‘Ambulance’: Michael Bay Cheerfully Crashes Through All of His Clichés

Alci Rengifo

Say the name of Michael Bay and specific visuals instantly appear in the mind of any ravenous moviegoer. These tend to be the crumpled steel of crashed cars, endless 360 degree spin shots even for a mundane conversation, gargantuan explosions and glossy photography out of a ‘90s fashion magazine. Coherent plotting or continuity matter little next to the stylized look of the whole production. All of these delights and more are present in “Ambulance,” an experience that is more of a roller coaster than a movie. It is also the closest Bay might ever come to delivering his own version of an avant-garde film. In fact, this is a semi-remake of a 2005 Danish thriller of the same name. But comparisons can stop there. Love him or hate him, it simply cannot be denied that Bay does what he likes and with a particular sort of passion. 

The characters are all naturals for the Bay cosmology. Will Sharp (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) has a wife in need of a medical procedure he cannot afford. He takes a chance and decides to ask his brother, Danny (Jake Gyllenhaal), for a loan. Instead of lending him some money, Danny, who has financial problems of his own despite owning a luxury car shop, forces Will to tag along for a Los Angeles bank heist. Off they go with a crew of fellow crooks. The heist turns into a bloody shootout with LAPD forces catching whiff of the operation. When Will shoots a cop named Zach (Jackson White), he and Danny basically take hostage the ambulance transporting the injured officer. Here is where they cross paths with EMT Cam Thompson (Eiza González). It’s a battle of wills inside that cramped, speeding vehicle as Cam tries to convince Will to turn on Danny while outside, a larger police force is dispatched to stop the ambulance. 

Ever since his 1995 feature debut, “Bad Boys,” Michael Bay has helped firmly establish a look and style all of his own. Few recent directors who garner more “respect” from the critical community have had such a broad influence. Along with filmmakers like Tony Scott, Bay defined the testosterone and gloss of ‘90s action movies. He’s made at least two skillfully bombastic yet thoughtful popcorn rides, 1996’s “The Rock” and 2005’s “The Island.” But starting with “Armageddon” in 1998, Bay has been known best for massive, ear-shredding spectacles with more punches than brains. “Pearl Harbor,” the “Transformers” movies, “6 Underground” and the smaller dark comedy “Pain & Gain,” all feature a cascade of music video images and pounding violence. Bay’s mass success only proves audiences lap it all up. “Ambulance” is his take on the old “Speed” trick where a sole vehicle provides endless motion for the plot. It’s also less dependent on extreme technology or sci-fi. 

Like much of Bay’s work, believability is not an option. What matters is the adrenaline-addicted experience. “Ambulance” is all style, but pulled off with such manic energy that you almost want to admire it, even if it’s draining. This movie just never stops. The camera can’t stop panning around when Will meets Danny at his car shop. Then it can just as easily cut to a long pan of approaching cops, or swoop over buildings and through them. The bank robbery scene feels edited on PCP, with such a rush of cuts, intercuts, close-ups, wide shots, all involving running and gunfights, it’s astonishing we can follow what’s going on. Famously uncaring about continuity, Bay’s editing never explains how the thieves can cover vast swathes of L.A. on foot in seconds. The ambulance itself never bumps into the city’s infamously congested traffic when making its way from downtown to the east side. In classic Bay tradition, Cam survives crashes, explosions and close calls with guns, yet always looks like a supermodel. Although, it must be said, Bay tones down his notorious eye for objectification, letting Eiza González keep her modest uniform on while being a strong action persona.

Even the cast seems caught up in the mania of Bay’s drive. Gyllenhaal looks like he’s about to lose his nerve while delivering all of the dialogue with vein-popping intensity. Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is the would-be thief with a heart of gold, who somehow facetimes with his loving wife while racing away from the cops as others brawl in the back of the ambulance. As the vehicle plows through the city, causing not a few crashes along the way, Bay tosses more of his familiar characters. There are the policemen who once fought in Afghanistan, or an FBI agent, Anson Clark (Keir O’Donnell), who leaves his husband in the middle of couple’s therapy to join the chase. In many ways Bay is basking in being able to comment on himself. Not only does he tone down the misogyny and homophobia macho action movies threw around in the ‘90s, he even has the confidence to self-reference his own work. Characters go so far as to crack jokes about “The Rock” and “Bad Boys.” 

This being a Michael Bay film, it’s also best not to overthink the nuances or subtly. “Ambulance” is Bay celebrating the very absurdist kind of graphic action he helped pioneer. He’s nearly daring you to believe the scene where Cam has to perform surgery inside the speeding ambulance while receiving instructions on zoom from a surgeon at a golf course, this after she first calls her ex-boyfriend for help. Without transformers from space or killer asteroids aiming towards Earth, Bay’s version of a smaller climax involves East L.A. thugs, lowriders packing big machine guns and a required chase sequence through the Los Angeles river. Don’t assume Bay is heartless. He still includes messages about love between brothers and family loyalty. Yet, for the sake of your health, please arrive early to this movie. Few eyeballs will be able to handle its breakneck style from the front row. At a time of such stale product, there’s something to begrudgingly admire in Bay’s unabashed, reckless lens. Recent bad genre movies fail because they pretend to be more than they are. Bay knows what he’s making, he doesn’t care for the naysayers and in “Ambulance,” he obviously had a lot of fun doing his job.

“Ambulance” releases April 8 in theaters nationwide.