The Ambulance (1990) – Film Review

Director: Larry Cohen
Cast: Eric Roberts, James Earl Jones, Janine Turner
Certificate: 15

By Sarah Morgan

Mullets ahoy! Yes, we’re taking an all-sirens blaring journey back to the era of big shoulder pads, big dreams and even bigger hair.

The 1980s were an extraordinary period during which various blockbusting movies were released. Those who remember those times probably look back on the likes of ET, the first three Indiana Jones movies and Back to the Future with much fondness. One film that probably doesn’t make it onto many people’s all-time favourites list is The Ambulance.

Although released in 1990, it is certainly a child of the 1980s and was no doubt shot in the last year of the decade – Eric Roberts’ wondrous hairdo certainly suggests that. It also contains the kind of slick dialogue and outlandish ideas we’ve come to expect from the period.

“Mad scientist”

Roberts plays Josh, an ambitious comic-book creator working for Marvel – the mighty Stan Lee even has a small role as himself in an early scene.

Josh also has an eye for the ladies, so can’t help trying to chat up Cheryl (Janine Turner, shortly before she found fame in TV show Northern Exposure) after spotting her in the street. Sadly his efforts to get her to go out with him are brought abruptly to a halt when she collapses. She reveals she’s diabetic, just as an ambulance arrives in double-quick time to whisk her away to hospital.

Josh promises to find out where she’s been taken so he can visit her later, but fails miserably to do so. Instead, he ends up being admitted to a creepy ward, uncovering a disturbing plot involving a mad scientist and New York’s diabetic population in the process.

Director Larry Cohen was a horror and sci-fi veteran by the time he made The Ambulance, which contains many of his hallmarks, including a crude sense of humour and an attempt to subvert something deemed safe in many people’s eyes – in this case, the titular vehicle.

“Outshines”

The resulting film is pretty average to be fair, with only those who love the worlds that Cohen created finding it satisfying.

One bright light is the presence of James Earl Jones as a cop who doesn’t believe Josh’s story – until it’s too late. What a shame more wasn’t made of him; he certainly outshines star Roberts at every turn. Veteran actor Red Buttons also features, while Eric Braeden hams it up as the villain of the piece.

One saving grace is the number of special features available on the disc, including audio commentaries and a previously unseen interview with Cohen himself.

Sarah Morgan( Writer )

Sarah Morgan studied film journalism at post-graduate level with the BFI and has been writing about TV and film for PA Media’s newspaper, magazine and new media customers since 1996. She’s also written for a wide range of other publications, both online and in print, including the book Offbeat and Intermission magazine, and is a regular contributor to the Talking Pictures TV podcast. When she isn’t watching movies, she’s collecting and reading vintage crime and horror paperback books or, for her sins, watching her beloved Sheffield Wednesday.

You do not have any posts.