Torque, la route s'enflamme

The whole setup of this movie is to make cash. From the beginning the movie just looks overproduced. When I tuned in I even thought it was some kind of commercial, and I was right because this whole movie is basically a advertisement for motorbikes. The way a sign at the start reads "cars suck", the comments throughout the film "thats why I hate 4 wheels!". Its pretty obvious, even though you can't really take stuff like that serious.

There are a lot of errors in this film as well, but what I didn't like about this film is that it focuses too much on the bikes and vehicles. Believe me when I say that this has nothing else to offer then people racing against each other with a very thin plot about a guy who gets framed for a murder he didn't commit. Thats basically the entire premise of this movie, so if you are not into bikes and cars (yes those people exist) then you can scratch this movie from your list now.

One aspect that was not that bad was the use of CGI to create a kind of hyperdrive-feeling during some of the driving/chase scenes. But again, this feels like a bike-commercial quickly. Hell, they could paste a Yamaha-logo at the end of a driving-sequence in Torque and there you go; a perfect TV-commercial.

The characters also are nothing different from the typical Hollywood-stuff, and they are just as thin as the plot they are representing. The acting could be worse, but the dialog is the most awful and laughable tripe you will ever hear. If bikes are your life and you always wanted something like Fast and the Furious but with bikes then give this a try, if you want a good movie then just avoid this.

When sitting down to watch a movie like Torque my expectations are down so low that they almost touch the earth's core. Maybe that's also why i actually found this movie to be mildly entertaining? The closest movie references here seemed to be the "Fast and the furious"-movies, at least before the movie started. But while the setting is not unlike those movies (criminal gangs racing each other in custom vehicles) there was still a big difference in how the movies played out. First of all i like the style of "Torque" a lot better. Granted, the over-the-top racing sequences with quite a lot of CGI tucked in to create the illusion of speed are too much many times. But still, there is a certain style and feeling here that actually makes it work pretty well.

The beginning of the movie almost made me give up though. The "hero" arrives at a biker meet where women with more silicone than natural tissue greet him and it almost becomes too much to bear. But when the obligatory naked skin passes by the action picks up, and so does the entertainment. Don't be mistaken, this movie is a hopelessly juvenile testosterone-fest. But in the genre it's not too bad.

So if you like fast bikes and fast paced racing this might just be your choice for the Friday night entertainment. Easily digested, easily forgotten, but a fun ride while it lasts. I rate this 5/10.

What's with the hate for this movie? Why can't people just take this movie for what it is? This movie is just simply good B-movie action entertainment. Its obviously no Oscar material, no but did you seriously expected it to be? At least it doesn't take itself as serious as both the Fast and the Furious movies did. You know that when you are going to watch a movie like "Torque" you are going to see a bad story with some second rate actors but with some nice action.

And this movie surely has some nice action. The motorcycle sequences are surprising good and tense. Most of the stunts were nicely choreographed and the movie has some nice camera tricks and nice editing. It's obvious when watching this movie that Joseph Kahn is a music video director but that certain style works perfect for a fast paced movie like this. Joseph Kahn seems like a talented and well motivated director, of which I'm sure we will hear more of in the future.

Yeah sure, the ending is pretty bad and fake looking but it didn't ruined the movie for me in any way. I was entertained throughout the entire movie by some nice action.

The movie has a bit of an awkward kind of humor, which they should had left out in my opinion. The script is not very well written but still the actors pull it of to make their characters likable and give them a personality. Would I mind seeing "Torque 2"? Most certainly not! I would rather see a "Torque 2" than a "The Fast and the Furious 3".

Really, just give this movie a chance, you might very well end up liking it.

6/10

http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

In reviewing the incredible annoying House of the Dead, I wrote, 'Why flirt with the concept of overkill when you can make it say 'whose your daddy?' Torque does not flirt with overkill; Torque *is* overkill's daddy, and it was fun.

Just a few hours before I watched Scary Movie 3 and that film barely managed to summon a chuckle from me. Torque had me in stitches before the first sixty-seconds were up. After years of watching 'serious' films with ridiculously over the top chase sequences (especially lately), finally a movie comes along and puts them all in their place. I have waited a long time for a racing-movie to recognize its own lameness and just (knowingly) go for all the over-the-top stunts it can possibly collect in a loosely strung together plot about a bunch of stereotyped misfits no one really cares about.

As stated above, the key was the fact this film does not take itself seriously. Take for example the MTV quick-cut commercial editing style, its overly colorful nature in sets and props, the comic-book-ish camera angles, the overused CG for impossible camera/bike moves, and the lighting which left the high-contrast shadows in mid-day. Want more? How 'bout when a bike speeds past a road sign, making it do a Looney Toonsesque-spin, and if you look carefully you can see the words 'Cars Suck?'

Everything perfectly matched the goal this film set out to hit, which is basically a tongue-in-cheek XBox game on the silver screen so commenting on the characters and plot seems virtually pointless. It's about as well developed as most action films-characters and plot serve enough purpose to get the bikes from chase scene A to chase scene B while poking fun at characters/lines from other racing films. No more no less.

I personally loved Torque. Would I recommend it to friends, family, or Joe-Shmoe who happens to pass me by in the video store? Well . . . for those who watch films with an anal eye and point out, 'That's not a logical plot point. That defies the laws of physics. That's the single stupidest thing I've ever seen in cinema?' No. Heck no. Don't even pick up the box. However, for those who can watch a film where the comedy lay not in punch lines rather in the style -- a film that's a celebration of all things lame in all of cinema's over-glorified chase scenes? Have a blast and join in with Torque's mockery of the genre.

This movie was made because of the success of the Fast and the Furious. But in this they decided to use fast motorcycles instead of cars. A can't miss, right! What were the producers thinking when they decided to spend 40 million on this? The extremely thin plot revolves around our "hero", Ford, who is set up for a murder by the bad guy. The guy killed is the brother of our anti"hero", Trey, who of course isn't so bad after all. Then there is a twist involving the FBI cop, but if you couldn't see it coming a mile away, then this is your first movie.

There were many outrageous stunts in this. OK, I could get past two guys jumping a ramp onto a moving train and then driving through the train cars. And racing through a bunch of trees without getting killed. And I can even get past the ridiculous fight on motorcycles between the two girls. But the last 15 minutes where it looked like a video game was too much. It was so silly, them saying this bike could go over 200 mph, and then he does it through crowded city streets. Someone would be dead in seconds from running into something.

But, I must give props to Martin Henderson. He was very hot and I never heard of him before. Hopefully, he'll get more mainstream movie roles because I sure don't mind looking at him for a couple of hours.

FINAL VERDICT: If you like movies with ridiculous stunts, then this one is for you. Also, if you want a good look at a hot new actor, check out Henderson.