Quartile rating: 6/10 · 1 rating
A group of armed robbers fleeing the police head for the New Jersey Tunnel and run right into trucks transporting toxic waste. The spectacular explosion that follows results in both ends of the tunnel collapsing and the handful of people who survived the explosion are now in peril. Kit Latura is the only man with the skill and knowledge to lead the band of survivors out of the tunnel before the structure collapses.
Daylight is a competent but formulaic mid-90s disaster thriller. The plot hits every expected beat of the genre — unlikely survivors banding together, a discredited hero redeeming himself, escalating obstacles — without adding anything fresh. Stallone delivers a serviceable performance and the supporting cast is adequate but unremarkable. The tunnel setting provides some claustrophobic tension and the practical effects and cinematography are solid for the era, giving it a gritty, confined atmosphere. However, the film is thoroughly derivative of better disaster films, offering little that distinguishes it from the crowded field. The ending resolves predictably with the hero's redemption arc landing exactly where expected, providing closure but no surprise.