| Gridlocked | |
|---|---|
 Gridlocked Release Poster | |
| Directed by | Allan Ungar |
| Written by |
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| Produced by |
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| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Pasha Patriki |
| Edited by | Michael Lane |
| Music by | Jacob Shea |
Production company | North Hollywood Films |
| Distributed by | |
Release dates |
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Running time | 113 minutes |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
Gridlocked is a 2015 Canadianactionthriller film directed byAllan Ungar and co-written by Ungar and Rob Robol. It had its world premiere atFantastic Fest on September 26, 2015, and starsDominic Purcell,Stephen Lang,Danny Glover,Trish Stratus, andSaul Rubinek. The film was purchased byNetflix and became available worldwide on July 14, 2016.[1]
The film is about a former SWAT leader, David Hendrix (Dominic Purcell), who is reluctantly helping an arrogant movie star, Brody Walker (Cody Hackman), to do a justice diversion program. The pair faces a deadly challenge when the police training facility they are visiting is attacked by mercenaries seeking items from an evidence locker.
Principal photography on the film began July 7, 2014 inToronto,Ontario and lasted for five weeks.[2][5]Cuba Gooding, Jr. was previously set to play the lead role, but he was replaced by Purcell.[2][6] The majority of filming took place in an abandoned meat packing plant, which the producers turned into a studio for the duration of the shoot.
All of the effects, including gun shots and blood, were done practically with the exception of a few digital enhancements. The film set a record for the most shots fired on screen in a Canadian film.
With Cody Hackman first huge successful movie Tapped Out sold to Lionsgate over 10 millions dollar in 6 months, he went back to his hometown London, Ontario Canada, and crowd funding from private investors to produce Gridlocked movie slate which include two other movies Lower Bay and Hidden in Woods. The film had its world première atFantastic Fest in Austin on September 26, 2015, and had its Canadian première atToronto After Dark on October 20 where it won Best Action Film. It premièred in China on June 12, 2016 at theShanghai International Film Festival as part of Jackie Chan's Action Movie Week, and was nominated for several awards alongside films such asIp Man 3,Point Break andThe Man from U.N.C.L.E..
It was released across North America on June 14, 2016 and became available onNetflix July 14, 2016.
Critical reception forGridlocked has been mostly positive.[7]Variety andTwitch Film both praised the film for its approach to old school action, with film critic Chase Whale of Twitch writing that it was "a rollicking blast. It brings the pain and something a lot of action movies are missing these days: fun".[8]The Hollywood Reporter was more mixed in its review, stating that "the scenes inside the barricaded station offer plenty of tension and crazy-enough-to-work schemes with which the outgunned, outnumbered good guys might outwit their captors. But the movie can't forget the grating premise that got it to this point".[9] The Action Elite gave the film 4.5 stars and called it "one of the best action films of the year", while Shock Till You Drop described it as "a fun ride filled with fights, guns and more blood than you can fill a barrel with. It's a damn fun night at the movies".[10]
The film won theCanadian Society of Cinematographers CSC award for 'Best Cinematography' as well as 'Best Action Film' at theToronto After Dark Film Festival.[11][12]