Ambulance

UK Release Date. 25 March 2022
Certification. 15

Running Time. 2 hours 16 mins
Director. Michael Bay
Cast. Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Garret Dillahunt, Eiza González, Jake Gyllenhaal, Kier O'Donnell.
Rating. 59%

Review.

Loosely based on a 2005 Danish film, Ambulancen directed by Laurits Munch-Petersen, Ambulance sees Michael Bay return to bold and brash, summer blockbuster territory. For it is all too easy to forget that beyond the Transformers and Bad Boys franchises, Bay has directed some of the most perfect popcorn fodder either side of the millennium - 6 Underground, 13 Hours, The Island, Pearl Harbor, Armageddon and The Rock.

Following a botched, bank robbery, the two remaining bank robbers - brothers Danny (Jake Gyllenhaal) and Will (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) - make their getaway in a stolen ambulance, while a paramedic, Cam Thompson (Eiza González) valiantly attempts to keep a police officer alive in the back of the vehicle.

Ambulance is given the full-blown Michael Bay treatment. Distinctive, signature trademarks involve frenetic editing, dramatic low-angle 360s of characters and dizzying drone shots. The director of photography, Roberto De Angelis, would appear to be enamoured with a shot where the camera pans up the side of a downtown skyscraper, only to plunge back down towards the sidewalk at nauseating speed. 

Ambulance is relentless. Fast-paced, despite a run time in excess of two hours. The film essentially plays out as one, uninterrupted, over-the-top car chase. Bold, brash and with sirens blazing, Ambulance remains relatively entertaining throughout.