Sheer insanity has nothing on this
Image Courtesy of IMPawards.com
Director: Neveldine & Taylor
Notable Cast: Jason Statham, Amy Smart, Clifton Collins Jr, Dwight Yoakam
To call Crank a wild action flick would be about as much of an understatement as saying that Robert De Niro has been a “pretty good actor.” Crank 2: High Voltage, then, makes Crank look like a pretty mild-mannered action movie.
Continuing the adventure of Chev Chelios (Jason Statham), the film proves that even death is something an action hero can overcome. At the end of Crank Chelios was thrown out of a helicopter from several thousand feet up and landed on a car, presumably dead. He’s managed to rub some dirt on it and walk it off but this time around has another problem revolving around his heart. It’s been taken out of his chest and replaced with an artificial one with a battery. With an hour to find his old one and get it back in, and needing electric power to stay alive, Chelios and his insanity are back for another round.
Neveldine and Taylor, who produced and wrote the film as well as directed it, know that they raised the bar quite high in their first outing in what appears to be a franchise and are acting accordingly. To say they’ve thrown everything including the kitchen sink in the film would be an understatement; when a spoof of the “Godzilla vs.” series seems somehow like it belong to be in this film you know they’ve thrown everything crazy they can think of into it. And for all this insanity, the film hinges on its star to deadpan his way through it all.
Jason Statham is one of the few action stars able to play this kind of role because he is taking himself completely seriously. Chelios is the ultimate straight man in a world of complete insanity and Statham plays it off as somehow normal. It works and the film, which revolves around him, is elevated from sheer insanity with no heart to having a bit of soul to it because of him. He’s really working hard to deliver the goods and for the most part it works. He’s seemingly embraced his role as this generation’s action king and this is going to be his other franchise outside of the Transporter series. It’s definitely different then most of the films he’s been in and a sign that he’s willing to take a walk off the beaten path every now and again.
Crank 2 suffers because, much like the first film, it feels far too long despite running under 90 minutes. There’s plenty of fat that could be trimmed and tightened up, as the film drags on quite woefully for extended portions. Neveldine and Taylor are busy throwing so much out there that a better editor could be used to extend what works (most of the action sequences) and cut plenty of what doesn’t.
Following in the steps of Crank, Crank 2: High Voltage is the type of film that an ardent few are going to love and the rest of us are going to watch and cringe. It’s perfectly acceptable entertainment but goes more for the cult audience then it does for mass appeal. As a very hard R rated film it’s perhaps the wisest movie to make.
FINAL RATING (ON A SCALE OF 1-5 BUCKETS):
