SYNOPSIS: Tearing up the streets of London, THE SWEENEY is a stylish and exhilarating action thriller proving sometimes you have to act like a criminal to catch a criminal. Directed by Nick Love and based on the popular 1970s U.K. television show of the same name, the U.K. box office smash (opening theatrically in the U.S. this March) is based on the Sweeney Flying Squad, London's elite crime-fighting force - a branch of the Metropolitan Police specializing in tackling armed robbery and violent crime. Led by legendary Detective Jack Regan (Winstone) and his loyal partner, the group is not afraid to use old school, bare-knuckle tactics to bring down the modern underworld. Now, with a master criminal on the loose and a major bank heist in progress, Regan will do whatever it takes to get the job done, even if that means defying the orders of his boss (Lewis) and taking the law into his own hands.

FILM REVIEW: Famed British Writer/Director Nick Love (The Business, 2005), who also wrote the screenplay for this latest effort, presents us with what feels like a movie aspiring to be the British spin to Michael Mann's "Heat" or "Miami Vice" (which both happens to be on my all-time personal favorites list). However, instead it seems as though Sweeney struggles to keep pace with the likes of Troy Duffy’s 1999 action flick "Boondock Saints," which was somewhat outlandish, but with less cops and robbers cheesiness, at least for its time. Nevertheless, it worth noting that "Saints" survives as a cult film and I certainly don’t expect this British attempt to do the same.

Taking an iconic 70s British TV series and giving it the big screen treatment as just another blockbuster crime-drama, might have been a good idea for the 80s decade, but certainly not for the 21st century, especially when you consider what some of the best minds in Hollywood came up with for the remake of “Starsky & Hutch” and “Shaft” (laughable). In other words, the level of the bar for storytelling over the past few decades has been elevated such that audiences certainly are not expecting to be entertained by cheesy 70s cop movie-one-liners and the same run-of-the-mill cops vs. Internal Affairs while fighting bad guys, type of action. Take for instance, the creativity of Quentin Tarantino’s 1994 cult classic “Pulp Fiction.” This was a valiant effort to take the essence of the 70s style of film and transform it into present-day style of storytelling. I believe if Love had made similar efforts with this latest release, we would have had more bang for the buck here to talk about.

Nonetheless, some notable points about this foreign flick is that instead of crowded roads for car chases on highways (Hollywood style) and huge over-the-top explosions, Sweeney offers up simply alternatives like car chases down skinny (European) winding countryside roads that is like a rollercoaster ride from hell, good-guy/bad-guy final face off with vehicles hurtling through trailer parks and noticeably less graphic European versions of mayhem and chaos. Throw into that mix, a nice long action sequence with good guys giving chase across and through iconic London landscapes. I would say it’s always a welcomed change from the monotonous scenes of LA, New York or Philly. All the same, Sweeney offers something a little different and is a solid film on many levels, especially the casting. Overall, I would say that this is a “wait for the DVD,” type of flick and I give it three and a half stars out of five.

BLU-RAY: The film is presented in widescreen in a 2.40:1 aspect ration preserving its theatrical format. The picture is just flawless. Not only the picture looks great in this release, also the sound it is good, a 5.1 Dolby Digital in English that provides a good complement to the picture. It also includes  English  and Spanish subtitles.

VIDEO:
Widescreen (2.40:1) 16x9

AUDIO:
English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1

Subtitles - English 

SPECIAL FEATURES:

Blu-ray™ disc unleashes the power of your HDTV and is the best way to watch movies at home, featuring perfect hi-def picture and hi-def sound. 

DVD offers the flexibility and convenience of playing movies in more places, both at home and away. 

Behind the Scenes of The Sweeney

Preparing The Sweeney

Shooting in Trafalgar Square

The New Regan and Carter

On the Shooting Range

Top Gear and the Caravan Park

Animated Storyboards: Trafalgar Square and The Caravan Park

Audio Commentary with Director and Producers