Premise<\/p>\n
The movie focuses on Rick Merchant who starts the movie as another average wannabe boy racer with a modified motor. His life spirals out of control after the death of his brother after which he becomes embroiled in the world of illegal street racing. So you get the typical good boy goes bad after traumatic incident, followed by his burning need to avenge his brother\u2019s death. Yeah, the writers were that lazy.<\/p>\n
The script<\/p>\n
So the writers were lazy with the storyline, but that was because they spent their spare time perfecting the script, right? Wrong. The actors have to take some of the blame for their unconvincing work, but the script is about as colourful as a Model T Ford. It\u2019s full of typical B movie lines, which destroy any morsel of a gripping suspense.<\/p>\n
The opening exchange between Rick and his soon to be deceased brother tells you that Rick is on his way to college \u2013 \u201cthe first of any of us to get a real education\u201d splurges his proud mum \u2013 reminding the family who obviously wouldn\u2019t know this information. I\u2019m pretty sure a scene doesn\u2019t go by where we\u2019re not reminded he\u2019s going to college and is doing all this street racing to fund his education. Then there\u2019s the fact that his mum\u2019s a stripper, which we get told about a million times, so it\u2019s obviously important. Later on, we discover that his girlfriend is also a stripper, and works with his mother. Awkward. By the way you\u2019re supposed to feel bad about about his bro dying, but he makes a joke about putting money in his mum\u2019s g-string. Seriously. Way to build empathy, guys!<\/p>\n
The acting<\/p>\n
It\u2019s actually worth sitting through the movie just to see this guy\u2019s acting.<\/p>\n
If you think Rick\u2019s racing pedigree is amateur, his acting is indescribably worse. According to IMDB, Jaz Martin \u2013 the guy who plays our main man \u2013 \u201cis an aspiring actor who hopes to carve out a reputable career in the entertainment industry.\u201d We\u2019ll leave the final say to you on that one\u2026<\/p>\n
His acting is wooden, his speech ain\u2019t natural, and unfortunately for him, his cohorts don\u2019t exactly carry him. Special mention goes to the Hispanic gang leader who is the worst actor you\u2019ll ever see. It\u2019s so awful, that it\u2019s actually kind of beautiful.<\/p>\n
The characters and the cliches
\nHere we have the full spectrum of obvious characters. The two brothers torn apart, the hot girlfriend, the bad guy who swears a lot \u2018cos he\u2019s so naughty, the slightly awkward geek and the old, roguish, stuck-in-his-ways policeman. Perfect dynamic for conflict and resolution, but not an iota of charisma between them.<\/p>\n
Also present are the prerequisite \u2018Fast and Furious crew,\u2019 such as the big, loud and immensely fat guy running the races who reminds us of Tej, Ludacris\u2019 character from 2 Fast 2 Furious. And the awkward geek I mentioned totally isn\u2019t an Asian Jesse. Oh, and the Latina? Completely unlike Michelle Rodriquez. Need I go on?<\/p>\n
The details<\/p>\n
\u201cCome on bro, I thought you said there was an MX7 here!\u201d Well the car they\u2019re looking for parts for is a first gen RX7, so perhaps they\u2019re confused, bless them. Hang on, where did he get that Nissan 200SX from? He drove into the \u2018shop in a white RX7, then left in a green 200SX?!<\/p>\n
What\u2019s going on here? Well it turns out the RX7 was stolen during production. They swapped it for a Silvia, so throughout the movie it changes between the two cars depending on what had been filmed before the car got nicked. Now that\u2019s almost excusable on such a low budget flick, but as this car gets called an MX5, MX7 and occasionally RX7 at various points in the movie, we can\u2019t really let it slide.<\/p>\n
The races and chases<\/p>\n
In Hollywood there are directors who specialise in chase scenes. The guy behind the famous Bourne movie chases wasn\u2019t just some bloke who got lucky. As you can see in the clip above it\u2019s pretty clear these scenes need a professional\u2019s touch. You also get to see some of the wonderful acting I mentioned earlier.<\/p>\n
In 200mph the fast bits lack imagination and lack the clever editing nuances that impart a sense of speed. So you\u2019re left with a couple of cars just driving about SoCal, occasionally sideways and usually at \u2018safe\u2019 speeds. Street racing within the speed limits, yo!<\/p>\n
By the way, the crash that kills Rick\u2019s brother is just beyond explanation. Apparently taking a hairpin too quickly in a 370Z will result in a barrel roll.
\nIn conclusion<\/p>\n
Grab some popcorn and switch that mobile off. You simply must watch this movie! Yeah I know, I didn\u2019t exactly \u2018sell it\u2019 to you, but it is by far the funniest movie you\u2019ll watch this year. Whether it\u2019s the awful acting, bland script or hilarious visual effects, there\u2019s something here for everyone. I haven\u2019t even touched on the clear lack of technological understanding throughout the movie.<\/p>\n
Just promise me you\u2019ll take off your car geek hat for 90 minutes or you\u2019ll go insane.