Synopsis:
GRIDLOCKED is a crowd-pleasing action thriller in the tradition of Die Hard and Lethal Weapon. Former SWAT leader David Hendrix is down on his luck and has failed to receive medical clearance after taking a bullet on the job. Despite being highly trained and competent, his efforts have been reduced to routine tasks for the NYPD. As if things couldn’t get any worse, he’s been forced to babysit Brody Walker, a hard partying celebrity that’s been sent on a mandatory ride along as part of his probation. Pampered and irritating, Walker is the last thing Hendrix needs. But all of that changes when a police training facility comes under attack by a team of ruthless mercenaries led by the mysterious Korver.
Now, Hendrix and Walker must band together with the remaining survivors to fight back and keep the mercenaries from overtaking the compound…. if they don’t kill each other first.
What We Thought:
Gridlocked is your standard straight-to-DVD type action film. Now that’s not a total slight.
Most of these mid-level budget films have a lot in common. Most get some names you recognize (Danny Glover, Dominic Purcell, Vinnie Jones). Most of the action ones are similar or have similar plots.
This one is about a young actor (Cody Hackman) who gets into trouble and does a sort of ride along with Dominic Purcell. They get trapped with some other cops in a training facility when Stephen Lang and Vinnie Jones try to overtake it to get money.
Is the film anything groundbreaking or original? No, not in the slightest. Is it something you’ll watch over and over again? Nope. But it’s watchable. I watch a lot of these action films and they are usually watchable.
The action isn’t too bad. When they go through the training facility, that was pretty cool. When the bad guys come in and they have to fight each other, there’s a decent shoot out and what not. Nothing mind blowing, but I’ve seen far worse.
This also adds a twist with a character. You really don’t know if there is a mole and who it is towards the end. I’ll give it credit for trying.
The Blu-ray looks really good with a pristine picture. Colors pop and the action scenes look good. It has really good sound quality as well. There’s some music, the dialogue is easy to hear and the gun shots sound perfect. It also has some solid bonus features including a blooper reel and making of feature.
Gridlocked is a decent enough watch if you are into lower budget action films. Danny Glover has a great line in it that’s a play on his infamous “I’m too old for this shit” line. I like Dominic Purcell, Vinnie Jones, Glover and Stephen Lang so I didn’t mind it. Keep your expectations low, pop it in on a Sunday afternoon and just try to have fun watching people get shot up.
RECOMMENDED FOR WHAT IT IS!
Bonus Features:
- Deleted scenes
- Blooper Reels
- Kicking It Old School: Making of Gridlocked
- Inside the Action
Cast & Crew:
- Dominic Purcell
- Stephen Lang
- Vinnie Jones
- Trish Stratus
- Danny Glover
- Cody Hackman
Recommended If You Like:
- Vigilante Diaries
- Action Flicks
The Nerds Templar 