Last week, I was lucky enough to score a free screening to the upcoming Need for Speed movie. Getting to see it a month before it came out was awesome in and of itself, but the nice thing about this advanced screening was that you were actually allowed to take your phone in with you, unlike many of the other ones I've attended. All the other studios need to take note, because Dreamworks and the #NFSmovie crew know how to effectively do a screening. If you want your advanced audiences to tweet about the movie, let them take their phones into the theater! Just enforce the no cell phone policy during the actual movie. When studios like Sony make you check your phone in at the door, they completely alienate a marketing avenue.
This screening had signs everywhere about the possible felonious repercussions of operating your phone during the screening itself, and guess what? No one brought out their phone! After the movie was over, phone screens all around us lit up with people connecting to social media to talk about it. What happens at the end of Sony, Paramount and a few other studios' screenings? People just leave... so they can stand in a line to get their phones back, then go to social media to talk about how much BS it was to have to check their phone in the first place. It's not flippin' rocket science, marketing people!
So anyway, before the movie starts, a "live" (taped) feed came on with director Scott Waugh, and actors Aaron Paul and Scott Mescudi, who then welcomed the "Midwest" to the screening before they talked about the making of the movie. The most interesting thing was that Scott Waugh, the director, said he grew up on movies like Bullit and wanted to pay homage to them. As a result, every stunt in the movie was done with practical effects! That means that every stunt was REAL! Everything they did with a car was a real person driving the car. No CG effects for the stunts, (although there is some CG in the actual film.) This made me very excited to see the movie, because that's just not done anymore.
If you think this is just another Fast and Furious, then you are in for a treat. Don't get me wrong, I love (most of) those movies, but Need for Speed is its own beast. I went into this knowing that it was a video game adaptation, but I knew next to nothing about that game series.
**Minor Spoilers Ahead**
The movie opens with Tobey Marshal (Aaron Paul) dealing with the death of his father and trying to keep his family's custom auto shop open. We quickly learn that Tobey is one of the best drivers out there and that if he could just get behind the wheel of a "real" car... he could accomplish legendary things! This is told to us through a great extended cameo performance by Michael Keaton as Monarch, a mysterious man with an internet radio show, who hosts an elite supercar-street race once a year. Dino Brewster (Dominic Cooper) is a rich man that grew up in the same neighborhood as Tobey. He comes back and enlists Tobey and his crew to finish building out a concept Saleen Mustang so he can turn around and sell it. Seeing a way to save his shop Tobey and his crew do just that and are able to sell it to a wealthy man represented by Julia Maddon (Imogen Poots), an exotic car dealer who sets up the ultra rich with high-end cars.
After the sale, Dino challenges Tobey and Pete, one of Toby's crew and the little brother of the woman Dino is dating, to a race using supercharged euro-sportscars. The winner gets the entire profit of the mustang sale. Just as Tobey is about to win, Dino causes Pete to spectacularly crash. Tobey goes back for Pete as Dino flees the scene. Tobey is then subsequently sent to prison for two years for manslaughter and car theft, since the three cars weren't actually Dino's. Dino gets away scott free, bringing an end to the movie's main plot setup.
Two years later, Tobey gets out of prison just days before Monarch's supercar race and Dino, as a past winner, will be in it. Tobey convinces the buyer of the Mustang to sponsor him for the race, then the next day, lo an behold, Julia shows up with it. It's now a race against time as Tobey, Julia and his remaining crew all have to get from New England to the California coast in time to register for the race... but they also have to catch the attention of Monarch to actually get the invite for the last remaining race slot, all while avoiding the cops and the bounty placed on Tobey's head to all of Monarch's listeners by Dino!
I was expecting Need for Speed to be a Fast and Furious ripoff, but that's not what I received... like, at all. Yes, the cars and the amazing practical stunts take front and center, but there is actual story in between action sequences. I was pleasantly surprised with a very compelling, character-driven action/drama... with some revenge and redemption elements thrown in, (R & R just happen to be my favorite plot devices.)
I enjoyed this movie on almost all levels. Aaron Paul was excellent in his role. In the very beginning, you can feel the emotion that Tobey is experiencing over the death of his father, and even more so when Tobey realizes that his friend is gone after the horrific crash. Dominic Cooper's Dino was cut from the same mold as most of the bad guys from 80's movies like Karate Kid and Better Off Dead, just not near as over the top. A very believable performance. Seeing Imogen Poots able to act with her native accent was interesting and it honestly worked perfectly for the character of Julia. On the other hand, the man that steels the whole show is definitely Michael "Batman" Keaton. We only see his Monarch in the "radio booth" setup, and he really only has about 10-15 minutes of screen time, but each and every minute of it is great. Perfect for a mysterious rich guy that gets off on running a multimillion dollar street race once a year.
The stunts were amazeballs! Granted, they are more of the "leave your disbelief at the door" type, but the stunts' believability factor is strengthened by the nature of them all being practical effects. Seeing real cars crash into each other will always be more believable than fake computer ones... no matter how awesome the CG effects artists are. There is a jump about halfway through the movie that I almost jumped out of my chair for and the driving throughout the movie was excellent.
If I had one gripe about the movie, it was that it had a slowish start. It was almost 30 minutes into the movie before the setup for the main plot was finished. While I wasn't bored at all during the beginning, I think that the movie overall could've benefited from a faster paced Act I.
Going into this screening, I never thought that I would be leaving it saying that Need for Speed was my favorite film of 2014 so far... but that's exactly what happened. If you like car chase movies or character driven dramas, you will love how they combine to form the spectacle that is Need for Speed.
Final Grade - 9/10
Need for Speed will hit US theaters on March 14th, 2014
Until next time... are you not entertained?
#NFSmovie
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