Deathrace 2000...no wait...3000. Coming soon.

[Ginwen]

I may still see it but I don't see how it's Deathrace with no points for running over pedestrians.

[rw2516]

Originally Posted by Ginwen

I may still see it but I don't see how it's Deathrace with no points for running over pedestrians.

and bonus points for people in wheelchairs!

[Zen Peckinpah]

Razzie contender for 2008?

I'm praying to god this movie ends up being an ungodly, remorseless ton of stupid (and so-bad-it's-good), this only sweetens the deal. Then again, I was seriously bored off my ass by the last Alien vs. Predator movie, but still, this looks like the type of movie that Beavis and Butt-head would watch. Can it eclipse Doomsday for the award in being the guiltiest pleasure of the year? We'll find out Friday.

[Brack]

I don't know if it'll be any good, but hats off to them for casting Joan Allen.

[NoirFan]

Originally Posted by wishbon3

What is there not to love about the original? It is just the right amount of camp, violence, social commentary, and gratuitous nudity all rolled into one!

I remember seeing this on TV when I was a little kid and being confused by the inadvertent surreality caused by the low budget: "But...those people in the crowd are painted on..."

[KillerCannibal]

From Bloody-Disgusting:

It looks as if Universal Pictures remake of Death Race could be crashing before it even hits the wall. Writer Adam Stone is in a race to stop the release of Universal's film, which is slated to hit theaters everywhere this Friday. The reason? Plagiarism. Read on for the story and watch for news as it develops.

Stone claims in a copyright infringement lawsuit filed Tuesday in Los Angeles federal court that the upcoming Universal thriller is based on a script he pitched to the film's producer-director Paul W.S. Anderson and producer Jeremy Bolt. He seeks a court order stopping the film's release.

Stone claims that after the producers passed, Bolt made and kept a copy of his screenplay, titled "Joust," to use as a "blueprint" for Anderson's revision of the script for "Death Race."

While "Death Race" is purported to be a remake of the 1975 film, "Death Race 2000," Stone contends in his lawsuit that it actually is based on "Joust" and that there are at least 39 elements in the soon-to-be released film that mirror his screenplay.

Universal, which is a defendant in the lawsuit, declined comment on the lawsuit.

"Death Race," which stars Jason Statham and Joan Allen, is set for release FridayAug. 22. Stone is asking the court to stop the release of the film.

"Experience in other cases has shown that unless such orders are issued, defendants will simply continue to exploit the infringing motion picture in all media and by all methods at their disposal," the lawsuit states.

Stone seeks unspecified damages.

******************************************************************

Highly doubtful this guy will get them to block the release of the movie. I hope at the least he gets a fat payout from Uni for stealing his script, not that it's very original to begin with. I think there are at least a couple dozen films with the exact same premise, but still...

[RichC2]

Originally Posted by Roger Ebert

And the warden of the prison is Hennessey, played by Joan Allen. Yes, that ethereal beauty, that sublime actress, that limitless talent, reduced to standing in an observation post and ordering her underlings to “activate weapons.” She has a line of dialogue that employs both the f-word and the s-word, and describes a possible activity that utterly baffles me. It is a threat, shall we say, that has never been uttered before and will never be uttered again. She plays her scenes with an icy venom, which I imagine she is rehearsing to use in a chat with her agent.

[DJariya]

Jason Statham, fast cars and Hot Prison Chicks, I am so there. I will probably attempt to watch this on Saturday.

[Daytripper]

Just got back from seeing it and I had a blast. The movie is exactly what it's advertised to be. Racing, over the top acting/dialogue, and action. I'm stunned Ebert gave this a 0.5 star review and the likes of "Speed 2" and "The Mummy 3" both three stars each. That's just ridiculous. If you liked "The Road Warrior", you'll like this. At least I hope you do. Both are cut from the same clothe IMO.

[Brack]

Originally Posted by Daytripper

Just got back from seeing it and I had a blast. The movie is exactly what it's advertised to be. Racing, over the top acting/dialogue, and action. I'm stunned Ebert gave this a 0.5 star review and the likes of "Speed 2" and "The Mummy 3" both three stars each. That's just ridiculous. If you liked "The Road Warrior", you'll like this. At least I hope you do. Both are cut from the same clothe IMO.

I'm an Ebert fan, but I must say, his review is surprisingly lazy. I don't get a sense for the movie other than "it's like a video game." This from a guy who doesn't even get video games.

[The O]

Originally Posted by Daytripper

If you liked "The Road Warrior", you'll like this. At least I hope you do. Both are cut from the same clothe IMO.

[Daytripper]

Originally Posted by The O

Hey, spit all you want. The style and tone here are exactly the same as the Mad Max films.

[mdc3000]

Paul W.S. Anderson is one of my most hated directors of all time, but I actually had fun with this one. It's nothing special but I got what I went for, cars shooting the shit out of each other and explosions. Not going to win any awards but it was entertaining as hell...however the movie sort of peaked for me during the second race - everything after that is just alright and the ending leaves a lot to be desired - the final voiceover is terrible as is the horrendous scene with Joan Allen trying to get Statham to stay...those things were classic W.S. IMO... but I enjoyed most of it a lot more than I thought I would, so I'll give it 3/5 stars.

[NoirFan]

Panned by Bloody-Disgusting, and they're not known for having the most discriminating palettes.

[Daytripper]

Originally Posted by mdc3000

Paul W.S. Anderson is one of my most hated directors of all time, but I actually had fun with this one. It's nothing special but I got what I went for, cars shooting the shit out of each other and explosions. Not going to win any awards but it was entertaining as hell...however the movie sort of peaked for me during the second race - everything after that is just alright and the ending leaves a lot to be desired - the final voiceover is terrible as is the horrendous scene with Joan Allen trying to get Statham to stay...those things were classic W.S. IMO... but I enjoyed most of it a lot more than I thought I would, so I'll give it 3/5 stars.

