S.W.A.T.: Firefight (2011 Video) User Reviews

Its not too bad

[heffmacher_2000 · 6/10 · 20 February 2011]

Hardly a 1 out of 10 so I'm not sure where the other guys are coming from. I would be interested in seeing what they think is a 7 or 8 rating for a movie. There are definitely plenty of other movies out there that are worse. SWAT is more like a glorified TV movie than a big budget Bruce Willis movie blockbuster.

Its worth watching if you like your cop/hostage movies. Its kind of like the new Hawaii five O TV series turned into a movie. Judge for yourself but don't let the 1 and 2 ratings above throw you out. I'd expect it to end up around the 5 or 6 mark once the figures balance out. I thought the guys and gals did a good job in it.

Worth a watch, but nothing more

[moonweaver-982-670569 · 6/10 · 20 February 2011]

This movie I will describe like a coin - it has two sides.

The first side is the acting - on the contrary from most of the other reviewers, I found the acting very good. The characters are believable and the actors seem suited for their respective roles. I must admit that I watched this movie mainly because of the actors. I'm a big fan of Robert Patrick, hold respect for Gabriel Macht and it was nice to see Kristana Loken even in a minor role, which she played in style. The strong side of this movie are the actors and the characters - I like movies, that make me sympathize with characters, one way or another, in a positive or negative note. If you evaluate the actors' performance based on the first SWAT movie with Collin Farrel and Samuel Jackson, you might be a little disappointed, but if you watch it as a stand-alone, you might like it.

Now for the things I didn't like. The flip-side of this coin maybe some of you won't describe as something bad, but I personally am getting a little tired of a trend in recent action movies - sloppy endings. Some may say "this is an action movie, just watch the action and don't think too much for the ending!" But I like endings that make me smile and think to myself "yes, that was good!". In this particular movie, the ending is not only sloppy, but it just one more word - short. I fully agree with some other reviews that point out that maybe due to time restrictions the movie was cut short, but unfortunately the part that suffers the most is the ending. There are a few scenes throughout the movie that are just seen so many times and maybe if they were cut in order to add up a few minutes to the ending, the movie would have been better.

One other thing is the pace. The story unfolds pretty quickly, but the actual pace of the on-screen events is a little slow. Not that I find the latter as a flaw, but it kind of builds your thrill, I personally was expecting a grand finale that would blow me away. I like it very much when the good and the bad guy talk to each other, before the final showdown. Like De Niro and Pacino in "Heat". Maybe I'm too much of a yin-yang person, but I just would like to see something more of a clash of the titans endings in movies (literally, not like the movie by the same name). It doesn't matter if it is a happy ending or not, the thing that matters is HOW it is presented to us viewers. It may sound a little harsh, but I really felt robbed by this ending.

And something else - I really feel Robert Patrick's character (he is the bad guy) was presented too shallow. He has too little screen time to convince the audience he really is the bad guy, which is a big flaw of the script in my opinion. Patrick is a very, very, very underrated actor, especially when he plays bad guys and this movie does't utilize his talent whatsoever.

Don't get me wrong, this movie is worth a watch, if you like that genre (police, SWAT team action movies, hostages, tactics), you will enjoy it. But it just isn't something you will remember. If you're looking for something unusual, something that spans out of the box, of the cliché, you may be a little disappointed like I was. This is just an ordinary movie. It could have been great movie, but in my humble opinion it isn't.

6/10 - because good acting is never enough to save a poor story or a poor movie as a whole.

I have seen worse

[anonimus01 · 6/10 · 23 November 2020]

It is not 2003 swat ofcourse, fast cuts, cheesy one liners, few fancy special effects. Plot is very simple, but it also does not deserve all those 1/10. Watchable if you dont expect masterpiece.

Not Good

[funkcanna · 15 June 2011]

OK, let me first say that this is my first ever review - I was compelled to write one based on simply how BAD this movie is. The only reason I didn't give it a 1 is because I have seen worse.

