep their scope tight and here it felt like Bay couldn't resist himself, and wanted to add some more shootouts. 

Ambulance runs too long and won't stick in the memory for much more than its running time. With that said, I still found this to be better than I expected and it is great to see Bay away from the Transformers franchise, focusing his time on the grounded actions films where he made his name. Action fans will find something to enjoy here but it just isn't quite everything it could be so temper the expectations and you might come away satisfied.