If you are a fan of the Twisted Metal video games, then I can guarantee you will love the movie Death Race. It is the closest thing I have ever seen to bringing the carnage and destruction of the video game to real life. With that being said, Death Race is not based on the video game Twisted Metal. I am just trying to paint a visual portrait of what to expect hoping that you actually know what I am talking about. In reality, the film is a remake of the 1975 movie Death Race 2000, based on Ib Melchior’s short story “The Racer.” Moving right along, I actually loved this movie upon my first viewing of it in the theatre. I had heard so many bad critic reviews that I went in with little to no expectations and I was pleasantly surprised. It may have something to do with the movie’s black Mustang V8 Fastback hero car reminiscent of my own, but I actually enjoyed the movie for what it is…a whimsical thrill ride of over the top mayhem, action and destruction. It’s quite the guilty pleasure for the young boy in all us alpha males.

Death Race was directed and produced by Paul W. S. Anderson, most famous for the Resident Evil trilogy of movies. Death Race stars everyone’s favorite Transporter Jason Statham, Joan Allen (The Bourne trilogy of movies), Tyrese Gibson (Transformers), Ian McShane and the lovely newcomer Natalie Martinez. The project to remake the old 1975 film has actually been in development since 2002. There seems to have been a squabble among studios until Universal Studios finally acquired the rights.

The movie takes place in the fictional time period of 2012. Wait until I tell you about the prologue. It is amazing how much this fictional time period could actually be not so far from the truth. Dissolving text on the screen fills us in on the fact that four years from now the economy of the United States falls into a national disaster as unemployment and crime is steadily on the rise. Private companies run most of the prisons for a profit. The movie centers around one prison in particular, Terminal Island. Terminal Island is home to what is known as the “Death Race.” “Death Race” broadcasts live from the prison as millions of subscribers from all around the world access hundreds of camera angles via the web to watch prison inmates not only race to the finish line, but battle amongst each other and avoid deadly obstacles just to stay alive.

The film begins by showing a “Death Race” near its end with only two drivers left, Machine Gun Joe (Tyrese Gibson) and the most famous of them all Frankenstein (voiced by David Carradine), a masked driver. Long story short, Frankenstein’s car is destroyed by Machine Gun Joe, leaving Frankenstein mortally wounded, to say the least. Fearful of the ratings that may be lost by the death of the most famous driver, Frankenstein, prison warden Hennessey (Joan Allen) embarks to find a suitable replacement. After all, Frankenstein was really just a skilled driver behind a demonizing mask. Who would even know if it was not the real Frankenstein? Enter the tragic life of Jensen Ames (Jason Statham)…

Jensen Ames is framed for the murder of his wife on the very same day that he loses his job at the steel mill. Where is Ames sent to serve out his life sentence? You got it…Terminal Island. Did I forget to mention that Jensen Ames was once a skilled racer in his glory days? I am so sorry for that. Hennessey asks Jensen to become the new driver of Frankenstein’s Ford Mustang promising him freedom should he win just one more race. Jensen was too smart to know that there would be any validity to her promise. When Jensen refuses Hennessey, she pulls out the ace in the hole she had hiding up her sleeve. It’s a picture of Jensen’s baby girl. Hennessey shows Jensen his daughter’s new foster father that she will end up calling dad without knowledge of Jensen ever existing. Enraged, Jensen takes Hennessey up on her offer and becomes one of the coolest looking masked men since the sadistic look of Michael Myers in Halloween…Frankenstein. Wait until you see the mask and the demonizing eyes of Jason Statham peering through them. As a fan of the horror genre, they just give me the chills in a very good way!

Just for your information a “Death Race” is race is broken into three stages, spread over three days. A driver who has won a total of five “Death Races” will be given their freedom. Of course, no one has ever won five races. No one has ever lived that long. If warden Hennessey has her way, no one ever will. Frankenstein is the only driver to have ever won four races followed by Machine Gun Joe with three victories. Stage 1 and 2 are races in which the driver simply just has to survive. In Stage 3 the driver must win the race in order for it to count towards their freedom wins. These races are not for the faint of heart with driving moves that will put any racing fan on the edge of their seats, explosions that will make any uni-bomber happy and enough decapitations that will please the Saw fan in us all.

Of course, it is not just all about the races and stunt driving. There are plot lines centralizing around all the major characters. While serving his incarceration, Jensen learns that the man who killed his wife is in the same prison. He is actually one of the “Death Race” drivers. This certainly makes things interesting for all parties involved. If you know anything about Jason Statham, you know he is quite the fighter. Doesn’t it just seem very convenient that former race car legend Jensen Ames just happens to get framed for murder and also just happens to be at the very same prison where a suitable replacement for Frankenstein is needed? I think you get where I am going with this.

When I sat there giddy as a school child watching this movie in the theatre, my mind was already racing with excitement over owning this on the Blu-ray format and listening to the relentless metal-crushing carnage on my home theatre system. Let me just say, I was not in the least bit disappointed with the Blu-ray treatment Universal has given to Death Race. In my opinion, the Blu-ray release of Death Race definitely crosses the finish line in first place. Death Race features a sick killer score by Paul Haslinger, a tremendous outing by actress Joan Allen (who really impresses here with such a different role than what we are used to seeing her in), a hot female casting decision in Natalie Martinez (comparable to that of Megan Fox’s supporting role in Transformers) and a non-stop insane thrill ride that is sure to please the gear-head in us all.

