A troubled movie star and a former SWAT team leader find themselves in the middle of a siege on a training facility in Gridlocked. Brody Walker (Cody Hackman) is a hard partying movie star, who is avoiding jail time following assault charges by tailing New York police officer David Hendrix (Dominic Purcell) on his raids. David takes Brody to the training outpost for the Strategic Response Team, which includes Gina (Trish Stratus), Scott (Steve Byers), Jason (James A. Woods), and kindhearted security guard Sully (Danny Glover). When a team of mercenaries, lead by John Korver (Stephen Lang) and his henchman Ryker (Vinnie Jones), ambush the compound, David, Brody, and the team have to fight to make it out alive.
From director Allan Ungar (Tapped Out) come this high-intensity action film, which can be seen as a throwback to similar films from the 1970s and 1980s, such as Assault on Precinct 13 and Die Hard. The 80s feel of the film is apparent in the dynamic between David Hendrix and Brody Walker, with David being the deadly serious straight man and Brody being the snarky joker. Gridlocked is also a very testosterone-heavy film, with former WWE star Trish Straus being the only main female in the film. That said, Stratus does hold her own as Gina, despite being the recipient of a few sexist comments by Brody.
While it’s a relatively simple film, taking place primarily in the warehouse that headquarters the SRT, the film does feature some high-intensity action and violence, particularly in the climax. In addition, Stephen Lang really chews up scenery in the film as lead antagonist Korver. Altogether, Gridlocked is an enjoyable throwback to the action films of old.
LIKED IT
Screenings:
