one of the best action movies of the 1990's!

Rating: 10/10 (20 July 2001)

This is definitely a great movie. Yes, the action is great, but the performances are more a reason to watch this movie.
Nicolas Cage, coming off his big Oscar win at the time, is Stanley Goodspeed, a bio-chemist for the FBI. He's pretty much a regular, goofy guy, without any combat experience, which shows throughout the movie, and leads to some funny scenes.
Ed Harris, Hummel, is the maniac in the movie, not as typical as you may think as the movie goes on. He's employed some of his marine friends to help with heist, taking over Alcatraz and taking hostages, while threatening to launch rockets with VX gas at San Francisco.
Sean Connery puts in a great performance as Mason, the wrongfully-charged prisoner, who was put in jail without a trial. He's rightfully pissed, so obviously it takes a little to get him to guide the Navy Seals through The Rock, to overtake Hummel and his men.
The movie consists of many action sequences, that do not seem pointlessly thrown in like in other movies, but flow with the plot. The story is pretty cool and is executed quite good. Michael Bay really shines as the director, excellently using his low-angle shots, really showcasing what is going on in the scene. Definitely a must-see for action movie fans.