Michael Bay's Ambulance 'roaring' into China

Hailed as "the king of explosions" in Hollywood, director Michael Bay's latest outing, Ambulance, is set to open in multiple format, including IMAX, in Chinese mainland theaters on April 22.

An American remake of the 2005 Danish movie with the same title, the crime thriller recounts that a couple of adoptive siblings — a former US marine and a career criminal — get stuck in a seemingly endless police chase in Los Angeles after they rob a bank and hijack an ambulance that has a first responder and an injured novice policeman clinging to their lives.

Emmy-winning Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Jake Gyllenhaal, known for his highest-grossing blockbuster Spider-Man: Far from Home, lead the cast as the marine and his criminal brother, respectively.

A premiere was held in downtown Beijing on April 19, releasing the video greetings of director Bay and the two actors as well as inviting three Chinese guests — a first-aid doctor, a graffiti artist, and a drone cinematographer — to share their views.

Known for his passion of the latest and most innovative camera photography, Bay hired a 19-year-old drone operator to shoot a lot of pulse-pounding scenes that would make audience feel like they are "flying" closely the chase.

On Douban, a popular review aggregator, nearly 8,000 netizens have put the film into the "want-to-see" list, the highest such rating of all new releases this week.