DVJ 2.0

INITIAL D

THE LAST STAGE

Review by Matthew Anderson

Live Action

Company: DVJ FILMS

Running Time: 2 hours

Region: All

Rating: R (Suspense, violence, nudity, adult themes)

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EXTERNAL EXAM

Tach is your typical high school kid; diligent student, supportive boy friend, and devoted son.  Tach has a unique before school job. Late at night, he drives insanely fast on the twisting and winding roads near San Francisco, delivering wine to restaurants.  He is never late, and he has never, ever broken a case of wine.

His driving abilities have made him a local legend, and even though he has never raced officially, every so often, people try to take him down.  He always wins.

His best friend Iggy, who is a wanna be street racer, comes to him with a major problem.  It seems that he accepted a challenge from a street racer called "The Emperor", and lost.  If Iggy does not pay him $100,000 bones, they are going to take away his home, forcing him and his family out into the street.

At first Tach refuses, because he hates driving on the dangerous roads of San Francisco.  He only does it because his Pop is too old.  It isn't until Iggy gets beaten up, that he changes his mind.  Now, he is forced to battle against several different opponents, including a mysterious "wild card" racer, whom no one has been able to beat.  If he and his car survives, he must battle "The Emperor".

At the same time, Tach's catches his girlfriend Mogi on a date with another man.  Blowing her off when she tries to explain, he meets Maya, and the two start to fall in love.  Little does he realize that she is going to be one of his opponents in the "Winner Take All" race against "The Emperor"!

Will Tach be able to keep his mind on the race with so many problems going on?

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WIDESCREEN REVIEW

STORY: While it's roots are firmly planted in the original, Rand Williford's script is not the same. It is a tighter, better plotted story that despite the macho posturing, does a great job at making the characters seem believable. I also like the fact that the exposition is well disguised, so you don't notice it.

ACTING: Acting wise, Paul Walker is on fire.  At first he starts out as a fairly cool and disinterested character.  As things heat up, so does the fire in his soul.  The more he races, the closer he comes to the men and women who do this not just for fun, but because they love the sport.  You see him start to warm up, especially when he meets Maya.

Devon Aoki is just as hot as ever, but she can emote as well.  The breakup scene between Tach and her is very sad, and I swear I felt tears running down my face.

FAN SERVICE:  Devon Aoki is fan service, from her head to her toes.  There are plenty of refrences to the anime, as well as Into the Blue, Iron Chef, and even Miami Guns.

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FINAL EXAM

For those of you who do not know about the history of Initial-D, here is a brief recap. Back in the late 90's a series about Japanese street racers hit the airwaves in Japan. With it's mix of teen drama and hard-driving action, it became an instant success.  Each new series (or stage) that was released drew more and more attention.  When TOKYOPOP released the manga and the DVD, love of this series went through the roof.

Due to the popularity of Initial D, DVJ Films bought up the rights for a live action version, and with the help of Universal Pictures providing the cast, and TOKYOPOP providing the music, Initial D: The Last Stage was started.  With a script by Rand Williford (Code Name Phoenix, Voyeur), and Director Rob Cohen firmly on board, the project went ahead.

I attended a finial cut of the movie at our Studios in San Francisco. Lots of thoughts ran through my mind; Would it be as intense as the original? Would the race scenes be tight, or at least keep me interested? Will we see Devon Aoki in various states of undress?

The answers are: More intense. Yes, they were tight. Yes you do, take a look.

Rob Cohen has given us an excellent action film, right on par with his previous hits "XXX" and the inspiring "Fast and the Furious".  The race scenes are fast and furious, the plot is minimal, but who needs it.  The one problem I had with Initial D was that there was too much plot, not enough action. 

From the moment the movie started, I was glued to my seat. It was very hard for me to get up and go to the bathroom, I was so into it. The first five minutes were incredibly fast, and from then on, it didn't let up. Rob Cohen knows how to keep a movie going. Just when it seemed that things were going to slow down, something would happen that would make the whole audience go "Whoa!". When we got to the last 15 minutes, everyone was jumping out of their seats. Better than the end of "Initial D: Third Stage" I could feel my heart racing. There were plenty of gasps and "woahs" that helped to push the intensity level way up. As people left the theater, I could here people saying; "Man, I am going to find me a Toyota Corolla and do some street racing!

I will say that DVJ Films "Initial D-The Last Stage" is right up there with "Smokey and the Bandit" as one of the best thrill rides of all time. It is a powerful, intense, heart pounding thriller that leaves all others in the dust.

SMALL PRINT: This is all in the name of good fun, so let's not take this seriously.  It is not our intention to irritate all you BGC fans, AnimEigo, or fans of "Charlie's Angels".  Please don't complain to AnimEigo or Sony.  They have nothing to do with this, and we are not going to make any money with this feature.  This is the last time I watch back to back showings of "Charlie's Angels"

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