Landspeed (2002)

Touches You

Too much of everything

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

In a word, gawdawful. Laughable science, cheesy acting, see-through, predictable plot (we were placing bets as to who'd be the driver to die. I lost)...totally a b-grade movie with b-grade actors. The characters were flat, unbelievable, and cold; even the crowd of thirty or so onlookers at the "race" (okay, with stakes of $50 million, you'd think there'd be far more entries and a lot more hype and excitement, no?)looked bored at the whole ordeal. I guess the only semi-redeeming feature was Billy Zane. I think he did the best he could with the script he had, and he was pretty funny in a camp sort of way. Too many errors to get past, however (the electric guitar jam sounded pretty good...too bad the thing wasn't plugged into an amp of any kind)

Yeah, this movie had a small budget. I mean, the soundtrack was really corny. The special effects were really cheap-looking. The cars were all digitally animated. The crowds were probably taken from an airshow in Arizona or something. The script, the script was terrible complete with holes everywhere you look. Acting, pretty flat from most of the actors, if they were actors. I don't think the Asian guy had a single line.So what was good? I can't exactly put my finger on it, but I liked it. I think theyvrealized just how corny it was while making it, because it seemed like Billy Zane just wasn't taking it seriously. His lines were so sarcastic and mocking to the storyline that I was captivated by how he was getting away with it.I mean, are we to believe that all these guys, the top six "landspeeders" from around the world, hangout in crappy motel bars, have scooter races, got to strip clubs, and go camping together? And the whole championship, $50 million to the winner? Why would they put up 50 million if they hadn't even see the car hit (what was it) Mach II.What can I say, I've probably watched it on replay on Encore about four or five times so there is an entertainment value to it. If you got some time to kill, like an afternoon playing hookie from school, I say watch it.

In my opinion land speed was the greatest movie ever created. It mixes the type of action, romance and comedy that you could want in a movie. The jokes are great, the graphics are cutting edge and the whole movie just makes since. It is extremely easy to follow which makes it a fantastic movie for all ages. I personally saw this movie three times in the movie theater by myself and twice with my girlfriend. Its the kind of movie that keeps you on the edge of your seat to see how and when they are going to achieve the goal of Mach 2. The exhilarating race at the end is a brilliant way to end a classic movie like this. So, If you want to see a bad ass movie with your friends, or a cute movie to snuggle up with your sweetie...Landspeed is definitely worth it.

Landspeed (2/5): The fastest man on Earth and his dad team up to win a competition in which the goal is to set a landspeed record of Mach 2. A modest pic with a basic story but some good racing scenes.