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Jake Gyllenhaal, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, and Eiza González. © 2022. Universal Pictures, BayFilms, New Republic, and Project X Entertainment. Directed by Michael Bay. Vroom Vroom!!! Bay is back with 10X the explosions and a 2-hour car chase sequence that actually makes sense?! Hold Up! Ambulance is one of those action films that is dedicated to the action genre and it doesn't hold up the violence. Even Nolan would be surprised looking at this film. I was surprised watching the film and it looks like it passed my expectations. Or maybe more? Let's dive in!
The film follows two adoptive siblings turned bank robbers who hijack an ambulance and take two first responders hostage. But one cop is in the ambulance and they have to save his life while chasing for freedom with the money. When going into a Michael Bay movie, you expect a lot of explosions, car chases, car crashes, swearing, guns, and dogs. Yes, dogs. Well, it has everything on the Bay list. But I'm pretty surprised that the dumb Michael bay scenes aren't present a lot in this film. The playboy women and the advertisement weren't shown in the film. The unnecessary blue lighting shots weren't that frequent in the film. A lot of Michael bay dumb scenes and shots were cut down to give this story and film more life and more grounded. It's also Bay's most serious film since 13 Hours. There are a lot of scenes given to the three characters and we can connect to the conflicted relationship between Danny (Jake Gyllenhaal) and Will (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II). Plus, we get a deeper connection with Will and Cam (Eiza Gonzalez). These relationships connect to one another to communicate the problems and solutions to stay alive throughout this car chase. While the story is straight-up simple and goes into action, the characters were better written for a Michael Bay film. Yes, there's a police sub-plot but that sub-plot didn't take the entire film. Some storylines were finished and others were incomplete with a certain death scene that didn't have a resolution or end explanation. But the characters were improved along the way. Danny's complicated friendship with FBI agent Anson was pretty interesting and it kept the tension along the way and showed Danny being a complete jackass. Besides the story and characters, the action was top-notch. We get this quick gunfight inside the bank and after that, it's a full-on car chase. A lot of stakes in every scene and tension throughout and while you still have your typical fast cut, there are shots that do capture all the action. Every explosion and every bullet. There are a bunch of drone shots in the film and some of the shots look very impressive. The cinematography is a step up from his last film and the sound design is all over the place but for good use. There are some unique shots and angles used for certain sequences to make every scene stand out and it does that well. The final sequence was probably my favorite part of the film. There was high tension and I was nervous watching the scene unfold. I actually folded my body and felt tension with the scene. It's a great scene and it was satisfying to see the film concluded. I can tell you that this scene may be Bay's best scene ever. No Michael bay film is a masterpiece because Bay only focuses on the action rather than the characters. He wants every shot to be shaky and there was a shit ton of it. You still have your typical Bay useless scenes. There was one random shot of a fat guy running down the street while the Cam and her friend are talking about their backstory and we see a fucking guy running for no reason. I was dying of laughter and I'm like "What the fuck even is this"?! It's so stupid. It added nothing to the story. Maybe while they filmed that scene, that's some random ass dude just running away from the real cops. It's a funny out-of-context scene. Some of the subplots didn't conclude or storylines didn't conclude like the police chief storyline or the FBI storyline. The FBI storyline concluded but it didn't feel conclusive. There's some cheesy dialogue, dumb decisions, dumb moments, and weird-ass scenes for no reason. But remember, you are watching a Michael Bay film so expect that shit. Anyways I had such a good time with this film. The characters are improved from his last film and maybe his best characters since Pain & Gain and there was real tension and stakes in the film. This is Michael Bay's best film since 13 Hours and overall, this film was pretty great. It's loads of action, fun, and tension. I had so much fun at the theaters and hopefully, he delivers it in his next film. Now Playing in theaters and on Peacock (NBCUniversal Streaming Service) Vizeit Score: "B+" Copyright © 2022. Vizeit Studios. All Rights Reserved. Review Written By: Everardo Garcia Jr.
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