Death Race - A Simpler Paul W.S. for the Masses

Jason Statham, can he do wrong? Is he the next Samuel L. Jackson or Ewan McGregor, individuals who can not be accused of a bad film? I can list movies featuring these actors, and who to blame for their sub par execution, but I'll limit it to Statham:

• "The One" - Delroy Lindo in two roles? Ridiculous.
• "Crank" - Amy Smart's presence, Ryan Reynolds in cinemas venereal disease.
• I happened to like what I have seen from the remake of "The Pink Panther."
• "Cellular" - Kim Basinger post Oscar.
• "Chaos" - Wesley Snipes is strictly made for video. Maybe he should have reprised the role of Willie "Mays" Hayes?
• "The Bank Job" - I dare you to find one good Mic Jagger Movie.

His only mistake he should have seen was "In the Name of the King", a Uwe Boll wad to the eyes, but he could have just enjoyed working with Ray Liotta (another Reynolds victim) on "Revolver" a little too much.

In conclusion, Statham seems to do no wrong. Combine his efforts with someone who somewhat understand video games and gimmicky sci-fi, Paul W.S. Anderson, "Death Race" seems to be worthwhile. The only problem I can immediately see is that it did not lead to renewed issue in the Sylvester Stallone classic. Perhaps to its advantage, that means I cannot claim that Anderson is messing with an institution. Regardless, how does the the film stand on its own?

In, let's say 2020...scratch that 20xx (Mega Man represent!), the world is recovering from a financial collapse. A collapse so devastating that the US Justice Department has privatized the penal system. The privateers need money to finance their service to the community. Their method, Death Race.

Death Race takes the most talented drivers among the inmates, and has them race for three days. For a society in ruins, gladiators are needed to raise the spirits of the masses, and by encouraging the maiming of one's adversaries with traps and fire power, Death Race delivers. Add beautiful woman as passengers, and a hero like the masked Frankenstein, awesome pay-per-view television is born.

Sadly, Frank died on his way to his fourth victory. Six months have passed, and viewership is down.

Fortunately, a new wife-murdering convict with a professional racing background has arrived. Some may say that the arrival was extremely convenient. Since Frank wore a mask, anyone could portray him.  If the con doesn't want to risk his life, they would be passing up a shot at freedom. If any driver reaches five victories, he earns his freedom.

"If your freedom isn't worth dying for, what is?" Warden Hennessey

Why do writers feel they have to show us the back story to how one ends up in prison? Did anyone care about what Andy did or did not do to end up in Shawshank?

"Death Race" comes straight from the days of Roger Corman. Read the script and the story will move forward. Acting it out maybe pushing it. Lucky for us, Anderson has a budget behind this flick, so he doesn't have to gamble on things just happening.

As for actors reading the script, the type casting works out perfectly. So our billed actors are not wasted, and the supporting cast does what it should. That is supporting the script (if Christian Bale cannot out act a Aussie who was best known for the Hogan-free crocodile flick, that's Bale's fault).

The only problem with the typed actors is that Anderson was too quick to dispatch them. Anderson may have been writing this how he would play a video game like "Twisted Metal".

Get rid of the annoying stereotypes first, so you don't have to hear them bitch through the rest of the level. The problem with that is, you know those guys will come back for the next track. Like it or not, you cannot kill Anakin Skywalker in "Star Wars: Episode I - Pod Racer". You have to look on the bright side. You'll get to run his annoying ass off over and over again. We need that element in all fictional racing.

Enough of how I treat "Mario Kart Wii" opponents, and back to the critique.

In the end, this might be the most upbeat Anderson film. This is because "Mortal Kombat" had to imply a sequel. There is only a normal a "do not build these death mobiles" warning to depress the audience. It shouldn't feel like a mainstream weekend alternative, but it does. This leaves us with a story that I feel anyone could direct. As a fan of Anderson, I am reluctant to think like that.

It is good to see that despite his recent infrequency of directorial efforts, Anderson still knows how to effectively make quick cuts in action movies. Along with the metallic score by John Roome, we are placed into an environment that one only expects to see in Anderson films. Often imitated (by second unit directors he has gone to bat for), but never duplicated.

"Death Race" seems to be a franchise that Paul W.S. Anderson wanted to make his own. I rented the disc, so I don't know if the commentary track disputes that. It has a B-Movie script, but the A effort by Anderson make Death Race a nice weekend get away, and continues Statham's flawless nature.

I'd prefer that people would rather see this than NASCAR. Please tell me someone is working on a syndicated series with the Death Race franchise attack to it.

IMDb - Death Race (2008)