Assault on Precinct 13

R

Released Jan 19, 2005

1 hr. 49 min.

Action

Crime

Drama

Mystery & Thriller

List

60%

166 Reviews

Tomatometer

48%

50,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

While en route to prison, a bus carrying criminals Marion (Laurence Fishburne), Beck (John Leguizamo) and Anna (Aisha Hinds) is rerouted to Detroit's soon-to-be-closed Precinct 13 because of a dangerous winter storm. All communications with the outside world are cut off, and Jake (Ethan Hawke), an emotionally volatile police sergeant who is haunted by his past, is forced to work with the criminals in order to survive an attack on the precinct by a group of armed men.

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Critics Consensus

This remake has been praised by some as an expertly made B-movie, and dismissed by others as formulaic.

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Topi L

It ain't the original, but Hawke and Fishburne are very good in this fine maid crime thriller.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

08/03/23

Full Review

Gareth v

A popcorn action movie that doesn't break any new ground. Not great, not bad, just average.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

06/18/23

Full Review

steve d

Well made, but the characters aren't likable enough to care.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

Jimmy P

This isn't half bad. Of course, it is barely a remake. It is more of a sequel or another film in the series. The first one had gang members trying to get into the police station. In this one, its just corrupt cops. This makes the film a much lessor film than the film it is remaking.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/20/23

Full Review

justin t

It looked quite nice. The snow looked good. There was nothing that exciting and nothing wrong with the looks. The sound was fine. It was unnoticeable and that is fine. The story was quite good and suitably different to the original but I thought that the execution was a little dull. There was just no suspense. It wasn't scary thinking that there was this unstoppable army trying to kill you like in the first one. It was just lacking anything exciting. It lacked the claustrophobia and suspense of the original. It was just another thriller.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Director Jean-François Richet and writer James DeMonaco -- who went on to create The Purge series -- had quite a challenge: how do you remake a John Carpenter classic? After a failed sting operation, Detroit Police Sergeant Jake Roenick (Ethan Hawke) has hit rock bottom as he's placed on desk duty at the soon-to-be-closed Precinct 13. On New Year's Eve, a skeleton crew of Roenick, officer Jasper O'Shea (Brian Dennehy) and secretary Iris Ferry (Drea de Matteo) are all that's in the station when psychiatrist Alexandra Sabian (Maria Bello) comes to evaluate Roenick and Marion Bishop (Laurence Fishburne), Beck (John Leguizamo), Anna (Aisha Hinds) and Smiley (Ja Rule) all end up being transferred due to a snowstorm. Masked gunmen soon arrive and demand that Bishop be sent to them. They're not his henchmen. Instead, they're corrupt cops under the leadership of Captain Marcus Duvall (Gabriel Byrne), Bishop's former partner. Soon, the precinct is under attack by a series of bad cops and SWAT teams, all wanting to kill the prisoners and cops who are aiding them. The film makes several inversions -- Bishop was a cop's name in the original, Roenick's codename Napoleon was the name of the criminal -- and also remembers that the first movie was a remake of Rio Bravo by having the star of that movie, Dean Martin, on the soundtrack. Did they succeed in updating the movie? Well, I'm partial to the original. It's shocking in its intense violence and very of its time. This feels like just about any other action movie. When asked how he feels about remakes of his films, Carpenter said to The Guardian, "If they pay me, it's wonderful. If they don't pay me, I don't care. I think it's unfair if they don't pay me. I think everyone should pay me. Why not? I'm an old guy now and I need money. Send me money."

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/06/23

Full Review

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Jean Richet

Director

Ethan Hawke

Jake Roenick

Laurence Fishburne

Marion Bishop

John Leguizamo

Beck

Maria Bello

Alex Sabian

Ja Rule

Smiley

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Nell Minow

Common Sense Media

A satisfying thriller for adults only.

Rated: 3/5

Dec 22, 2010

Full Review

Time Out

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

Jun 24, 2006

Full Review

Kim Newman

Empire Magazine

A smart script, edgy acting and a gradual accumulation of suspense set-pieces makes for a decent popcorn high.

Rated: 3/5

Apr 1, 2006

Full Review

Sloan Freer

Radio Times

Every frame of this film crackles with raw energy, as Richet cranks up the tension, economically exploiting sight, sound and extreme violence to gripping effect.

Rated: 3/5

Mar 16, 2024

Full Review

Sean Axmaker

Stream on Demand

... a lean, clean, tough little movie that doesn’t overplay its story or overcomplicate the narrative.... [F]ar more engrossing and satisfying than the empty big-budget overkill that gluts the action movie market.

Sep 8, 2023

Full Review

Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

...while Carpenter's version should be preferred by cineastes, casual views should do just fine with DeMonaco's spare, lean thriller...

Rated: 3/5

Jul 27, 2021

Full Review

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Synopsis

While en route to prison, a bus carrying criminals Marion (Laurence Fishburne), Beck (John Leguizamo) and Anna (Aisha Hinds) is rerouted to Detroit's soon-to-be-closed Precinct 13 because of a dangerous winter storm. All communications with the outside world are cut off, and Jake (Ethan Hawke), an emotionally volatile police sergeant who is haunted by his past, is forced to work with the criminals in order to survive an attack on the precinct by a group of armed men.

Director: Jean Richet
Executive Producer: Don Carmody, Elizabeth Dreyer, Joseph Kaufman
Screenwriter: John Carpenter, James DeMonaco
Distributor: Focus Features
Production Co: Focus Features
Rating: R (Some Drug Content|Language|Strong Violence)
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 19, 2005, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 21, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA): $19.9M
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby SRD, DTS, SDDS
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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