Not to mention Stathan's female "co-driver" is Megan Fox league smokin' hot!

But I agree mdc, this is not out to win any awards or year end 10 best lists. It's goofy fun like "The Fast and the Furious" and "Gone in 60 Seconds".

[DRG]

Saw this last night and had mixed feelings oit. It's worlds better than AvP, but what isn't? The setup is cool, and I liked the way the competitors were introduced.

About the Race itself...

Spoiler:

I thought Stage 1 was great, but Stage 2 is where the movie started to fall apart for me. That big armored semi thing? Cool, for sure, but makes zero sense from a logical standpoint. Why would the warden/producer want to thin out the field *that* much in only the second of three legs? And why did it keep attacking when only two competitors were left? Especially considering they were selling three days of racing? If Death Race were a real event and people were paying $99 for three days of death racing, they would be insane to introduce that element on day 2 and potentially knock out Frank or Machine Gun Joe so early on and basically ruin the competiton.

And even worse, the third day ended up being a dull and lifeless escape scene anyway. As a filmmaker, why not save your big juggernaut vehicle for *that* chase scene? It makes more sense from the Joan Allen character's standpoint AND from the filmmaker's.

Fun movie up until that point, but after they got rid of all the other racers it stopped being exciting for me.

[DJariya]

I loved it. Sure the writing was very sloppy and there were several plot holes, but from an action/visual standpoint it kicked ass. Statham was in traditional form as he was in Transporter and Crank. I just think it's funny that no matter what role Statham is casted in, he never even attempts to hide his English accent. Either that or all the characters he plays are English. IMO, I really didn't see any point to making Statham's character full of Tatoo's. Was that W.S.'s way of making him more badass? I mean the guy was a former NASCAR driver, steel worker and loving husband.

Very happy to see Natalie Martinez in this. I was probably one of the very few who saw her acting debut on Fashion House on My Network TV a few years ago and I thought she was absoluetely stunning back then too. As for this flick, she was smoking hot and I loved the attitude.

I also really enjoyed Joan Allen as the warden. She's one of my favorite actresses of all time and I loved seeing her as an Ice Cold bitch. Near the end of the film, I loved it when she was cursing a shit storm.

Overall, I had alot of fun watching this flick. For all the action films that Universal has released this summer, this ranks as my 2nd favorite behind Hulk and blows away Wanted by 10 miles. Rip it all you want, but for me the film did it's job and consider me a satisfied customer.

I give it a solid B

[Patman]

For a film that owes most of its allure to the promise of violent car chases and assault apparatuses, the action is badly filmed and edited (most of the time, you're wondering what the hell is happening because of the poorly put together race sequences. Paul W.S. Anderson's direction is relatively mediocre, as is the screenplay.

Jason Statham plays his typical onscreen persona in the role of Jensen and Frankenstein, Joan Allen (besides have a face now pulled quite tight via plastic surgery) is relegated to a thankless role of prison warden and Death Race producer where logic and motivation is paper-thin on both fronts. Natalie Martinez is nice eye candy as the navigator and not too distracting in the acting department, though the film is underwritten from a character perspective, but barely adequate as a action-oriented vehicle. Ian McShane gets plenty of mileage from the small part he has in the film. Tyrese doesn't wander too far from his typical screen persona, even if his character has a minor twist in his taste in navigators.

But if you're an action junkie, it'd be a decent rental in the future for you.

I give it 2 stars, or a grade of C.

[Charlie Goose]

Originally Posted by Patman

Joan Allen (besides have a face now pulled quite tight via plastic surgery)

Is that what happened? I thought her face looked weird.

She had nothing to do except glower and hiss her lines, which she did very well.

Armored vehicles? Check
A zillion bullets? Check
Explosions? Check
Macho dialogue? Check
Slow motion action? Check
Hot chicks? Check
Blood? Check

It is what it is. And it kicked ass.

[FantasticVSDoom]

Originally Posted by Charlie Goose

Armored vehicles? Check
A zillion bullets? Check
Explosions? Check
Macho dialogue? Check
Slow motion action? Check
Hot chicks? Check
Blood? Check

It is what it is. And it kicked ass.

Couldnt have said it better myself... Plus, damn the co-driver for Statham was pretty damn hot.

[DJariya]

Originally Posted by Charlie Goose

Is that what happened? I thought her face looked weird.

She had nothing to do except glower and hiss her lines, which she did very well.

Armored vehicles? Check
A zillion bullets? Check
Explosions? Check
Macho dialogue? Check
Slow motion action? Check
Hot chicks? Check
Blood? Check

It is what it is. And it kicked ass.

Exactly, I couldn't agree with you more. If you don't like or appreciate any of those items, you have no business watching this movie. I think all those items totally made up for the "lack of" storyline.

[Giles]

Originally Posted by Brack

I don't know if it'll be any good, but hats off to them for casting Joan Allen.

even the highlighted segments of the film of her being a mega-bitch are classic.

[Zen Peckinpah]

Saw it yesterday, a gloriously stupid time at the movies. The right balance of ridiculous violence and action and unintentional humor.

And the Dreadnaught...HOLY SHIT! It was an 18-wheeler with a tank built into the back of it...how could you not like that!?

[Giles]

I must admit it was rather mindless fun. I'd say it's the second loudest film of the year - the first being 'The Incredible Hulk'

[Giantrobo]

Originally Posted by Giles

I must admit it was rather mindless fun. I'd say it's the second loudest film of the year - the first being 'The Incredible Hulk'

How was Joan Allen?