If it weren't for the spectacular auto-racing scenes...

Rating: 5/10 (24 May 2001)

...this movie would crash, full speed, into a nearby tree. Renny Harlin is the real star. He captures every angle imaginable of the sport, and I don't think he could've done a better job at bringing the audience INTO the arena. Some of the crash sequences are noticeably computer-generated, but still look visually impressive. But off the track...this movie is horrible! And worst of all, I have to place the blame on my man Sly, who gets such a bad rep by people who fail to realize he DID write all 5 "Rocky" movies. Sly does have talent, and he's a terrific actor who can totally deviate from his Rambo persona. But what was he thinking when he came up with such HORRENDOUS dialogue?!!!! This is some of the worst dialogue I've seen EVER!!! I've heard some who claim that Renny Harlin is known to make movies that are visually spectacular and lack a good script. Well, "Cliffhanger" had a good script, "Die Hard 2" had a good script. Harlin did whatever he could to dig this lifeless melodrama out of its deeper-than-deep ditch. The actors deliver good, but overenthusiastic performances. Watching Burt Reynolds and Stallone exchange cliched dialogue and screaming at the top of their lungs is hardly watchable. You want a succint description of "Driven"? Imagine a soap opera...and insert auto racing. There's your movie! The subplots are in no way original, and have the intelligence of an old-time afternoon serial.
My score: 5 (out of 10)