Rating of
2.5/4
More cars than story
The M.O.W. - wrote on 08/02/08
"Sean Boswell" (Lucas Black) is a troubled teen with a long record that consist of numerous tickets -- one of which he admits getting the day he got his license.
After another arrest following a drag race with a high school football player (Zachery Ty Bryant) over the football player's pretty girlfriend (Nikki Grifin) where "Boswell" wrecks his car, his mother (Lynda Boyd) ships him off to his father (Brian Goodman), a United States Marine who lives in Tokyo, Japan.
He is instantly a fish out of water, but instantly bonds with Army Brat "Twinkee" (rapper Bow Wow). He also meets an absolutely beautiful classmate named "Neela" (the beautiful Nathalie Kelley), who is checking him out when he finally arrives to class after getting on the wrong train.
Once getting to know "Twinkee", they discover that they have a common interest in souped-up cars. "Twinkee" takes him to a party in a garage where others with the same interest meet -- and drag race in a way "Boswell" has never seen before called Drifting.
At the party, "Boswell" bumps into "Neela", who looks even more amazing in her non-school clothes. He also meets her boyfriend "DK" (Brian Tee), who instantly dislikes "Boswell". The two instantly get into a drag race, which "Boswell" loses thanks to not knowing the Drifting style.
And, to complicate things, "DK" is in a dirty business and the nephew of a member of the Yakuza (Sonny Chiba).
Eventually, "Boswell" learns how to drift, and gets into a car chase which kills "DK." "Boswell" then goes to "DK's" uncle to offer a way to get him the money owed to him.
If you are into souped-up cars, then this movie is certainly for you. The plot takes a big backseat to the cars and drag racing. There are obvious problems with "Boswell" and his father, but it's not explored at all. In fact, "Major Boswell" is not in it enough to establish his apparently strained relationship with his son.
We also don't see the relationship between "Boswell" and "Neela" blossom. We see them run into each other a few times and have some flirtatious moments until they get together after "DK's" death.
In fact, not much is done to develop any of the characters. All they really do is either establish main character's backgrounds or advance the flimsy plot.
I did think that, despite working with a weak lot, there were some good performances in the movie. Black and Kelley had some chemistry together, but their on-screen relationship was not explored well at all.
There are some interesting looks for a good amount of the cast, mostly the extras. Wardrobes and hairdos appeared to me to be the punk-styles with extreme hairdos and funky clothing. The American characters wore the clothing that is pretty much in style here in the States. However, out of the entire cast, Kelley looked absolutely beautiful in just about everything she had on -- except for one jacket which I personally thought was ugly.
There are some pretty good songs played in this movie, many of which did not appear on the soundtrack. A lot of the songs used were good choices to accompany the drag race scenes.
There are a lot of car races in this movie. All of them are fast-paced and full of action. The camera angles are pretty typical in these scenes, and don't help them stand out.
If you ask me, the drag races and to oogle the absolutely stunning Kelley are the only reasons to see this movie. The plot is pretty flat compared to the drag races.
