Assault On Precinct 13 2005

Terry Lawson, Detroit Free Press: Richet and DeMonaco respect the original movie while adding depth to the characters and complications to the situation. Read more

Connie Ogle, Miami Herald: The sort of remake that inspires faith in second chances. Read more

Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune: The premise may be outlandish, the action unrealistic and sometimes silly and the characters formulaic. But the movie rips and roars. Read more

Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times: Fans should appreciate the remake for what it is: a breathless little revisit to that old precinct house, expertly performed. Read more

Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: Matches a dingy urban setting with a compelling situation and throws in an ensemble of interesting characters who become even more interesting under stress. Read more

Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper: An assault to your intelligence, and an assault on your ears and eyes. Read more

Eleanor Ringel Gillespie, Atlanta Journal-Constitution: The cheese factor is satisfying and the no-frills approach has a gut-level appeal. Read more

Bill Muller, Arizona Republic: Though Richet stretches believability near the end, action-movie fans should assault theaters for an entertaining stay at Precinct 13. Read more

Wesley Morris, Boston Globe: For one thing, it's silly. For another, it's not always silly enough to be diverting. Read more

Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times: A savvy and extensive reworking of John Carpenter's 1976 cult classic of the same name. Read more

Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader: My preference for the remake over the original has more to do with its harsh representation of contemporary state corruption and its unsentimental ethical distinctions than with its success as a thriller. Read more

Bruce Westbrook, Houston Chronicle: Good, gory fun. Read more

Paul Clinton (CNN.com), CNN.com: It's a good old-fashioned shoot-'em-up with a few nice twists and some very good acting. Read more

Michael Booth, Denver Post: One of the few good things to be said about Assault on Precinct 13 is that, early in the new season, we get one of the year's worst movies over and done with. Read more

Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: Jean-Francois Richet, the director of the new Assault, is working from a script, by James DeMonaco, that creates a handful of zingy one-note lowlifes but that hasn't updated the isolated-precinct premise in a timely or thoughtful way. Read more

Stephen Cole, Globe and Mail: A smartly assembled noir package. Read more

Chris Vognar, Dallas Morning News: A polished B-movie with lots of gunfire, a sheen of craftsmanship and few pretensions to be anything it isn't. Read more

Ella Taylor, L.A. Weekly: James De Monaco's strenuously hipster script reaches for black comedy but never comes close. Read more

Ken Tucker, New York Magazine/Vulture: Fishburne even manages to make crass violence witty. Read more

Stephen Whitty, Newark Star-Ledger: Making a B-movie out of an old A-movie -- which is what Carpenter did -- is smart and fun. Making an A-movie out of an old B-movie -- which is what director Jean-Francois Richet tries to do here -- is just sort of silly. Read more

Jami Bernard, New York Daily News: Hawke and Fishburne make it work, supported by a mostly strong cast. Read more

A.O. Scott, New York Times: Don't avoid the new Assault on Precinct 13 because it's a remake. There are plenty of other reasons. Read more

Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel: Just duck, shoot or be shot, a bloody race to see who can be the last man standing, and maybe manage a wisecrack or two. Read more

James Berardinelli, ReelViews: It's not great art, but, for B-movie fans and those looking for a mid-winter jolt of energy, it's good fun. Read more

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: Strong performances and a couple of new twists. Read more

Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com: A great deal of thought may have gone into the making of Assault on Precinct 13, but its tone and its rhythms are consistently out of whack. Read more

Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune: Gets a ruthless grip on the audience's throat early and never lets go. Read more

St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Read more

Peter Howell, Toronto Star: You've got to smile at a movie that puts two key female characters in high heels and skimpy dresses and brazenly insists that it makes perfect sense that they be dressed that way for a shootout in the middle of a snowstorm. Read more

Time Out: At its best, though, this is witty, tense and bloody: a homage that Carpenter might appreciate. Read more

Claudia Puig, USA Today: The film has an appropriately dark and gritty look, but it suffers from some glaring problems. Read more

Joe Leydon, Variety: This meat-and-potatoes dish of moviemaking is sufficiently tasty to satisfy auds hungry for old-fashioned rock-the-house action. Read more

J. Hoberman, Village Voice: A surprisingly credible action flick -- even with Ethan Hawke in the role of a neurotic hipster police sergeant. Read more

Ann Hornaday, Washington Post: Breaks the first and only commandment of remakes: Thou shall at the very least do justice to the original, or thou shall not be made at all. Read more

Desson Thomson, Washington Post: It's good for a silly laugh, this stuff. And maybe this movie will draw renewed attention to Carpenter's eminently better movie. Read more