Video

Universal delivers a beautiful but gritty 1080P MEPG-4 AVC transfer of Death Race to the Blu-ray format. Both versions of the movie, the Theatrical and Unrated cuts of the film, appear on this BD-50 disc with an aspect ratio of 2.35:1. Anderson brings his unusual style of shooting with a bit of grain to the Blu-ray transfer. The slight grain is not a problem here for me, as it is of director’s intent to give us that nitty gritty cinematic look. The characters and objects all maintain a three-dimensional pop and separation from their respective backgrounds. Skin tones are natural throughout with black colors never straying from anything but solid. Despite the motion blur caused sometimes by the 100+ mph action sequences, everything remains sharp and focused. Detail is of the essence here. I did notice some unusual noises in the blue sky in one outside scene and some moments of soft focusing on objects. There are little variables here and there you can nitpick on, but for the most part this video transfer really delivers and leaves me completely satisfied. You know you are watching a Blu-ray presentation when you view this film. I really would hate to see how the DVD format could possibly display this movie.

Audio

Universal, once again, delivers the Mr. Bombastic track here with a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround offering. Not since The Incredible Hulk have my ears been so deaf after a movie viewing. Loudness isn’t always an indication of a soundtrack being phenomenal, but in the case of Death Race it certainly doesn’t hurt. Remember all the talk of chaos and carnage I was mentioning before? Well you have to imagine this. The audio of Death Race is a 360-degree battlefield with explosions, cars flying by and bullets spraying all around you. The soundtrack is a sonic masterpiece. I actually checked this movie out twice before reviewing it and upon my second viewing on my second home theatre system, I actually found myself turning the volume down progressively throughout as my ears are still sore from last night’s outing. With that being said, one probably begins to worry about the dialogue track getting lost amongst all the action and chaos. I am pleased to report that simply isn’t an issue. Despite all the non-stop action, the dialogue always remained respectable and intelligible. This makes the audio track on Death Race a win-win for me. Jason Statham has that low raspy voice at times but I had no trouble in distinguishing his words like I do in his other films. Oh, did I mention the bass? That was the Mr. Bombastic reference I made in my opening statement here in the Audio section. The thunderous bass will peel the paint off your walls. I had a couple things topple over on my shelves during my initial viewing of Death Race. This Blu-ray’s prime audio cut definitely deserves top honors with a 5-star rating.

Special Features

Universal delivers a similar assortment of special features much like the offerings contained on their most recent Wanted Blu-ray release. Best of all, with the exception of the included digital copy, they are all brought to you in glorious High-Definition. Let’s skip the small talk and dissect what’s included here. The following special features are listed below as in the order they appear on the back of Death Race’s Blu-ray box art.

• Start Your Engines: Making a Death Race (HD) – Enjoy a 20-minute look into the casting of Jason Statham and see how a huge, stunt-driven Hollywood movie was made.

• Behind The Wheel: Dissecting The Stunts (HD) – We get 8-minutes to see the many jaw dropping stunts in the movie as well as interviews with cast and crew.

• Feature Commentary – Listen to the feature length commentary with director Paul W. S. Anderson and producer Jeremy Bolt. This is available only in the Unrated version of the movie.

• D-Box Motion Enabled – This feature is available to those only with disposable income.

• U-Control (HD) – Universal’s exclusive feature puts viewers one click away from going deeper into the making of the film without ever leaving the movie. Here you can enjoy a Picture In Picture video track to allow you to enjoy a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the film while watching the feature. Also, Tech Specs provides an interactive dossier of the cars, races and characters.

• BD-Live (HD) – Blu-ray players with an Internet connection can access exclusive interactive applications that allow viewers to communicate with friends and family while watching the film. With My Movie Commentary you can add your own audio, video or text commentary to the movie and act as the announcer for the third race. My Chat allows you to chat with friends while watching the movie and conduct your own private screening sessions. My Scenes Sharing allows you to share your favorite clips with your buddies. Last but not least, you can access exclusive video content, avatars and trailers.

• Digital Copy (SD) – A digital copy of the film is provided on a separate disc for watching the movie on your favorite portable device while you are busy and on the go.

Final Thoughts

I just wanted to take a moment to clear up a beef I have with Hollywood cinema critics. What I hate about relying on theatrical reviews is how they judge a book by its cover. We all know that Death Race will not be an Oscar-winning movie. Paul W. S. Anderson knew when he made it and Jason Statham knew it when he took the role. However, Death Race accomplished just what it set out to do in the first place…it captivated American audiences and delivered non-stop thrills and insane, metal-crushing excitement. And in doing so it greatly succeeded beyond my expectations. I guess that could be because I really had none after reading how ruthless critics were towards Death Race, but in giving it a chance, I found a movie that I can easily put on my top-ten list of favorites for the year 2008. This Blu-ray release is no exception. The action just gets bigger and better while enjoying it now in the privacy of your own home for the ultimate home theatre experience. Understandably so, Death Race will not appeal to everyone. So while I highly recommend this title to fans of the Blu-ray format who enjoy insane action, carnage, destruction, big subwoofer-pleasing explosions, fast muscle cars, edge of your seat racing, heavy guns and hot women, I guess I would give it a rental first if you feel the least bit unsure. For fans looking for the ultimate demolition derby experience on the Blu-ray format, look no further than Death Race. If you like any of the things I described previously, I don’t believe it is possible to be disappointed here.