Death Race (R-2008)

On the surface, "Death Race" should be an easy movie to review. It is exactly what you expect it to be. Depending on your tastes, that can be a good thing or a bad thing. In my case, it's a good thing. I like action movies and I am a fan of Jason Statham. Both come across pretty well here. Of course, even for action movies, I would like a little more realism and better writing, but it's just about good enough in this case. Statham plays Jensen Ames, a steel worker who was once a revered race car driver. After his plant closes, he is framed for his wife's murder so he can participate in the hottest TV event in America: the death race, in which prisoners are pitted against each other in souped-up, weapon loaded cars in a race to the death. In this future, prisons are now owned by corporations, who find ways to run them for profit, like the death race. The supporting cast, including Joan Allen, Ian McShane and Tyrese Gibson are all pretty good and the film is entertaining. I find it amusing that in these "future" films, you always find public programs being taken over by corporations (the police in "Robocop", the prison system in this movie) when real-life has shown us recently that private corporations are more likely to be taken over by goverment, not the other way around. This type of movie is all about the visuals and the racing and effects were definitely fun to watch. If you like action movies and/or Statham, it's worth a watch, but you probably won't like it otherwise.

Grade: C

Trailer: