"You're stuck between a rock, and a hard case."

Rating: 9/10 (21 July 2013)

The Rock opens with a military funeral, intercut with explosions, and with Hans Zimmer's dramatic score in the background. Yep, it's pure Michael Bay: just about all of the man's films feature huge, overblown action scenes, big fiery explosions, energetic car chases, silly humor, and a hyperactive style. It's made for a rather shallow experience for some of his films, but in his second full-length feature film, all the excesses align perfectly, crafting one of the purest and most thrilling action movies of all time. You can certainly expect lots of action: the shootouts are loud and intense, there is one awesome car chase, and there are quite a few major explosions. Characters often exchange witty lines throughout. And when the bullets aren't flying, the film still maintains furious momentum with its suspense and political intrigue. It's a perfectly loud and explosive picture, but without being too overblown (especially not as much as Bay's Transformers trilogy).
Thankfully, The Rock is not all about endless gunfire and pyrotechnics. The film utilizes pretty common elements of action movies: terrorists take some hostages, good guys have to rescue them and stop the chemical missiles from causing widespread death. The Rock offers some clever variations though, especially by having the terrorists take over Alcatraz, turning the titular prison (and in some parts, San Francisco) into a massive action setpiece. Above all, the characters propel the film into above-average fare: the protagonists are an unlikely pair, sharing entertaining chemistry, and each one has likable traits and personal stakes attached to them. The villains are especially noteworthy, because they're not just mindless nameless bad guys: they have a patriotic motivation, and they show surprising humanity at times. The plot overall is pretty well-built and evenly-paced.
This film has solid photography, which includes a lot of cool-looking camera angles and movements. It gets really shaky during the big car chase, but it's far from unbearable. Editing can be fast at times, but once again, it's not too unbearable. Acting is solid: Nicholas Cage dishes out a lot of humor, but he's appropriately serious when he needs to be; Sean Connery is at his most badass here, and Ed Harris really nails his role. Writing is pretty good. This production uses some very cool and real-looking sets, props, costumes, and special effects. Hans Zimmer's music score is the essence of action-movie music.
In fact, the movie overall embodies the essence of an action movie. Recommended! 4.5/5 (Entertainment: Perfect | Story: Good | Film: Very Good)