Another reason I felt angry enough to write a review is because I normally like these kind of movies. Normally all you have to do is include something like SWAT, SAS or Marines in the description of the movie and point me towards it and I will lap it up. Unfortunately however, SWAT: Firefight only succeeded for me in one regard - it has SWAT in its title.

The story is just weak, really weak. Just when you feel it is about to get going, it literally ends. Its cliché to an extreme and about as predictable a movie I have ever seen.

I wont go on but to summarize, this is just a bad movie. If you want some decent SWAT like viewing entertainment, I recommend Flashpoint (Canadian TV Series) or possibly watching paint dry could also be considered a viable alternative.

Awful, truly awful!!

[jonmccann · 1/10 · 16 February 2011]

Please put the 90 minutes that you would spend watching this movie to better use, because if you don't, you will regret wasting so much precious time!

I watched the trailer and thought this would be a good film, but it was so awful, I spent the last 30 minutes wanting the film to end so I could write this review and save people the time! The main problems for me are awful acting, think cheese and rambo and you might have an idea, none of the actors gelled together to make it even feel like it was a good script, the baddies actually don't do anything during the movie to make you feel like its life or death, the storyline just has not been properly thought out and it shows.

I don't know if this movie is going straight to DVD, but I would recommend it does and gets lost, because if I paid to see this I would be demanding my money back!!

It's ok.

[patrick-91640 · 6/10 · 13 June 2021]

When you watch movies like this you know what your up for. Swat Firefight is a generic but entertaining B movie action/cop movie. Nothing more and nothing less.

Best quote ever:

[barryjkoster · 2/10 · 20 February 2011]

I think this movie is worth a '2'. It's start is already very cliché and American. Macho and only pretty people are playing in this movie. It's overall too slick. You find the best quote even heard in a movie: " She died for your sins, now you die for yours.." Huh? Who made that up!? It's the confirmation of what we already knew, five minutes after the movie started, this is a bad written script and a bad story-line. It's also really unrealistic how the relationship of the main character unfolds Acting isn't great too, but that's OK. To come to the conclusion: It's a really an all-American-macho-movie. I suggest you don't see this movie, it's a waste of your time. There are plenty of movies way better than this one.

much better than expected

[kevinbonnick · 7/10 · 27 December 2012]

I am very surprised by the low ratings for this film. I watched it not expecting great things, especially considering the low ratings and the fact that its a straight to video bandwagon film. However I was impressed. Yes the acting is not Oscar threatening and there are some cheesy clichés but overall I thought it was a well presented mature film, at the right pace with an above average plot. The script was particularly impressive, instead of the usual 'gung-ho' or unrealistic machismo's there is a lot of normal, down to earth banter that goes on between the team that is very true to life. the realism of the action and more importantly the justification and technical stuff is also well written. I would suggest they don't have a top class professional adviser but they got by. things to consider, there are some (albeit only some) relatively well known actors, some impressive hard wear and sets, including some big explosions. all done on a budget of $8 million. overall, although not on par with the 2003 original, it certainly stands up on its own as easy to watch action movie. I would be interested to see what this film would have been with double or triple the budget.

Cheesy and embarrassing to watch

[RobbyG52 · 1/10 · 1 March 2011]

I don't know where to begin with this film, there really is nothing good that i can say about it. The acting was terrible and i feel embarrassed for those who actually put their face to this move. At no point was i drawn into the story, it seemed to dart around the place and have people end up in totally unrealistic situations. In addition to this relationships between characters built up so quickly that if there was another 10 minutes of film, half of them would have been married. The only thing that i find more disturbing than the fact that this film didn't meet the scrap heap a long time ago, is that people are actually giving this film anything more than 2 stars. I went out of my way to join IMDb just so that i would be able to tell people how bad this film is. Don't bother.

