Today’s quick review: Ambushed. Frankie (Daniel Bonjour) and his partner Eddie (Gianni Capaldi) are Los Angeles drug dealers looking to move up in the cocaine trade. They get their chance when Frankie kills their supplier and takes his stock. But the risky move draws unwanted attention from all sides: DEA agent Evan Maxwell (Dolph Lundgren), crooked LAPD detective Jack Reilley (Randy Couture), and cocaine kingpin Vinnie Scolise (Vinnie Jones).
Ambushed is a crime drama and action movie about a drug dealer with a plan to make it big. The film follows Frankie as he wrestles with his ambition, his better judgment, and his desire to get out of the drug business while he’s on top. Unfortunately, in spite of energetic pacing and a decent cast, Ambushed brings little to the table. Its aimless plot, weak dialogue, and limited amounts of action all keep it from reaching its goals.
Ambushed suffers from two main problems: amateurish plotting and misuse of its cast. The story starts out strong enough, putting two up-and-coming drug dealers in the middle of a three-way crossfire. But once the preliminaries are out of the way, the plot begins to ramble. Ambushed resolves one of its conflicts too early and sets up the others too late, leaving a long gap in the middle that the movie tries to fill with meaningless subplots.
The film’s biggest stars get lost in the shuffle. Dolph Lundgren has next to no impact on the plot, while Vinnie Jones only makes two or three brief appearances before vanishing. Randy Couture does put in consistent work as Reilly, but he’s left waiting in the wings for too long. The short shrift given these actors either speaks to Ambushed’s budget or lack of vision. They do have a few half-decent moments, but none are at their best.
These two mistakes, as well as other, lesser issues, keep Ambushed from holding much appeal for anyone but the most lenient crime fans. Most viewers would be better off with one of the many other films in the genre. For a crime drama with similar ideas and a much stronger plot, try Layer Cake. For a crime comedy with a similar style of plot, try Snatch, RocknRolla, or Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels.
3.9 out of 10 on IMDB. I give it a 5.0 for a half-baked plot and modest potential.