Review of Vehicle 19 (2013) by Quincytheodore — 15 Feb 2015

It becomes clear within the opening fifteen minutes that Vehicle 19 is fundamentally flawed. There's not much logic in the plot and it really needs audience to suspense their disbelief. Having Paul Walker doesn't help in the slightest as he's given so little to work with, not to mention there's no merit in cinematography as it's almost entirely shot in that one car. The overcompensating music is loud enough for monster truck.

Michael Woods (Paul Walker) is a former convict, he goes to Johannesburg to see his loved one. Unfortunately, he takes a wrong car from the rental, containing some illicit packaged stashed inside. This revelation will plunge him into the city's conspiracy and corruption. Now most people would freak out if they find spiders on their cars, but Michael Woods chooses a different unnatural reaction. It's unclear if Paul Walkers was still engrossed in his Fast and Furious character and thought he could drift the trouble away or he's channeling Jason Statham's character from Transporter.

Heck, even Transporter had the audacity of presenting goofy action, Vehicle 19 wants you to take it seriously as thriller despite the highly unrealistic script. This makes me wonder how the script got passed in the first place, why there was no one proofread it, point to a certain scene, any scene for that matter, and express how implausible it was. Furthermore, half of it is rambling and random shouting, but the characters still go along with the absurdity.

There is not much development as it progresses, only stifling dialogues, strange change in behavior and a few unbelievable occurrences. By the time it reaches halfway point, the movie produces a numbing effect. The use of Johannesburg as setting is actually a good decision, it's exotic and adds to the atmosphere. However, since most time is spent on the car, it brings little value in the end. It's not like this is Collateral where the production incorporate the scenery into an integral part of the movie, it just drives by aimlessly.

The end is just as bad, so without spoiling anything, it's not worth tolerating the entirety of the movie. Vehicle 19 is bound for junkyard.