An assassin targets a negotiator after a failed hostage rescue. Pretty entertaining, better then original. I give it a B

[cosmo_tiger · 7/10 · 25 February 2011]

After losing a hostage, a S.W.A.T. team leader (Macht) is targeted by a government assassin (Patrick). The best anti-terrorism expert the LAPD has is ordered to help train and certify the S.W.A.T. team in Detroit. After going to check out a domestic dispute something goes wrong and someone dies. The boyfriend then sets his sites on officer Cutler and his team. This is a movie that I was not expecting a lot from. It's been awhile since I've seen the original but I remember not liking it that much. I thought this one was better. There is a few dull spots, but it's mostly wall to wall action. Robert Patrick is very good at playing the psycho bad guy, although he was a little over the top, I feel if he was not in it the movie wouldn't have been as good. Don't expect a super great action movie, but if you want a very entertaining and tense movie you won't be disappointed in this one. I give it a B.

Would I watch again? - Probably not

Couple good scenes, horrible movie

[patoos · 2/10 · 26 February 2011]

I'm a real fan of SWAT movies or shows, but this one was not worth the 90 min. It was way too cliché and badly written. The acting from some actors was good (ie. Robert Patrick)but for others quite embarrassing. The story was badly written and it moved along quite fast yet you don't really know how. What I'm trying to say is that you would be watching 3-4 scenes yet you don't learn anything knew from the story.

It is a very corny movie as well. Jokes are bad, Quotes are bad, overall its just all bad.

There were a couple cool scenes with swat going all out, But wasn't worth the 90min.

The bad guy prepared so hard for the ending yet was taken out within 2 minutes and you don't see most of his preparation. Like he threatens the good guy by shooting a 50 caliber over the phone saying how it "will kill a man through a wall from a mile away and he wouldn't even hear it" yet he never does anything with it... instead he attacks with his own limbs and a pressure sensitive bomb trigger yet somehow the good guy is able to deal with the situation and eliminate him within a minute.

in conclusion, its too macho too corny too cliché and too bad to be worth 90 minutes of your time.

Minor Mistake

[Tactrix · 8/10 · 18 February 2011]

I've watched this movie and seen the other reviews, first lets me tell you a little about this movie.

Its basically about a SWAT team leader who's never lost a hostage, he gets called in to train a SWAT team for FBI certification in Detroit. When on call with this team things go badly and a hostage dies. Without giving too much away I'll say that there's a bad guy who doesn't take too kindly to the hostage dying, and makes this team leader his primary target, and everything pretty much goes from there.

Now for the review, the movie in itself is not bad, the acting is pretty good, here's the reason why its getting such bad reviews. What I imagine happened was that the director of this movie was told after it was created that.. it was simply too long, and it had to be cut down. Naturally he cut it as short as he could. The problem is that in cutting it he took out the most important elements of the movie, the leading up to the ending part, and the actual ending. Up to where the movie escalates into running out of time, its very good, but as soon as it gets to the point of where the main character is racing the clock, its missing.. well everything.

The bad guys are literally 2 people, they aren't anywhere near as badass or as hardcore as it was portrayed, because it takes about 2 min to neutralize both of them, they make the main bad guy out to be really smart when in fact his "setup" was nothing short of childish, i.e. anyone with half a brain would have thought out a further trap plot then he did, from these things I can only conclude that there is a mass amount of movie missing, if there isn't however then the director knows nothing about how to end a movie and thats where the bad reviews come in.

8/10 because besides for the ending its actually a pretty decent flick.

S.W.A.T.: Firefight (2011)

[SnakesOnAnAfricanPlain · 6/10 · 13 December 2011]

I'm a big fan of the original S.W.A.T. movie. It takes excitement to the next level. This unrelated sequel is a surprisingly competent, and well formed movie. It could just about stretch into theaters, but a quiet DVD release was probably best. The movie takes SWAT up against some stalker boyfriend. Not much of a threat, but as the movie progresses, we get some twists and turns which escalate it into true movie territory. A real film about SWAT life would be great, but these action ones are simple guilty entertainment. Macht is a decent lead, and shouldn't be relegated to such movies for life. Sure, The Spirit was painful to watch, listen to, and think about, but he isn't completely to blame. Patrick is always a decent villain, even if he does look a bit out of shape for some of his stunts.

The Good the Bad and this film!

[felixismyname · 1/10 · 16 February 2011]

Why is it that films this bad still get made?

