Reviewed by EWAN MCDONALD
(Herald rating: * * )
S.W.A.T. stands for Special Weapons And Tactics, which was always an excuse to use lots of boys' toys in a series loosely based on the antics of the Los Angeles Police Department.
S.W.A.T. officers Jim Street (Colin Farrell) and Brian Gamble (Jeremy Renner) defy
orders and their initiative sees Gamble kicked off the force and Street transferred. Six months later, S. W. A. T commander Hondo (Samuel L. Jackson) recruits a new squad: Chris Sanchez (Michelle Rodriguez), Deke Kay (LL Cool J), Boxer (Brian Von Holt), McCabe (Josh Charles) and second-chance Street, portraying the usual range of character stereotypes that has served every Hollywood flick from The Magnificent Seven to The Dirty Dozen.
After the obligatory training sequences, the team goes into action, given the responsibility of transporting a captured international terrorist, Alex Montel (Olivier Martinez), to the Feds. Montel offers a $100 million reward to anyone who will spring him from custody, which provides plenty of opportunities for Hondo's team to use their toys and muscles against the usual range of bad-character stereotypes, ditto the previous paragraph: nutters, gangs, disillusioned cops ...
On the DVD, S.W.A.T. is presented in 2.40:1 anamorphic widescreen, which provides a crisp and bright transfer, and a poor pan-and-scan version, with a grunty Dolby Digital 5.1 surround soundtrack. Extras include commentary tracks by the actors and director Johnson, and by the screenwriters. Five features include a comparison between the opening shootout and the event it was based on; a brief look at the original TV series; a decent making-of that includes interviews with Clark, Jackson and his co-stars; special effects and sound effects docos and the usual bloopers, deleted scenes, trailers and bios.
DVD, video rental 14 April
