Ambulance (2022)
Excuse the pun, but what a ride! High octane thriller that grabs you by the short and curlies from the get go and refuses to let go. It sometimes amazes me how modern day films get made with the amount of planning and execution involved because the scale of this movie is just off the charts. I sat through this movie just in awe of the cinematography, the sweeping vista shots, the intricate camera work just thinking to myself, wow this is some serious shit that Michael Bay would be proud of. It wasn't until the credits rolled at the end that yeah, sure enough his name popped up under 'Directed by'. I honestly didn't know but it made perfect sense. It was as if every single scene had been meticulously planned and crafted in detail within an inch of its life. I don't know why Bay gets the hate because if this is the style he is looking to make his own, I'm all in.
Ambulance is a remarkable film with some great performances from pretty much everyone that had a speaking part apart from the one irritating guy, Castro, the type of character that Bay always insists on including in his movies. Gyllenhaal, Abdul-Mateen II and Gonzalez produce some stellar performances as the three central characters in a bank heist gone wrong movie. Bay's smart direction, fast cut to scenes and excellent visuals really draws you into the story. The pacing is excellent and apart from 5 or 10 minutes dedicated to the back story is all about the two bank robbing brothers and their efforts to evade what appeared like the whole of LA law enforcement. As I mentioned before the cinematography and film editing were some of the best that I have seen in a movie. Say what you like about Michael Bay, but he really has an eye for filmmaking. I would pay to watch a Masterclass on how he sets up his shots. Many of them in this film were just stunning.
And if you're thinking of waiting until this gets released on streaming platforms...don't! The scoring and sound editing were just excellent, really adding to the overall experience. I'm not sure what the budget was but this must have cost a fortune to produce. It's like in terms of the production for this project, every aspect has been done just right with no cut corners or cheap substitutes. What pisses me right off is that when you look at the usual pretentious crap that gets nominated year in and year out for those hollow annual awards, films like this which honestly wipes the floor with some of that competition will most likely get overlooked, probably coming third in 'Best Sound Mixing' category, if there was a third spot.
Anyway, I loved this film. I was invested in the characters. I was gripped by the fast-paced action genuinely not knowing where I was being taken next, going through a whole raft of emotions, particularly in the final act and smugly satisfied that I was able to recognise a Michael Bay film. Nobody will complain about the 2+ hours running time as it's all killer and no filler. Don't get it confused with the original Danish version though from which it was adapted.
I'm giving this a 9/10.