The movie feels cheaply produced , written and the acting , well lets say it's in there somewhere!

From the start of the film you can clearly see the low rent camera work and quality.

This standard of movie making is something one would expect from a TV movie.

The story is really badly done , events move way too quickly for the time frame and to be frank , it has all the cheese you would find in a 90's Si-Fi series.

I promise you this will go straight to DVD and then straight to being a bad retail mistake!

Advoid this shockingly bad film at all costs!

Another Version of "Speed", This Time in Detroit

[gavin6942 · 25 February 2011]

Los Angeles SWAT team leader Paul Cutler (Gabriel Macht) is sent to Detroit in order to certify the team there for Homeland Security work. Under his watch, they respond to a domestic abuse call that goes wrong, and everything goes downhill quickly.

Let me just give a shout-out to the cast. Gabriel Macht makes an excellent lead. I loved him in "The Spirit", and he does a fine job here of being a leading man, but also somewhat realistic in appearance (he is not as perfectly handsome as Hollywood could have made him). Kristanna Loken is given very prominent billing, but sadly a very small role -- which is too bad, given how much potential she has.

Stealing the show is Robert Patrick as millionaire Walter Hatch. Patrick may be best known to you as the evil robot from "Terminator 2". He has aged a bit and put on a few pounds since then, but is every bit as menacing even without the use of robotic shapeshifting.

I felt that this film took a lot of cues from "Speed". There is no bomb on a bus, or any bus at all. But Patrick seems to be playing a Dennis Hopper villain, there are still bombs, there is taunting, there is a damsel in distress. There is a mysterious background to the villain (wait for the twist -- very awesome).

I liked the film. Action, good plot, likable characters. I am not a big action guy (I am a horror fan), but this film gripped me and never let go. It was exciting beginning to end. A bit cliché here or there, but they were not aiming for Oscar gold. They wanted a fun, exciting action flick. And they nailed it.

"It's That Bad"

[ShahJahan572 · 4/10 · 28 February 2011]

Well this movie starts OK,tries to set base but can't.The script is very weak.....no real story whatsoever.They just wanted to show a maniac with arms going after the good guys....even with these kinds of resources they weren't able to pull this off.

It has many flaws as well like: 1-When "Paul" makes "Watters" "the Sniper Man" instead of "Kellogg" the best shooter in the team.......it shows his poor judgement. 2-And than he takes "Kellogg" out of the team just to introduce a girl element.......ridiculous and childish. 3-You remember me saying that "They just wanted to show a maniac with arms going after the good guys"........well guys it's really true,there's nothing more in the story.....there's no "WHY?" in the script(well they showed that "the girl"committed suicide whom Walter Hatch(the maniac)allegedly loved,that's why he went after them),no link between stories. 4-Well our lead goes to Detroit on mayor's request to certify there "SWAT" team....and at the end of the movie he says "consider them certified"like killing that alleged "maniac" and "watters" getting killed was the certification they needed.

All in All it was a "boogusss" movie.....and don't just go there to see "S.W.A.T" in action ....you'll be disappointed.

Surprisingly good.

[bloodyjackuk · 7/10 · 9 March 2021]

Really wasn't expecting to like this. Thought I'd watch 10mins of it, then laugh at how poor it was and turn it off. Instead watched it all the way through. Usually Films like these are full of cheesy acting or scenes. This was actually all quite good. Even the t-1000 character was good.

Do they let 7 year old kids write scripts now?

[mirandir · 1/10 · 3 March 2011]

I'm convinced this movie is aimed at kids in the early teens. I mean this movie is stuffed with things that makes you go "What the f...!?".

Just take the start of the movie for instance. It begins with two baddies crashing a random rich kid's party. They're demanding their money and threaten to kill everybody if they don't get it right now. In comes the SWAT. But behold suddenly that rich kid is on his own having a machine gun and shoots out a surveillance cam. WTF!?

Later on the best shooter in the team gets pulled from being a sniper. For what? Not being able to hit a target with a pistol in the wrong hand? WTF!?

