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Assault on Precinct 13 (2005 film)
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Wikipedia article
'Assault on Precinct 13' is a 2005 action thriller film directed by Jean-Franois Richet and starring Ethan Hawke and Laurence Fishburne. The cast also includes John Leguizamo, Maria Bello, Ja Rule, Drea de Matteo, Brian Dennehy, and Gabriel Byrne. It is a remake of John Carpenter's 1976 film of the same name.
Plot
Following a failed sting operation in which two fellow undercover officers are killed months prior, Detroit Police Department Sergeant Jake Roenick begins to regularly abuse alcohol and painkillers while clinging to his unambitious assignment as a desk sergeant at Precinct 13, which is due to be decommissioned. On New Year's Eve, Roenick, officer Jasper O'Shea, and secretary Iris Ferry maintain a skeleton shift. Psychiatrist Alexandra Sabian arrives to evaluate Roenick's fitness for duty.
Crime boss Marion Bishop is arrested after killing an undercover policeman, and is set to be transferred to prison with three other criminals: Beck, Anna, and Smiley. When a snowstorm shuts down the roads, the prison transport is diverted to Precinct 13, where an unprepared Roenick places the prisoners in cells.
Masked gunmen cut off the precinct's communications and electricity, and attack the station, killing the deputies before demanding that Bishop be handed over. Roenick kills one of the attackers and finds he is an undercover cop working under Captain Marcus Duvall of Precinct 21. Bishop explains that Duvall and his team are corrupt and were formerly his business partners. They now plan to eliminate him to preserve their secret.
The precinct staff and criminals form an uneasy truce. Heavily outnumbered and outgunned, Roenick releases the prisoners and arms them to help defend the precinct. Their combined efforts repel several more attacks, eventually leading to a stalemate. Another officer, Capra, arrives and is shot at by the corrupt officers, but makes it inside, but Bishop suspects him of being sent by Duvall when he discovers an unlocked back entrance.
Beck and Smiley meanwhile secretly conspire to escape; simultaneously, the rest of the defenders plan for Anna and Sabian to escape in Capra's SUV. When Beck and Smiley sneak out, they are killed by Duvall's men, providing the distraction which allows Anna and Sabian to drive off but they are ambushed by Duvalls right-hand man Kahane; who kills Anna, having been hiding in the back seat, whilst Duvall kills Sabian after she refuses to cooperate.
When the snowfall subsides, Duvall calls in a corrupt SWAT team who land on the roof of the precinct. The defenders flee through a utilities tunnel underneath the building. Emerging from the tunnel, they find themselves surrounded by Duvall's men. The traitor is revealed to be O'Shea and not Capra. As Duvall prepares to execute the others, Bishop secretly plants a flash bang grenade on O'Shea, mortally wounding him. In the confusion, Iris and Capra flee in Duvall's SUV. Kahane shoots out the tires, causing the vehicle to crash and knock Capra unconscious, but Iris manages to kill Kahane after a struggle.
Duvall chases Roenick and Bishop into a nearby forest where they ambush and kill the remaining forces, however Duvall shoots and wounds Bishop before being killed by Roenick, who is himself injured in the process. Following this, an injured Bishop takes Roenick's gun and flees, and Roenick promises to personally arrest him in the future. When Iris arrives with police and firemen, Roenick claims that only he and Duvall's gang are present, effectively granting Bishop a getaway. As the authorities secure the area, Roenick and Iris leave the forest as the sun rises.
Cast
* Ethan Hawke as Sergeant Jake Roenick
* Laurence Fishburne as Marion Bishop
* John Leguizamo as Beck
* Maria Bello as Dr. Alex Sabian
* Jeffrey "Ja Rule" Atkins as Smiley
* Drea de Matteo as Iris Ferry
* Matt Craven as Officer Kevin Capra
* Brian Dennehy as Officer Jasper O'Shea
* Gabriel Byrne as Captain Marcus Duvall
* Kim Coates as Deputy Rosen
* Dorian Harewood as Deputy Gil
* Currie Graham as Lieutenant Mike Kahane
* Fulvio Cecere as Officer Ray Portnell
* Titus Welliver as Milos
* Aisha Hinds as Anna
Production
'Assault on Precinct 13' was mostly filmed on location in Detroit, as well as in Ontario, Canada (Toronto and Hamilton).
Critical reception and box office
The film received mixed reviews from critics, with a 59% positive rating on 'Rotten Tomatoes', the site's critical consensus being "This remake has been praised by some as an expertly made B-movie, and dismissed by others as formulaic", and a metascore of 54 on 'Metacritic'.
'Assault on Precinct 13' grossed $35.3 million worldwide on a budget of $30 million.
See also
* List of American films of 2005
References
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