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- Movie: Death Race
- Rating: R
- Starring: Jason Statham, Joan Allen, Tyrese Gibson, Ian McShane, Natalie Martinez
- Written By: Paul W.S. Anderson (Based on Roger Corman's Death Race 2000)
- Directed By: Paul W.S. Anderson
- Distributor: Universal Pictures
DEATH RACE
Auto-Erotic Asphyxiation: Death Race is modern grindhouse fun. By
Josh Gordon
August 21, 2008
© Universal Studios
A gratuitous sense of humor is one of the things that made the original Death Race 2000 such a hoot; that and the highly stylized cars; well, the cars, the sense of humor and the concept that in the race, you hit pedestrians in order to acquire points. The trailer for director Paul W.S. Anderson’s Death Race, a remake of producer Roger Corman’s low-budget, exploitation classic, indicates none of the humor, over the top auto styling or audacious violence of the original. I’m thrilled to tell you that the trailer conveys none of the true-to-its-exploitation roots that propels this new incarnation. I haven’t been this prepared to dislike a movie in a long time and, in spite of myself, I really loved it.
Cars? Check. Violence? Check. Incredibly hot chick? Check. Welcome to a grindhouse movie for the modern age and while the story is largely different than the original, it still retains some of the satirical intent by way of Paul Verhoven-esque TV program bumpers (ala Robocop and Starship Troopers).
Doomsday, earlier this year, was an elegiac homage to action/sci-fi movies from the early ‘80s. Death Race continues the tribute in a slightly more modern fashion. Jason Statham is a breed of action hero off the beaten path. He’s not a pretty boy like Tom Cruise nor is he as quick with a quip as Bruce Willis. He looks like the guy who just changed your fan belt; decidedly hard boiled; evocative of early Bogart, a streetwise ass kicker that you don’t want to fuck with.
Everyone in the cast is top notch. Each supporting role has been given the attention of a strong actor. Particularly noteworthy is Statham’s pit crew headed up by always interesting Ian McShane (Coach) and featuring better than average turns by Fred Koehler (Lists) and Jacob Vargas (Gunner)
Natalie Martinez is the absurdly stunning Case, Statham’s navigator. Man can only hope that the female prisons of the future house drool inducing inmates who happen to make great race navigators. But I digress. The cars are the real stars here and while they might not pack the immediate punch that the originals did they are, in fact, way more bad ass.
Orson Welles, when asked how he does what he does, responded “I just surround myself with people who make me look like a genius. “ It appears that, unlike Welles, Anderson started at the bottom and has been working his way up ever since. Anderson has learned the importance of surrounding yourself with talent. The cinematography, by Scott Kevan, is evocative, appropriate, and gives the color charcoal gray an atmosphere and richness that you probably never thought it could have. Niven Howie’s production design is large scale and just plain cool looking. Even the costumes are worthy of praise. However, the generic industrial soundtrack is uninspired and the film editing is the cinematic equivalent of blunt force trauma. I couldn’t count an edit during any race scene that lasted longer than two seconds (perhaps I’m exaggerating but not very much). Only the most ADHD impaired 8 year old enjoys non stop 25 frame edits.
There are some beautiful shots that are never really given time to breath. What the director and editor don’t understand (which makes them no different than any others working in the action genre) is that this actually detracts from the intensity rather than adding to it. Now, combine those 25 frame edits with a camera that’s 4 inches away from the action and that’s where the hi-jinx really begins. For reference on how to do it right, watch the opening chase sequence from George Miller’s Mad Max. It isn’t until the final deadly crash in that sequence that the celluloid starts colliding with the razor blade at light speed.
Joan Allen’s presence in the trailer definitely piqued my interest. Unfortunately her character, the power drunk prison warden Claire Hennessy is a huge missed opportunity and one of the bigger disappointments of the film. Painfully underutilized and given little to work with, she spends most of the movie smugly mugging with a self-satisfied “everything’s going according to my master plan” look. In spite of that she’s still a great casting choice and does have her moments; one in particular includes some beautifully spoken off-color language. To hear these words pour from Ms. Allen’s mouth is, frankly, awesome. Though ultimately disappointing, her character serves its purpose and is an inspired alternative to the clichéd sadistic male warden typically seen in prison movies. At least now it’s a clichéd sadistic female warden.
But to focus on Death Race’s faults is to take the movie way too seriously. At the very least it’s a good waste of time and there are certainly worse ways to an hour and a half. At most it’s a rollicking action flick that is a couple of cuts above this type of fare.
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