A hostage is so scared of a villain she takes her own life. WTF!?

And it continues like that for 90 minutes.

So if you like action movies with tons of shootouts, loud bangs and don't mind plot holes or people behaving strangely you'll love this film. But if you expect anything more from a movie then this clearly ain't for you.

Not all that bad

[SimonSaysSmallScreen · 6/10 · 15 May 2021]

Ok, it's a standard-formula cop movie, predictable and not too clever. But it's entertaining if you dial back the expectations. And, it is GREAT to see Gabriel Macht act when he isn't being directed to constantly scream every line of dialogue ("Suits", I'm looking at you).

Awful

[laurenthoutent · 1/10 · 19 February 2011]

Stereotype cardboard characters.

Wooden acting.

Very weak plot with huge plot holes.

Lots of firepower noise, lots of shouting for what??? Ridiculous villain with silly sidekick.

OK, we have to see the hero's face, but him going out on missions without helmet and little protective gear... come on...

What's the point of the baddie practicing with a rifle that "kills you through a wall a mile away", apart from using 3 minutes of the movie?

At the end, they get an unverified call about a guy who threatens to jump from a 4th floor. Is this really the job of a heavily armed SWAT team to be there first?

1/10 is very generous indeed.

AVOID this movie, don't waste your time. Take the dog out for a walk instead.

A surprisingly strong action B-movie

[TdSmth5 · 6/10 · 18 January 2015]

LA SWAT's finest leader named Cutler is tasked with training Detroit SWAT. He isn't crazy about the idea but goes anyway. He finds a team that's a bit disorganized and unfocused. He's supposed to get them ready to pass some FBI certification. Right in the middle of the first training session, they get a call of a hostage situation. Cutler decides to change roles and sends another guy as the sniper instead of the sniper expert. When he and the sniper expert arrive, they find Walter, played by Patrick, holding a gun to a girl. Cutler orders the shot but his sniper misses so they have to shoot the bad guy--non-lethally. Cutler orders the expert sniper to contain the hostage, he fails to do so, the girl grabs a gun and shoots herself.

Despite the disaster of an operation, Cutler is still allowed to be in charge. He fires the guy who failed to contain the witness after a battle of wits. As his replacement he brings in some skinny girl whom he knows from their days in Iraq. She of course if superior to all the other guys. Training continues. But Walter has been freed and we learn that he's tracking the SWAT guys. He gets one of their training books, starts harassing Cutler with phone calls, leaves a flower arrangement at his house, plants a bomb under his car. One day he shows up at the police station. But he's followed by agents from the State Department, who tell police that he's a valuable guy and that they can't touch him.

Walter continues to plan revenge. We learn that during the hostage situation, it was the girl, Walter's girlfriend, who posed the risk and he was trying to resolve the situation. When finally the Detroit top cop tells Cutler to get lost, the team resigns in protest, so he has to revert his decision and let Cutler go after Walter, which is of course just what Walter wants. There's a final confrontation in an abandoned training facility when Walter takes Cutler's girl, the department's shrink, hostage.

SWAT Firefight is a good low-budget action thriller. The action is well-filmed and you do end up caring about the characters. I enjoyed the tone of this movie. It doesn't take itself too seriously, but it's not goofy either. It doesn't make Detroit looks as bad as Hollywood usually likes to do. The Cutler character is also interesting because he's not the super-cop who comes to rescue the incompetent Detroit cops. He's no authoritarian but handles things with humor and wit. Some of the Detroit cops actually look like they could be cops. Just Cutler is rather skinny for the part. But Macht makes up for it with charisma. Relationships are also handled well, especially between Cutler and his new girl. They don't end up in bed immediately after meeting each other, and they aren't obnoxious or abusive to each other either. I wish there had been more focus on the training of the team, that was the original purpose of the movie, but that's completely set aside for the hunt for Walter. Also a shame that Kristanna Loken doesn't get more screen time. Overall an entertaining movie.

What a waste of time!!

