Drive (1997)

Director:

Steve Wang

Writer:

Scott Phillips (written by)

Release Date:

6 August 1997 (Philippines)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi | Comedy

Tagline:

There ain't no cruise control.

Plot:

A prototype enhanced human, on the run from Chinese-hired hit men, hooks up with a dread-locked bystander...

Plot Keywords:

Bar | Accident | Reverse Footage | China | Whip

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Mark Dacascos	...	Toby Wong
Kadeem Hardison	...	Malik Brody
John Pyper-Ferguson	...	Vic Madison
Brittany Murphy	...	Deliverance Bodine
Tracey Walter	...	Hedgehog
James Shigeta	...	Mr. Lau
Masaya Katô	...	Advanced Model
Dom Magwili	...	Mr. Chow
Ron Yuan	...	Razor Scarred
Clive Rosengren	...	Cantwell
Christopher Michael	...	Jeb
'Evil' Ted Smith	...	Joss (as Ted Smith)
Tedd Szeto	...	Receptionist / Assistant
R.A. Mihailoff	...	Singing Trucker
David Watts	...	Apollo Bartender

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violent content and language.

Runtime:

100 min | 117 min (director's cut)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS-Stereo | DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:16 | USA:R (certificate #34830) | South Korea:18 | Philippines:PG-13 | Netherlands:16 | Australia:MA | Finland:K-16 (video premiere) | Germany:18 | Norway:15 | UK:18

Company:

NEO Motion Pictures

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: During the fight with the Advanced Turbo Drive, Toby does a handstand and kicks the other Turbo Drive twice. When Toby does this the camera switches to show them both from a distance and Toby is obviously replaced by a stuntman.

Quotes:

Toby Wong: Let's go let's go!
Malik Brody: We are going, this ain't the Batmobile!

Movie Connections:

References "Leave It to Beaver" (1957)

Soundtrack:

Flight to Fantasy

Not In Neutral

I saw drive after a friend recommended it to me. I blindly bought this film with lots of curiosity, and not much else. What I was presented with was quite a surprise. I was treated to a film that, in spite of its low budget, managed to shine and show the viewer some of the best action sequences I've ever seen. Kadeem Hardison shows his comic talents as a Chris Tucker type (without the effeminate voice) who's been kidnapped by enhanced assassin Toby (played by Mark Dacascos). This feels a lot like a more violent, foul-mouthed version of Rush Hour, but in a good way. In fact, it pre-dates Brett Ratner's Rush Hour. I guess the plot's reasonably important; super-soldier enhanced by implant in his chest escapes from Hong Kong to San Francisco, but bad guys chase him and want him back alive. Super-soldier is forced to kidnap bar fly/wise-cracker for a ride and the two soon form a friendship and make their way to LA where super-soldier will get loads of cash for implant. This film has heart, it has humour, it has action. It's probably director Steve Wang's best work and it's thoroughly enjoyable. The actors all work hard and it looks far more expensive than it actually cost. However, I will say this; avoid the version that was edited for TV, get yourself a copy of the Director's Cut. It's far superior and doesn't have it's heart and soul ripped out. If you love action, and you love humour then definitely see this film! Dave's Rating ***** out of *****