Need for Speed has been streaming on Amazon Prime since yesterday. The adrenaline-charged video game adaptation with Aaron Paul in one of his first major roles after Breaking Bad was only partially convincing at the box office. Nevertheless, the film is worth a look. Last but not least, it is extremely entertaining and is significantly ahead of the latest Fast & Furious adventures.
Need for Speed on Amazon Prime: The video game adaptation with Aaron Paul surpasses the Fast & Furious action
We are talking about the action scenes – actually a specialty of Dom Toretto and Co. Hurling a safe through the streets of Rio de Janeiro or daring stunts on the highway: the Fast & Furious films are full of gigantic action sceneswhich at the end leave us as viewers amazed and with one question: How on earth is this going to be topped in the next part?
Ultimately, this gigantism on display has led to the feeling for the otherwise thrilling movements being increasingly lost in the more recent entries in the Fast & Furious series. At the latest in the submarine finale of Fast & Furious 8, the action loses its appeal in the face of the massive CGI enhancements any appeal and turns into interchangeable blockbuster cinema.
You can watch the trailer for Need for Speed here:
Need for Speed - Trailer (German) HD
Need for Speed, on the other hand, turns out to be a massive undertaking, because in every shot you can feel the cars racing across the asphalt – and later spinning. CGI effects are used here much more carefully usedfor example, to retouch crew members and the wire ropes needed for furious maneuvers from the images. The focus is on the practical stunt work on location.
“We went back out onto the streets, drove at top speed and hung out the side of the car to film it all. I wanted the audience to really feel what it felt like to drive at 230 miles per hour”director Scott Waugh revealed to the Los Angeles Times at the film’s release. Over 100 cars were used during filming, including filmed by 40 cameras.
No Part 2: Need for Speed impresses with practical stunts and definitely deserves a sequel
When Aaron Paul puts his foot on the accelerator, the film conveys an exhilarating sense of speed. Power behind the movements is palpable and benefits from the fact that we are only following a handful of cars. At first glance, Need for Speed seems a little smaller than most Fast & Furious outings, but ultimately the film benefits from the clarity and the street-level vibe.
In addition to Aaron Paul, Imogen Poots and Dominic Cooper are part of the Need for Speed cast. Rami Malek, Ramon Rodriguez, Scott Mescudi, Dakota Johnson and Michael Keaton also appear in roles. We shouldn’t get our hopes up for part 2. With a budget of 66 million US dollars, the film only managed to gross just over 200 million worldwide and flopped with 43 million in the USA.
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