Assault on Precinct 13 (2005 film)

Plot

Sergeant Jake Roenick (Ethan Hawke), veteran cop Jasper O'Shea (Brian Dennehy) and secretary Iris Ferry (Drea de Matteo) are the only people remaining in a soon to be shut down Detroit police precinct on New Year's Eve. Roenick is deskbound and abusing alcohol and prescription drugs. He is haunted by a botched undercover operation eight months prior that resulted in the deaths of two members of his team. Psychiatrist Alex Sabian (Maria Bello) is treating Roenick at the station.

Meanwhile, crime lord Marion Bishop (Laurence Fishburne) is in custody and accused of killing a police officer. He is being transported to another location by bus with three other criminals: addict Beck (John Leguizamo), petty crook Anna (Aisha Hinds), and counterfeiter Smiley (Ja Rule), but a raging snowstorm forces the two guards to hunker down at Precinct 13 until the storm is over.

Masked gunmen attack the station and kill the prison guards, demanding Bishop handed over to them. The attackers are corrupt street cops and SWAT officers led by Captain Marcus Duvall (Gabriel Byrne). Formerly partners in crime, Duvall and his men must kill Bishop before he can testify about their involvement.

Heavily outnumbered and outgunned, Roenick sets free and arms the prisoners to bolster the defense of the station. Roenick and Bishop forge an uneasy truce between cops and criminals and their combined efforts repel several more attacks.

Off-duty cop Capra breaks through the siege, joining the defenders; distrusting him, Beck and Smiley decide to flee and get killed. Dr. Sabian and Anna volunteer to summon for help using Capra's car, but are intercepted and executed. With only five defenders left alive, Roenick and Bishop decide to take action instead of waiting for another attack. Suspecting Capra to be a mole, they disarm him.

The survivors set fire to the station to cover their escape and flee down the sewage tunnel that runs underneath the building. Emerging from the tunnel, they find themselves surrounded by the corrupt policemen. The real traitor is revealed to be O'Shea and Duvall prepares to execute the rest. Roenick and Bishop kill O'Shea and work together to survive the final confrontation with Duvall and his men, eventually leading to Roenick killing Duvall and letting Bishop go, giving him a head start.

Cast

Production

It was filmed on location in Detroit Michigan, Toronto and Hamilton Ontario.

Reception

Assault on Precinct 13 has received mixed-to-positive critic reviews, with a 60% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with 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. The film was a letdown at the box office. According to Box office Mojo, it made $35 million at worldwide box office on a budget of $30 million.