Netflix Pulse-Pounding Action Remake With A Major Marvel Star Needs To Be Rediscovered

Strictly speaking, SWAT is a remake, giving us a big-screen adaptation of a 1975 TV series of the same name. Like all good action movies, the plot is wonderfully streamlined: we follow the exploits of the titular SWAT team as they try to bring a drug kingpin to prison. That simple task is made infinitely harder by the fact that the prisoner has offered $100 million to anyone who can free him from custody, meaning that every crook with a gun and a bit of ambition is coming for our heroes.

Just who are the heroes of SWAT? Fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe will be excited to know that this film features two future Avengers stars: Samuel L. Jackson and Jeremy Renner. The Marvel influence continues thanks to the movie starring Colin Farrell, who was arguably best known at that time for starring as Bullseye in Daredevil, a movie that had only come out six months earlier, predating the MCU. The cast is rounded out by some other major talents fans always love to see onscreen, including LL Cool J and Michelle Rodriguez. 

SWAT is very competently directed by Clark Johnson, someone who knows all about cop drama: before this film, he directed episodes of Homicide: Life On the Street, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and NYPD Blue. After this movie’s release, he went on to direct episodes of The Wire and The Shield, so his cops-on-camera credentials are pretty impeccable. Additionally, the screenplay was co-written by David Ayer, the famous writer/director who had previously written the cop thriller (and arguably Denzel Washington’s best film) Training Day.

Whether audiences were responding more to the writing, the directing, or just the killer cast, SWAT was a solid hit when it was released, earning $207.2 million against a budget of only $70 million. Despite the original film being largely forgotten by modern audiences, SWAT was enough of a hit to inspire two different direct-to-video sequels and a popular TV show that was recently renewed for its eighth season.

Critics at the time weren’t as excited by SWAT as audiences: the movie currently has a 48 percent critical rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics generally agreeing that this is a run-of-the-mill police thriller. Personally, I think the great performances (particularly from our future MCU stars) and tight script help elevate this above the usual cop dramas, and the various action scenes are quite memorable. This movie is worth being rediscovered, and I’m happy to recommend it to any fan of the genre.

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However, your police cruiser mileage may vary…will you think this cop drama is as pulse-pounding as I did, or will you think it needs to be sent back to the Police Academy? You won’t know until you stream SWAT on Netflix. Just remember: you may not be a loose cannon with a badge or a detective only days from retirement, but only you can patrol the streaming streets and decide whether this film is violating too many laws of action cinema.