Death Race – Blu-ray Review

Death Race is a throttled up action film that requires you to just turn the brain off and enjoy the car crashes. The plot is thin, but the film is action packed and a lot of fun.

Loosely based on Roger Corman’s 1975 film Death Race 2000, the remake stars Jason Statham, Ian McShane, Joan Allen, and Tyrese Gibson. It was written and directed by Paul W.S. Anderson (Mortal Kombat and Resident Evil).

Set in 2012, the film follows former race driver turned steel worker Jensen Ames (Statham) – who is framed for the murder of his wife and forced to drive in Terminal Island Prison warden Hennessey’s (Allen) Death Races. The races are a pay-per-view television event that brings in tons of money for the prison and is a rating smash.Allen’s character is responsible for keeping the ratings high and the money rolling into the corporation. Early on, we see she is willing to do whatever it takes to get Ames behind the wheel and keep viewers tuning into the show.Basically, the film’s plot is a toss up between The Running Man meets The Condemned with Statham signing on to drive as the masked racer Frankenstein; making friends with the local sage prisoner Coach (McShane); and clashing with the rival racer Machine Gun Joe Mason (Gibson).Hennessey promises Ames his freedom if he can win one more race, but also takes several steps to make sure he won’t leave the race track alive. Statham promises to give Hennessey a monster on the track and shows he has no qualms about getting his hands bloody – especially when he finds the guy who killed his wife. Anderson promises to deliver a film that is high on huge action stunts and requires zero thought to follow.Although Death Race has a ton of problems (such as mirrored windows to keep other drivers from seeing Statham’s face even though he constantly exchanges glances with Gibson), I enjoyed the fun spirit of the movie. This is an action film that doesn’t apologize for its weak plot.Anderson and company know the real star of the film is the racing scenes and the huge explosions that follow the cars. The action is in your face, and Anderson doesn’t shy away from the violence. Who needs a plot when you have cars with mounted machine guns and rocket launchers?

Statham and Gibson deliver the testosterone with lots of grimaces, tough guy lines, evil glares, and slamming feet into the pedals as the vehicle gears are shifted. Both actors know how to deliver this kind of role and seem familiar behind the wheel of an action film built around racing. Statham just seems to be coasting on the same kind of character from his Transporter films, and Gibson seems to be recalling his days behind the wheel on 2 Fast 2 Furious. Both actors are good in their roles, but don’t expect many Oscar moments.McShane and Allen also do their best in the film, but both aren’t given enough screen time to matter. McShane (who I loved in HBO’s Deadwood) pretty much just stands around delivering the occasional one-liner and advice to Statham. Allen seems to enjoy the villain role, but doesn’t appear to be putting much effort into the part. In their defense, this is a Paul W.S. Anderson film so there wasn’t much for them to work with in the first place.The film looks incredible on Blu-rays 1080p picture with the crashes and violence right in your face in perfect definition. The film feels gritty and textured like it should and the race sequences’ explosions really pop when the fireballs go off.The Blu-ray comes packed with extra features that take you into the making of the film – including commentary with Anderson, a look at the film’s massive stunts, and a standard “making of” feature.The Blu-ray also includes My Movie Commentary – where you can show off your sportscasting skills and share your commentary with friends on BD-Live; My Chat – where you can discuss the film; Tech Specs - information on the characters, and their vehicles; and Picture in Picture features.Although I didn’t expect too much out of the movie, I enjoyed Death Race thanks to the huge stunt sequences. The film’s plot is extremely familiar, but Anderson and company wisely keep the action up front so that you don’t get bored with the fact you have seen this kind of story so many times.