Ethan Hawke: 5 Awesome Performances And 5 That Sucked

4. Sgt. Jake Roenick - Assault On Precinct 13

Assault on Precinct 13 It was always going to be an uphill struggle taking on a remake of a classic movie that nobody asked for, and Hawke really suffers here as Sergeant Jake Roenick, the cop tasked with locking down a police station as a fleet of armed men try to murder everyone inside. Hawke is usually great at playing the beleaguered everyman, though in this instance something isn't quite right; it's likely the material more than anything, yet Hawke seems unfocused and unfussed about proceedings (likely because it's a "take the money and run"-type role), resulting in a forgettable performance that can't harness his vulnerable exterior. As an attempt to reinvent Hawke as an action star post-Training Day, it doesn't really work at all, and that might explain why Hawke tended towards crime drama rather than straight-up action ever since.
Contributor
Contributor

Frequently sleep-deprived film addict and video game obsessive who spends more time than is healthy in darkened London screening rooms. Follow his twitter on @ShaunMunroFilm or e-mail him at shaneo632 [at] gmail.com.