Need for Speed

Had I seen this as a teenager obsessed with playing NFS, I’d be ecstatic. The movie is full of gaming poetics and the cars are a level higher than in the Fast & Furious series. With its great locations, Need for Speed is like a road trip around US national parks and cities, as if they were levels in a game. As for characters and the logic of the story, however, it couldn’t be lamer. But the 130-minute running time is not grating, as it makes the film into the longest guilty pleasure mind-fuck in the history of cinema. (03/12/2014)

This film is a treat for the fans of the game, or at least for people who have ever played it, the rest will struggle and complain about how unrealistic and illogical it is. The gaming feeling is manifest in every other scene, and the original shots during car crashes and the fantastic "FPS" view from the car are a clear indication that the people behind this film know what they're doing and are teasing us. The screenplay is perhaps nonsense in terms of plot, emotions, and character motivation, but something had to be there, right? Aaron Paul is good and fits well into tough guy roles. The best car scenes in the history of cinema. (07/29/2014)

If you have ever played the game "Need for Speed", or at least watched someone play it, like me, you might have a pleasant feeling of déjà vu during the races, because it's a real ride, and besides, you are not on a circuit, and in the end, you will also get into nature quite nicely. Yeah, it's a pretty typical plot, but that ride can really be enjoyed. (08/15/2014)

My neighbors just love racing movies. The sound of the engine revving in my bass combo is music to their ears, and perhaps the only one that can complain is their broom, which comes into contact with the ceiling a few times in these cases, but is slowly getting used to it. Need for Speed is of course completely moronic in terms of story, but no wonder with this kind of target audience. Which is not the players of the game in this case, because it can't logically make sense to them why they would go to a movie based on a racing game that spectacularly adopts formal film techniques yet at the same time is graphically comparable to reality (because it contains almost no people, only objects). Moreover, there can be no question of any cinematic expansion of the game universe when the game has none. The Need for Speed movie is primarily aimed at those who have to have and see everything that falls under the franchise – all the games, trailers, t-shirts, and of course their Renault Multipla also has a fresh Need for Speed sticker on it. That said, the film's greatest asset is the fact that Scott Waugh and the writers have understood the brief, and thus the whole plot can be summed up as basically 'the main character goes somewhere to drive, thereby avenging the fact that the last time he drove somewhere his friend didn't finish. Ironically, all the characters are stuffed in the pockets of the utterly likable Imogen Poots, and the rest are so bland the film doesn't even try to make them the bearers of a higher truth (unlike the last F&F), such that the center of it all is really just the driving, which is filmed very skillfully, so I couldn't complain too much that, since I personally am more or less only interested in the racing, there's remarkably little of it here, because it's really more about the driving. Otherwise I don't know, but 178 days in jail for street racing, a few dozen misdemeanors, assault on a public officer, and general endangerment is a pretty good deal. Not to mention, the main character probably wouldn't be sitting behind the wheel again for the rest of his life. (07/23/2014)

A surprisingly ambitious ride that cannot disappoint even occasional players. The story about racing revenge perfectly suits the various stunts like a hubcap on a wheel, and that Need for Speed would actually extract stronger emotions from me, I would never have expected even in my most optimistic dreams. When perfect rival chemistry between Aaron Paul and Dominic Cooper works, all I have to do is sit behind the wheel and enjoy a few typical locations or shots cut out from your favorite episode. And Nathan Furst's pleasantly plucked soundtrack makes you want to join the final race yourself. (07/27/2014)