S.W.A.T. (2003)

An imprisoned drug kingpin offers a huge cash reward to anyone that can break him out of police custody and only the LAPD's Special Weapons and Tactics team can prevent it.

Director:

Clark Johnson

Writers:

Robert Hamner (characters), Ron Mita (story),

Stars:

Samuel L. Jackson, Colin Farrell, Michelle Rodriguez

4 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Samuel L. Jackson	...	Sgt. Dan 'Hondo' Harrelson
Colin Farrell	...	Jim Street
Michelle Rodriguez	...	Chris Sanchez
LL Cool J	...	Deacon 'Deke' Kay (as James Todd Smith aka LL Cool J)
Josh Charles	...	T.J. McCabe
Jeremy Renner	...	Brian Gamble
Brian Van Holt	...	Michael Boxer
Olivier Martinez	...	Alex Montel
Reg E. Cathey	...	Lt. Greg Velasquez (as Reginald E. Cathey)
Larry Poindexter	...	Capt. Thomas Fuller
Page Kennedy	...	Travis
Domenick Lombardozzi	...	GQ
James DuMont	...	Gus
Denis Arndt	...	Sgt. Howard
Lindsey Ginter	...	Agent Hauser

Storyline

Based off of a one time T.V. show, two Los Angeles S.W.A.T. officers Jim Street and Brian Gamble were sent in to foil an extremely violent bank robbery. Although they thwarted the robbery, they shot a hostage in the process. Street was suspended from S.W.A.T. while Gamble was fired altogether. After 6 months, a veteran S.W.A.T. officer, Daniel Harrelson or "Hondo", is told to assemble a S.W.A.T. team for his division. He chooses other S.W.A.T. officers as well as 3 rookies. However, after they pass the S.W.A.T. training, they receive a message that a French crime boss, known as Alex Montell is trying to escape from prison. This will not be easy to prevent, especially after Montell promises $100 Million to his rescuers.

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Plot Keywords:

swat team | hostage | police | bank robbery | uniform | 

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Taglines:

Even cops dial 911

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for violence, language and sexual references

Details

Official Sites:

Sony [Brazil] Sony Pictures [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish French

Release Date:

8 August 2003 (USA)

Also Known As:

S.W.A.T. - Unidad especial

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$80,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£1,960,281 (UK) (5 December 2003)

Gross:

£5,274,283 (UK) (9 January 2004)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, Original Film, Camelot Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Paul Walker was set to play Jim Street and had even started training for the part but had to drop out due to filming on 2 Fast 2 Furious.

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Goofs

Dispatch claims the Hawthorne airport beacon is on "after closing hours". Beacons are always turned on after sunset or when visibility is below three miles.

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Quotes

Boxer: [to Street] Hey, don't forget to take your safety off!

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Crazy Credits

Director Clark Johnson, who appears in the film briefly as Deke's beat partner, is credited as 'Deke's Handsome Partner'.

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Connections

Featured in Guns, Guts and Justice: An Inside Look (2003)

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Soundtracks

"Columpio"
Written by Cano Hernández (as Carlos Alberto Hernandez-Gonzalez)
Performed by El Gran Silencio
Courtesy of EMI Latin
Under license from EMI Film & Television Music

User Reviews

Average good action film

S.W.A.T. is a nothing more and nothing less than what you expect from it - god action film, the script is very predictable and full of clichees, but it has enough logic and good sense to avoid the ridicule. Acting is average good, effects are average good, and directing is average good - so what you get is an average good action film. Get your popcorn, biers as well if you are at home, sit back and relax. Nothing more, nor less 7 out of 10 on my personal scale.