[Cert: 15] ★★★✩✩

Fans of big dumb, loud and preposterously themed action-packed thrillers rejoice, for a new Michael Bay film is upon us. Based on the 2005 Danish film of the same name by Laurits Munch-Petersen and Lars Andreas Pedersen, Ambulance stars Jake Gyllenhaal (Brokeback Mountain, Zodiac, Nightcrawler) and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Watchmen, The Trial of the Chicago 7, Candyman) as two bank-robbers who steal an ambulance after their heist goes awry. 

Desperate for money to cover his wife’s medical bills, decorated Veteran Will Sharp (Mateen II), turns to the worst person possible for help, his adopted brother Danny (Gyllenhaal in scenery-chewing form). While Will has settled down after a short-lived life of crime, charismatic, and more than a little unhinged, Danny is a notorious career criminal feared by everyone arounds him.

Will is eventually talked by Danny into taking part in the biggest bank heist in Los Angeles’ history. When their plan goes wrong, the brothers are left scrambling for a way out of their predicament. Enter Cam (Eiza González),  a young and  gifted ambulance MT whose vehicle is hijacked by the brothers while she attempts to save the life of a cop one of them shot. Things go from bad to worse when Will and Danny are pursued by the whole of the LA police force who are out to avenge their injured colleague.

Never known for his subtlety or understated direction style, Bay has once again delivered what the fans keep coming back for, a whole load of nonsense and a ridiculous amount of explosions, big guns and endless and car-chases. Granted, the premise is once again as absurdly unrealistic as one would expect, but here Bay cranks up the level of silliness and cheesy repartee. 

It’s hard to tell whether Bay has his tongue firmly in his cheek or whether he is completely oblivious to the level of ridiculous suspension of disbelief that is expected from his audience. In any case, and despite all the usual nonsense, the film does work on some level by offering a no holds barred fun a la Fast and Furious, only wIth slightly better acting.

On the whole, this is again one of those “does exactly what’s on the tin” offerings from the king of  “check your brain at the door” action-packed thrillers. Sadly though, Ambulance is eventually let down by Bay’s trademark lack of sophisticated self-aware humour, and that’s the film’s biggest problem.