Not Since the Road Warrior...

Rating: 8/10 (16 June 2002)

This movie was a trip. I never expected to have such a wild ride and so much adrenalized fun. The main reason I went to see this movie was Vin Diesel - who is not very well know - yet - but I am pretty sure he will be. He has an incredible voice (he was the robot in The Iron Giant, a highly recommended favorite of mine) and a charismatic presence that reminds me of a young Marlon Brando. He also played Riddick in Pitch Black which I plan to review eventually.
Don't get me wrong, this movie does not make my top 10 or anything close. The story is pretty generic, young-undercover-cop material with only a not-too surprising twist or two. Some of the acting was a little strained and weak which can often tank a whole movie (for me). But this movie did something to me that I haven't felt since the 2nd Mad Max film, The Road Warrior... it raised the bar on visual action and "the need for speed". It wasn't cinematography either - to me (I am not an expert) - but something incredible happened in the way this movie was edited, filmed, and scored. It was just a thing of beauty. The sounds, the motor, the pitch, the beat, and then being jacked inside the engine; to spit through the fuel injection, feel the power of combustion and then be ejected out the tail pipe as the car roars away from you... breathtaking... and all that is just the rush of the car lurching in to first gear on go.
I was expecting to recommend this movie just so you can get a handle on who Vin Diesel is and how great this guy is gonna be in movies in the coming years (in my humble opinion). I didn't expect to O.D. on adrenaline and walk out of the theater ready to rev the engine right out of my poor little Mitsubishi Galant's frame. I warn you - seriously - be careful driving home after watching this movie. For me, doing 42 M.P.H. in a 35 on the way home felt like I was standing still. It was painfully frustrating. After being reasonably disappointed by Pearl Harbor and The Mummy Returns, this movie has restored my faith.
Normally I walk out of a movie feeling like I know when a director has made a great movie. I have to say I was confused when thinking about the director on this movie. I haven't even gone and looked up who it is - I usually do and try to keep the names and credits straight when I know a great director or at least one I recognize and/or like. But I guess that is what I am trying to say here; I did not get that feeling this time. I somehow - do not - feel like it was the director that delivered this incredible ride to me. Somewhere between the hyper-speed action, incredible music/sound, and the charisma of Vin Diesel I want to believe this movie hit its mark regardless of the director. Or maybe they knocked a damn good movie up two notches beyond what the director envisioned.