Driven (2001)

There have been a number of very enjoyable movies based in the world of Formula One racing (not least of which is the excellent F1). Driven is not one of them. It's a star vehicle for Sylvester Stallone, an empty slice of dullness from director Renny Harlin, and a film you can easily point to as an example of the worst of mainstream "blockbuster" entertainment.

Kip Pardue plays Jimmy Bly, a young racing car driver struggling to achieve his full potential. His big main rival is Beau Brandenburg (Til Schweiger). He needs to gain an edge though, and that's not going to come from his brother (Robert Sean Leonard), who is also thinking in terms of branding and profits. Never fear, because here comes Joe Tanto (Sylvester Stallone), an older legend who may be able to help Jimmy get the victories that he needs to end the season on top.

As well as starring, Stallone is the one responsible for the screenplay here (fleshing out what I can only presume is a slim story concept from Jan Skrentny and Neal Tabachnick). Although he's written some great films in the past, Stallone now often seems most concerned with writing tales that add to the legend that is Stallone. This is one of his weakest efforts, absolutely not helped by the fact that most viewers may struggle, as I did, to figure out just who is supposed to be our lead. 

Harlin helps when he can, actually delivering a couple of driving sequences that are fun and visceral, but he also settles far too easily into sticking with material that is flawed, at best, and absolutely preposterous. There's an excitement during the race scenes, yes, but it's not enough to make up for the flat and one-dimensional characters, and I don't have the time or space to lay out all of my complaints about the mistreatment of the characters portrayed by Stacy Edwards, Estella Warren, and Gina Gershon.  

Pardue doesn't have the charisma or presence to carry a movie like this. In fact, he has NO charisma or presence. Schweiger at least has something to him, but he's stuck playing someone that viewers aren't sure whether they're supposed to like or hate. Stallone is Stallone, and he does Stallone stuff (being the wise old man who the young whippersnappers underestimate). Burt Reynolds gets to add nothing, Leonard is almost consistently annoying throughout, and the aforementioned ladies must have started every day on set hoping for a major script change that would allow them to be more than just reflectors for the glow of the leading men.

There's a pretty good soundtrack, although it's also a very "of the time" soundtrack, and some of the CGI works well (although some really doesn't). That's about all of the positives though. I could tolerate this while it was on, but I don't ever want to see it again. Even in comparison to other trashy "treats" from the past few decades, this is painful stuff. And nobody should even consider it when you have the likes of F1, Gran Turismo, Rush, and a few other superior racing features to choose from nowadays. 

4/10

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Prime Time: Driven (2019)

Casey Dillard, who also wrote this film, stars as Emerson, a woman who earns a living driving for some kind of taxi service type of company. She also aspires to be a stand up comic, although that may not happen while she never actually takes the step up to the stage to give it a proper go. Things get very weird for Emerson when she picks up Roger (Richard Speight, Jr), a man who is actually dealing with a demon menace. Although they don’t get along at all, Emerson may end up being the best person to help Roger in his demon-destroying quest. 

Directed by Glenn Payne, Driven is a fun film that feels like it could have been even more fun if two things were changed. First, Dillard could have made the script much more amusing. She does well in fleshing out the main characters, and her own character has enough interesting aspects to her persona without being quirky for the sake of quirkiness, but there’s a lack of sharp wit in the plotting and dialogue. Second, this could have been made years ago. It now feels like a film that will be easily lost in the shuffle of movies that have a lead character working for an Uber-like company or cab firm. 

It would also help to plot this in a way that actually provided any tension, or made you feel that something was actually at stake. That would mean softening some of the edges of at least one character, or perhaps even making a point of explaining the repercussions of the demon problem in a way that signifies end of days kind of danger. 

Although a few other characters appear throughout the movie, it’s essentially a film focused on a driver and her problematic fare. Dillard is very good in her role, and gets to do even better as the second half allows her to develop her character further, and it’s obvious why she excels in a role that she wrote. Speight, Jr also does decent work, but is hampered by the fact that his character isn’t one viewers ever get to warm to. Even in the second half, Speight, Jr is left as a reluctant “hero” who doesn’t appreciate how his actions may impact others, or even how their lives may differ greatly from his own. 

Making movies is all about making what can seem to be an infinite number of choices, and I know that I have the easy life of commenting on them while having never made my own. There are people who may like the choices made here by both Payne and Dillard. The latter certainly seems to have wanted to ground some genre fun in a story that shows someone finding her own ability to bite the bullet and help others. And that is a very good choice to have made. I just wish there had been ways to either make the end result darker or much more fun, or both.

5/10

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