"The Rock" rocks!

Rating: 10/10 (30 June 2006)

Every time I see "The Rock," I'm reminded of why I love action movies. They just can't seem to get any better than this. I may get slammed by others for proclaiming such strong admirations for such a movie, but it's squarely my opinion. But to remove myself from opinion and move in the direction toward known fact, "The Rock" is an essential action film for any action-film fan.
Three years ago I bought the last remaining Criterion Collection DVD at my local video store and I can see now beyond the horizon that another edition of this masterpiece probably isn't coming any time soon. It is squarely the best film ever done by music video champ-turned-big-budget-Hollywood-music-video-director Michael Bay and the last film ever produced by the Don Simpson/Jerry Bruckheimer duo (Simpson died shortly before "The Rock" was released and the film is dedicated in his memory).
But "The Rock" is all about one thing: entertainment, and nothing else. It's a hell of a ride from start to finish with plenty 'o explosions, humor, car chases, and one-liners supplied in a dynamite script by Douglas Cook, Mark Rosner, and David Weisberg (that also contains un-credited work from Quentin Tarantino). Even after this praise, you are, naah, you're not, still interested in seeing why "The Rock" is so essential, are you?
To put it like this, the action begins with General Francis "Frank" R. Hummel (Ed Harris) having a vigil at his wife's grave and tells her that he is about to make a haste decision in the name of the many men who have died under his command and were consequently forgotten by the American government.
So he and his men stage a daring heist at a military depot and make off with 16 rockets loaded with deadly V-X gas, which in the words of one of the film's characters, "Is one of the deadliest substances known to man." Their next move is to make a point that they aren't to be toyed with anymore. So Frank stages a hostage takeover at Alcatraz prison in San Francisco Bay. He tells the kids that are part of a tour group to head back to the boats while the 88 hostages are held in the prison's cells.
Hummel demands the government make restitutions to the surviving family members of every man who has given his life for this country and if they aren't met, San Francisco will be reduced to nothing but a giant cloud of poison gas. The Pentagon and assorted officials know the score: they know that Hummel knows he isn't to be messed with and they take his demands seriously.
A plan is put into effect: a SEAL team is dispatched to try to retake the island, but there is one catch. No one alive knows the inner workings of Alcatraz prison. No one knows, except John Patrick Mason (Sean Connery), the only man known to have escaped the infamous island and lived to tell about it. But he's under maximum security incarceration because in the eyes of one F.B.I. Director John Womack (the late John Spencer), he knows all of America's most "intimate" secrets (including who really shot JFK) and allowing Mason to be on the loose would be a pretty bad idea.
There is a third prong: an F.B.I. lab rat with no field experience, Stanley Goodspeed (Nicolas Cage), is also assigned, and with Mason in tow, they'll accompany the SEALs to Alcatraz to try to dismantle the rockets and Hummel. Of course Goodspeed is reluctant but because a baby is on the way with his longtime girlfriend, he decides he has no choice but to go.
From then on, you know the game since any attempt to further describe the plot would be an exercise in futility: lots of people get shot, firefights, and breakneck pacing that's trademark of one Mr. Bay and any film produced by a certain Mr. Bruckheimer. What keeps this boat afloat is the dynamic and unlikely partnering of Connery and Cage, who both know their roles well and play off one another, add to the other's performance like old friends as they navigate through Alcatraz's labyrinth of dark tunnels and sewers. Ed Harris is even given a third dimension in his villain role that elevates him above the typical action-movie bad guy. He's a soldier with a chip on his shoulder and his argument is quite convincing (I almost bought into myself). But his true motives later become the subject of a rather colorful and inventive plot twist late in the film.
"The Rock" is why we go to theaters for action in the first place. My view: "The Rock" rocks, big time.
Just check it out to see.
10/10