Stealth Entertainment
By Scott Lumley
June 16, 2008
Naturally, the first thing that Cary does after getting back stateside is head directly for a big Sturgis style biker convention, where he is guaranteed to run into both Henry and Shane. He does run into both within minutes of each other and the fireworks begin.
Henry frames Cary for the murder of a rival bike gang member run by Trey (Ice Cube from Friday and Are We There Yet?), and suddenly everyone wants Cary dead or in custody or both. Cary responds by doing what he does best, driving motorcycles really fast, performing absurd stunts and being a smartass. Cary hauls ass directly back to LA as fast as he can, and Henry's gang, Trey's gang and the FBI are hot on his tail the whole way. In the end, Cary makes a deal with an unlikely ally with what is actually a fairly cool move on his part. They lay a trap for the bad guys and their plan is pretty much demolished when they make contact with the enemy. That's all right, though, because it results in a motorcycle race with what is essentially a rocket powered motorcycle.
This plot might seem a little vague, but it's the best I can do here. There isn't much plot at all to work with and I'd rather not give what little there is away for you. Still, if you're picking up movies like Torque for plot, you may need to rethink some life choices. If you're picking it up because you like fast motorcycles and hot girls, you've come to the right place.
The movie shouldn't have worked. It's ridiculous on a whole lot of levels. The stunts are unbelievable, the characters are caricatures and the plot is borderline absurd. I counted at least five instances when a character did something that made me say, "Yup. He's dead." And then he popped right up unscratched and sprinted off to his next reality defying stunt.
And yet it's relatively entertaining. Cary is very amusing to watch and his character is extremely likable. The whole thing is filmed in gorgeous lush colors and the pacing is dead on. Whoever did the costumes for the film was amazing, especially with Pressly. She's so gothed out with leather, tattoos and long black hair I didn't recognize her until she opened her mouth. (Really, that's not the kind of voice that is easily disguised...) There are few, if any lulls in the action, which is important because it doesn't really give the viewer a chance to say "Are you fking kidding me?!?!!?"
All in all, while being about as far as you can get from an Oscar caliber film, Torque is an enjoyable way to kill 90 minutes. It's pretty to look at, action oriented and occasionally funny. Just remember to turn your brain off before you watch it.
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