S.W.A.T.

Other than the ever-lasting pursuit of cash, I see no reason that it was necessary to make a movie adaptation of a bad '70s television show. Fortunately, the movie S.W.A.T. is better than it's namesake (which it actually bears very little relation to) - and will deliver everything the average, action-loving movie-goer wants. For anyone expecting more, however, S.W.A.T. will be nothing more than a completely ordinary diversion. Despite moments of inspired action and humor, the movie is a marginal and instantly forgettable one.

For some reason, I have always been fascinated by S.W.A.T. teams. The way they work together to bring down the target is terribly interesting to me. So whenever S.W.A.T. demonstrates this process, it works. Unfortunately, there is actually very little true S.W.A.T. unit work in S.W.A.T. Most of the movie's action is exactly the same as every other summer blockbuster, if a little less flashy. Still, the movie's focus on gunshots and rapid-fire cuts over character and plot is disappointing, and keeps me from being able to recommend S.W.A.T.

The first half of S.W.A.T. is somehwhat interesting. Jim Street (Colin Farrell) and his partner, Brian Gamble (Jeremy Renner) are ejected from the S.W.A.T. force after Gamble disobeys a direct order from command. While Jim stays on the police force, hoping for a chance to redeem himself, Gamble quits completely, refusing to give in to the force's captain (Larry Poindexter). Six months later, S.W.A.T. legend Hondo Harrelson (Samuel L. Jackson) is brought in to build his own unit. He picks Jim; Chris Sanchez (Michelle Rodriguez), a tough officer who has yet to be accepted because she is a woman; Deke Kay (LL Cool J), a hardworking and built young cop; Boxer (Brian Van Holt), a cop whose sister recently broke up with Jim; and T.J. McCabe (Josh Charles), a nervous sharp-shooter. The selection scenes - and the scenes in which the team is trained - are well-crafted and interesting, mainly because they involve the actual process of S.W.A.T. work.

After the team has been formed, they are given the task of escorting weapon smuggler Alex Montel (Olivier Martinez), who has offered one-hundred million dollars to whoever can release him from police custody. From this point on, the movie spirals uncontrollably downward. The promise of this scenario is completely wasted by a traditional and predictable plot. In fact, the cash offer may well have been dropped, if not for allowing a reason for one of the officers to betray the squad (no points for figuring out which one - the movie makes it painfully obvious, even though the rest of the team is blissfully ignorant of all the signs). By the time the movie had ended, I knew I had been cheated by the script.

One would think that a movie based on the television show S.W.A.T. would make extensive use of the theme song, one of the greatest television themes ever recorded. Not so. Instead of that, we often get inappropiate rock/rap songs that serve no purpose but to artificially pump up the audience's adrenaline.

The acting isn't bad, per se, but is also nothing special. Only Michelle Rodriguez shows any real interest in her character. Colin Farrell turns in a stock performance; the kind he could do while sleeping. Samuel L. Jackson, certainly the best actor in the cast, seems slightly bored. There are moments when his typical energy is apparent (including one obvious homage to Pulp Fiction, in which Jackson seems to be channeling his character from that movie), but for the most part, he is disappointingly subdued. And the only thing interesting about Olivier Martinez is his "French" accent.

Perhaps if the summer of 2003 was not as bad as it has been, and there hadn't already been countless other movies like this so far, I would be more forgiving of S.W.A.T., because it does do things right. But I've had to sit through so many typical action movies recently that I wish it did more to separate itself from the rest of the crowd. S.W.A.T. will certainly please those in its target audience, but I need more than that to be satisfied.

© 2003 Matt Noller