Review of Crank (2006) by Shane V — 12 Oct 2010

Whoo! Here's today's review: "Crank.".

Chev Chelios is a guy. He wakes up to find out he has been injected with a special Chinese cocktail, which kills him if he doesn't get enough adrenaline. So now he must scour LA looking for the guy who killed him, all the way getting jacked on drugs, theft, violence, and just general mayhem, so he can get his revenge before his inevitable death. In every way the opposite of "The Bank Job", this movie moves like a freight train from start to finish, and perhaps a few short stops along the way. It is essentially in the same league as "Shoot 'Em Up", with wild visceral thrills being the main entertainment, and only reason this thing is worth looking at. I can still officially say I've never seen a bad Jason Statham movie. The one point that this film has the 1-up on Shoot 'Em Up is it's ability to combine effective storytelling with constant, and slightly tame action shots. And by the end, this film delivers, and makes you as pumped as Chev himself. And the story itself isn't bad either. The dialogue is fuck-ridden, and even a bit nonsensical. Of course it's completely ridiculous, and fits into a tight 1.5 hour package. But, the frantic framing can get a bit boring over time. It makes use of the ever-popular-but-seldom-perfect "Roll-on ending"; tying up everything in the end, but still leaving room for a sequel. I give "Crank" 6 heart-stopping thrills out of 10.