16 Blocks (2006)

An aging cop is assigned the ordinary task of escorting a fast-talking witness from police custody to a courthouse. There are however forces at work trying to stop prevent them from making it.

Director:

Richard Donner

Writer:

Richard Wenk

Stars:

Bruce Willis, Mos Def, David Morse

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bruce Willis	...	Det. Jack Mosley
Mos Def	...	Eddie Bunker
David Morse	...	Det. Frank Nugent
Jenna Stern	...	Diane Mosley
Casey Sander	...	Capt. Dan Gruber
Cylk Cozart	...	Det. Jimmy Mulvey
David Zayas	...	Det. Robert Torres
Robert Racki	...	Det. Jerry Shue
Patrick Garrow	...	Touhey
Sasha Roiz	...	Kaller
Conrad Pla	...	Ortiz
Hechter Ubarry	...	Maldonado
Richard Fitzpatrick	...	Deputy Commissioner Wagner
Peter McRobbie	...	Mike Sheehan
Michael F. Keenan	...	Ray Fitzpatrick (as Mike Keenan)

Storyline

Jack Mosley, a burnt-out detective, is assigned the unenviable task of transporting a fast-talking convict from jail to a courthouse 16 blocks away. However, along the way he learns that the man is supposed to testify against Mosley's colleagues, and the entire NYPD wants him dead. Mosley must choose between loyalty to his colleagues and protecting the witness, and never has such a short distance seemed so long...

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Plot Keywords:

detective | courthouse | witness | jail | convict | 

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Taglines:

1 Witness... 118 Minutes...

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for violence, intense sequences of action, and some strong language

Details

Official Sites:

CMC [tw] Metropolitan Filmexport [fr]

Country:

Germany USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 March 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

16 blocs

Filming Locations:

Casey's Bar - 613 S. Grand Avenue, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$52,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$13,986 (Chile) (24 November 2006)

Gross:

$13,986 (Chile) (24 November 2006)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Alcon Entertainment, Millennium Films, Emmett/Furla Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

WILHELM SCREAM: Immediately following the bus tire being shot out a Wilhelm Scream can be heard.

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Goofs

When the bus drives down the alley, knocking down air conditioners, one of them falls apart, revealing it to be an empty metal box.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Jack Mosley: [tape recording] This is Detective Jack Mosley, Shield number 227. I guess this will be my last will and testament. This is for Diane. Now, they're gonna come talk to you and they're gonna tell you things. But what they tell you isn't really what happen. So Diane, I think you should know what really happened. I was trying to do a good thing.

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Crazy Credits

There are no opening credits save the title "16 BLOCKS".

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Connections

References Yûgiô (1998)

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Soundtracks

"Can't Get Enough of Your Love, Babe"
Written and Performed by Barry White
Published by Unichappell Music, Inc. obo Itself and Sa-Vette Music
Courtesy of the Island Def Jam Music Group
Under License from Universal Music Enterprises

User Reviews

some good elements but they fail to fully come together

"16 Blocks" features an aging Bruce Willis as a broken-down, burned out NYPD detective assigned to transport the key witness in a police corruption trial from his jail cell to the courthouse where he is scheduled to testify 16 blocks away. However, something goes terribly awry when the cops who are the targets of his testimony attempt to knock off the witness, forcing Willis and his charge to run for their lives through the crowded streets and deserted back alleys of downtown Manhattan.

"16 Blocks" deserves points for at least attempting to provide a bit more in the way of characterization and theme than we are used to in run-of-the-mill police procedurals, but the film winds up falling flat despite the best of intentions and some first rate performances by Willis and Mos Def as the man whose life Willis feels compelled to protect. For even though the low-keyed approach writer Richard Wenk and director Richard Donner have taken towards the material should have made this a more believable and realistic film than most in its genre, the filmmakers keep undercutting that truth by having the two fleeing gentlemen go through so many hairbreadth escapes that we begin to think that not only are these NYPD officers corrupt but amazingly incompetent as well. Moreover, the schmaltzy, humanity-of-man ending, with its theme of mutually achieved salvation and redemption, comes across as a contrived piece of sentimental uplift that never rings true or convincing.

What's good about the movie is its occasionally witty one liners and the performances by the actors in the two lead roles. Willis, craggy-faced, gimpy and sporting a noticeable middle-age spread, is subtle and subdued in the role of a man who has grown apathetic and cynical over the years, and Mos Def makes a very compelling character out of Eddie Bunker, the criminal-with-a-heart-of-gold who never stops talking, but whose deadpan, singsong delivery endears him to the audience. The actors alone compensate for the underdeveloped script and the overall sense of ennui that permeates the film.