Review of Taxi (2004) by Shawn S — 12 Jun 2009

SPOILERS (don't worry you're not missing much): Queen Latifah's character was cool, charismatic, and jovial, but really? I'm supposed to buy that QL is a biking Dare Devil, even biking in the subways of New York? I don't think anyone with a functioning brain did.

Jimmy Fallon's character was slightly more awkward and incompetent than he is IRL, I imagine this role was an easy fit for him.

The car stuff was cool, but anyone whose been to New York knows that you couldn't even TELEPORT from Times Square to JFK in 15 minutes! Not for $100, not for anything short of divine intervention.

There were some sexy, slutty, bitchy (that's not against women, that's the stereotype/male fantasy they went with), European models who were apparently bisexual or lesbian thieves, they were major characters; This and the car stuff were the only 2 interesting things about the movie.

There's some sporadic pointless romance and "sexual tension" that even the writers didn't care about or care to make the audience care about. QL's character even gets a very public marriage proposal that goes nowhere, means nothing, and is not investigated. JF's character is under the delusion that his attractive, competent boss he went to law enforcement school with is attracted to him, but she always keeps him at arms length, appears awkward toward him throughout and yet faithful to him for some reason (like she actually likes him platonically, but is still disgusted by him). Everything in this movie involving love, feelings, sex goes NOWHERE. Every aspect of this movie we only see on a superficial level, we don't learn much about any of the characters or anything else with the exception of how much QL's character loves transporting things and cars.

It has its humorous moments and light mood, even when there's mortal peril afoot, but it's no great movie.