‘I wish I’d taken more time to stop and smell the roses so to speak…’
My favourite films are the ones that make me question what it means to be human. Films that confront big issues and inspire big feelings. Sometimes, however, I just want to see Jason Statham blow some shit up. Not all cinema needs to be serious. Occasionally you need something preposterous that allows you to switch off your brain. Crank is undoubtedly that film…
For reasons that really don’t matter, Chev Chelios (Statham) must keep adrenaline coursing through his body or he will die. Basically, this is a film for anyone that found Speed to be a little slow-paced. The other characters are just stock gangsters and villains although Amy Smart does well in a role that is little more than window dressing and there is also an amusing pre-fame cameo from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia co-creator Glenn Howerton.
The writer-director team of Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor stay true to the premise, with Statham never too far away from his next fight, explosion or sexual encounter. Think of the most ridiculous moments from every James Bond film and now imagine them all stitched together to make a cohesive film. You’ve just imagined Crank.
Crank is nearly 20 years old now and so certain elements of it have not aged well, most notably the scene in which Statham forces Smart to have sex with him in a crowded marketplace and some shoddy special effects during the film’s final scene, but on the whole, if you are looking for a fun action movie to take the edge off, you can’t go far wrong with Crank. It is all nonsense though. Just to be absolutely clear on that.