John Carpenter's 1976 thriller "Assault on Precinct 13" was a real shocker, particularly because of a still-infamous scene in which a child is murdered by a gang leader during a dispute over an ice cream cone.

That movie definitely wasn't for the squeamish or for the easily offended, and neither is the remake, which tries to outdo the original in terms of brutality and graphic violence.

Obviously, that's not an easy thing to do, but for those who can stand the ultra-violent content, there's something almost enthralling about the film — until it falls apart in the final 20 minutes.

The film's title refers to an aging Detroit police precinct where we find Jake Roenick (Ethan Hawke), a former undercover cop who's still recovering from a drug sting gone bad. Jake and a skeleton crew are busy shutting down the old building on New Year's Eve when they're suddenly handed four prisoners who were en route to the country jail and became detoured by icy road conditions.

Worse, the precinct is now under siege by masked, armed men who apparently want to free one of the prisoners — Marion Bishop (Laurence Fishburne), a local crime lord and alleged cop killer. But as it turns out, they're corrupt police officers who were in cahoots with Bishop and now want him dead.

Roenick has no choice but to arm the prisoners and hope they'll help him and the others make a stand while they wait for reinforcements.

The character names have been changed from the original film, as has most of the film's focus; in the '70s version, a retired L.A. police precinct came under fire from gangs. That plot change is just one of many missteps by screenwriter James DeMonaco.

Director Jean-Francois Richet actually manages to sustain some tension. And the performances are pretty good, especially Fishburne's effectively enigmatic turn. But John Leguizamo's chatty counterfeiter is irritating (you'll be rooting for his character to get offed).

"Assault on Precinct 13" is rated R for strong scenes of action violence (shootings, stabbings and some vehicular and explosive mayhem), frequent use of strong sexual profanity, some graphic gore, drug content (barbiturate use, as well as some drug talk), some crude sexual talk and a brief scene of torture. Running time: 109 minutes.

---

E-MAIL: jeff@desnews.com