Need for Speed (2014) [cam]

It’s been 21 years since the theatrical release of Super Mario Bros. kicked off what was supposed to be a wave of hit films based on video games. Since that time we’ve seen only a few actual hits. The Resident Evil franchise is five films and counting and the first Tomb Raider and Mortal Kombat films were unqualified hits. Other than that and a few low-budget entries, it’s been pretty much a wash for the genre as a whole. Yet Hollywood keeps trying to wring box office hits out of popular video games.


That the film is being converted to 3D at the last minute could be seen as a sign of desperation or merely a concession to the overseas marketplace (I saw the film in 2D). Expect an opening weekend of over/under $20 million with the hopes that word-of-mouth over the film’s stunt work and relatively kid-friendly tone (PG-13 rating aside, this is pure PG-material) will get the film to $60m in the states and that overseas can match or double that number. It’s an unusual Disney-distributed release (produced by DreamWorks, natch) in that it wasn’t insanely expensive nor either a Marvel film or an animated project, so it’s the closest thing we’re going to get to a Disney “B-movie” for a long time.

Need For Speed  is just good enough in terms of its action to make you wish they cared a little more about the non-technical aspects. It is bright and colorful, filled with impressively staged and coherently shot action sequences. The plot may not make much sense and the supporting characters may belong in a Disney Jr. cartoon (not a good one like Doc McStuffins), but it delivers what audiences arguably came to see. It’s willfully stupid and outright immoral, but its sheer obliviousness amused rather than annoyed me. It’s just a darn shame that no one involved trusted the same young audience that flocks to Pixar films to enjoy a perfectly successful racing film without a heavy dose of stupid to go with it. But in an era drenched in hipster irony and intentional meme-ready awfulness (see – Sharknado), the completely sincere Need For Speed may in fact be “so bad it’s good” in the very best way.

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