211 (film)
211 is a 2018 American crime-action film directed by York Shackleton and written by Shackleton and John Rebus. The film stars Nicolas Cage, Sophie Skelton, Cory Hardrict, Michael Rainey Jr., Ori Pfeffer and Weston Cage. Filming began on February 27, 2018 and ended on April 27, 2018. The film was released on June 8, 2018, by Momentum Pictures. It is based on the 1997 North Hollywood shootout. 211 refers to the Hundred Code for robbery used in California, although the story is set in the fictional city of Chesterford, Massachusetts. Plot. In Afghanistan, disgruntled mercenaries corner a  mob boss who owes them money. Under torture, he discloses it has been wired to various banks including one in Chesterford. In a Kabul market, Interpol Agent Rossi's operation to catch an antiquities smuggler is interrupted and she is redirected to the crime scene caused by the mercenaries. In Chesterford, Massachusetts, Kenny Ralston, a quiet high school student, has an altercation with bullies. The school vice-principal tells Shawnee Ralston, Kenny's mother, that he must go on a police ride-along or face expulsion. Meanwhile, Agent Rossi asks a gun shop manager for information on the mercenaries and  receives a warehouse address. Patrolman Mike Chandler has lost his wife of thirty years to cancer. His difficulty in expressing his emotions has strained his relationship with his daughter, Lisa. Mike’s patrol partner and son-in-law, Steve, reveals that Lisa is pregnant. At the bank, an armoured cash transport delivers over $1.3 million. Tre, Rob and Luke finalise their heist plan, while Hyde plants a cell-phone IED in a restaurant. Mike and Steve arrive at work. Kenny signs forms regarding the ride-along. Responding to a call from headquarters, Steve and Mike draw their weapons on  a suspect and Kenny records it using his smartphone. The crew storm the bank and threaten everyone. Near the bank, Steve goes for coffee while Mike and Kenny discuss the school altercation. Gaining insight, Mike empathizes with Kenny. On Steve’s return, Mike indicates a black Escalade parked in the red zone outside the bank. Inside the bank, Tre orders Hyde to ‘make the call’. The IED destroys the restaurant. Police headquarters alerts all patrols to the explosion. Mike chooses to remain because of Kenny. Hyde becomes agitated. The other patrols converge on the restaurant and news reaches the hospital  where Shawnee prepares to receive multiple casualties. Rossi diverts to Chesterford. First responders arrive and SWAT Captain, Horst, issues orders. Hyde opens fire on the cruiser. As Mike takes evasive action, Steve alerts headquarters. Some officers leave the restaurant area to provide backup to Mike and Steve. Mike crashes the cruiser and gets out, returning fire. Initially trapped, Steve manages to free himself and then Kenny. Kenny grabs his phone as he exits the cruiser and Mike eventually kills Hyde. Realising Steve is seriously injured, Mike fabricates a tourniquet. Rossi arrives at the restaurant area and Hyde is identified. The  back-up team attempt to evacuate Steve and Mike retrieves a first aid kit. Inside the bank, Luke uses a 50-cal rifle to shoot Mike but misses. Two other officers are killed. Steve gets Kenny to record a farewell message on his phone. Lisa learns of the restaurant explosion and gets Steve’s voicemail. The back-up team reach their colleagues. Moving Steve, they become separated from Kenny who hides in a parked Blazer. His phone dead, Kenny looks for another battery and hacks a charger. An EMT assesses Steve, Hanson returns with a seriously-wounded Jacobs and Mike  notices Kenny is missing. Starting a search with Hanson, Mike receives a call from Lisa and prepares her for bad news. Lisa arrives at the ER and questions the now barely-conscious Jacobs who says Mike is still on scene looking for the 'ride-along kid'. Shawnee, in earshot of Jacobs, reacts just as Kenny telephones to let her know he is safe, for now. Rossi arrives in the command post to witness Mike shouting that his dead son has ‘a child on the way’. Horst finalizes the breach. Mike and Hanson head for the parking lot to locate and  rescue Kenny. SWAT advances. Tre orders the hostages out. Now safe, a hostage reveals something in her pocket. Horst, identifying another IED, dies selflessly protecting the hostages. SWAT begin their breach but are repelled. Rob exits first, firing to cover his escape but gets killed. Luke is killed at the bank door. Tre approaches Mike firing wildly. Hanson is killed. Mike is wounded and as Tre raises his weapon to kill Mike, Kenny uses Hanson’s side arm to shoot Tre. Rossi appears and shoots Tre. As Mike and Kenny sit in an ambulance, Shawnee arrives and hugs her son . Lisa arrives and embraces her father. One year later, Mike arrives home after a run. He is greeted with shouts of Happy Birthday. Among his well wishers are Jacobs, Steve, and Mike’s granddaughter. Stepping towards his visitors, Mike asks Kenny to ‘take some new pics’. Production. On January 27, 2017, Nicolas Cage joined the cast of the film. Filming took place at Nu Boyana studios in Sofia, Bulgaria. Release. The film was released on June 8, 2018, by Momentum Pictures. Reception. Critical response. The film review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes rates it positive based on reviews with an overall  rating of . The website's critics consensus reads: ""211"s disjointed assortment of action clichés and uninspired set pieces adds up to roughly zero." Metacritic reports an aggregate score of 21 out of 100 (based on 8 critics), indicating "generally unfavorable reviews". Luke Y. Thompson of Forbes gave it a fresh rating, writing “I can’t begrudge you waiting until 211 shows up on a Blu-ray at Walmart that also contains ten other Cage movies...But I can tell you that when it does, you shouldn't skip over this one.” Other reviewers were not as complimentary. Jacob Knight from  Birth Movies Death declared it rotten, writing, “Nic Cage’s latest DTV action endeavour is a bizarre slog.” Richard Roeper of the "Chicago Sun-Times" gave it 2/4 and wrote, "A muddled, overcrowded, trigger-happy heist movie brimming with clichés while constantly trying our patience." Glenn Kenny of RogerEbert.com gave it 1/4, describing it as "This effort is a cavalcade of crap. Loud crap." Frank Scheck of "The Hollywood Reporter" wrote, "It's probably foolish to wish that Nicolas Cage would once again make movies as good as "Adaptation" and "Leaving Las Vegas". But is it too much to ask  that he go back to the comparative glory days of "Con Air" and "The Rock"?" Dennis Harvey of "Variety" wrote, "Unsurprisingly, the director doesn't get very good work from a cast asked primarily to ramp up the intensity on stereotypes."