[khalid-ame · 1/10 · 18 February 2011]

I just can not describe how awful this movie is! I saw the first S.W.A.T. movie and I really loved it back then and now when this one came out I said this is going to be a great movie but when I saw the first 15 minutes or so I knew that it is not as good as the old one. The worst part is as you watch it more you start to hate it more and at the end of the movie you will say: This is so bad , I wish I could get my 90 minutes back! So I am saying this to save your time people: Don't watch it! One last thing , what makes this movie so awful is the huge amount of unrealistic events in it and I am not talking about regular movie stunts like a car jumping a bridge or shooting while driving I am talking about a bomb that blows up while it is thrown out of a room and the two good guys (who are in the same room) do not get a scratch!

Straight to DVD and Still Kicking Ass

[generalchurch · 8/10 · 15 February 2011]

SWAT may have been an iffy film when it first came out years ago, but it is undeniably a great action film. SWAT Firefight still holds up to the original if not exceeds its original impact. It may be tough to replace the original cast with a new younger crew but they pull it off beautifully. Super Stars like Sam Jackson, Colin Farrell may be missing but the acting and drama between characters still exists. From the first encounter with the enemy, you wonder how things will play out and why they happened the way they did. The story may not be as compelling as the original but still has its strong points with love tie in's and controversy met along the way similar to Gamble and Street in the original. Some scenes how ever were down right terrible, for instance there is a scene inside a convenience store and a shoot out erupts, the end scene shows them walking off instantly in slow motion to rock music... it just doesn't fit in that scenario. Yet after all is said and done the film wraps up with an exemplary scene of heroism and action.

Action- 9/10 Style- 10/10 Story- 7/10 Overall- 8/10

A mildly enjoyable continuation of the original S.W.A.T. movie with Colin Ferrel

[mugaliens · 6/10 · 8 March 2011]

No, it's nowhere as good. The acting is two steps below no matter how one considers it. Robert Patrick, you should have stayed away from this project, as your acting requires better direction. As for the directors, the screen direction is actually what carries this movie! Very good! It's the personal interplay that tubes it, originating at the shoddy interplay between characters at the original script level.

What I did enjoy about the movie, at least for the first half of the movie is that is seemed on the legit. Everything rang true. Then, things just sort of dissolved into a messy ending.

This is a clear case of why multiple agencies should be involved in various stages of the screenplay as it develops, while there must always be someone with their finger on the button coordination all efforts from all sides so that By the way, I am so sick of "1-sec until she blows!" endings it's not even funny. Hollywood writers, STOP IT. Pop a boil on you backside and grow a brain. That's not the way to do it.

Back to the picture, the lead character simply didn't have anywhere near the moxie to pull it. I don't have the face, but neither does Machete' star, either. He get's it, perhaps because of his prison background. So do I, perhaps because of my military background. This guy? He's a sty-faced stand-in trying to act tough in many situations in which so many Americans have not only been in, but in which they've already proved their worth.

If you'd like to talk about capturing military experience, talk to the military. Or at least those of us who've been there, done that.

Feel Good Movie of The Year!!!

[jjvincent · 2/10 · 18 December 2011]

I have been looking for a new hobby and watching this movie convinced me that writing screenplays is well within my abilities. All I have to do is watch any blockbuster cop movie from the 80's, change the actors and come up with a catch phrase for the leading actor. If I can convince someone to fund it and make a movie out of it, then I get to meet some of my favorite washed up actors. I feel so much better about myself.

As for the movie, only the names have been changed to protect the innocent: Paul Cutler (aka John McClane), Walter Hatch (aka Hans Gruber), Inspector Hollander (aka Sgt. Al Powell), Kim Byers (aka Holly McClane) and McKittrick (aka Fritz). As for catch phrase, She died for your sins, now you die for yours (aka This time John Wayne does not walk off into the sunset with Grace Kelly).

Too bad this movie didn't take place during Christmas as that would have been icing on the cake. Having a single name bad guy sidekick (McKittrick) was a good touch. I'm waiting for SWAT Hard 2 then SWAT Hard with a Vengeance, Live Free or SWAT Hard and finally A Good Day to SWAT Hard.