Faster

The three main characters in "Faster" are nothing more than labels. They are introduced with simple classifications popping up on the screen -- "Driver," "Cop" and "Killer" -- and are given no other titles throughout the rest of the film. They don't need first or second names -- they are what they are, and nothing more. They are identified only by the trademarks of the tags they've been branded with. It is unnecessary for them to exceed simplified terms when they, as characters, are wholly defined by them.

The first and foremost of these players is "Driver" (Dwayne Johnson, "Race to Witch Mountain"), a muscle-coated ex-con who has just been released from his 10-year jail sentence. He stampedes his way out of prison and sprints to his car, a 1971 Chevy Malibu SS hidden under tarp in a junkyard. He speeds to a street outside an office building, crosses the road without looking both ways, bursts his way through reception, and pumps a slug in the head of a telemarketer. We've all wanted to do that, haven't we?

He was arrested for a bank robbery, in which he was double crossed and shot in the head after watching the murder of his brother. However, Driver miraculously survived the gunshot to the noggin, akin to Uma Thurman in Quentin Tarantino's "Kill Bill," another eye-for-an-eye tale. Now out of the slammer with a metal plate stuck to his skull, he's gunning for revenge against the gang of twisted crooks who killed his bro and landed him behind bars.

Number two of the labels is "Cop" (Billy Bob Thornton, "Monster's Ball"), a (surprise, surprise) cop who ends up on the job of tracking down Driver. Working alongside fellow law-enforcer Cicero (Carla Gugino, "Sin City"), the middle-aged, doped-up lawman pieces together the puzzling case as Driver continues his media-hogging killing spree.

Cop has two weeks to retirement, he neglects his son in favour of his work, he has family troubles, and is addicted to a drug he purchases in public toilets. Heroin, I think. This man is quite possibly the biggest cliché in the history of film, yet a floppy-haired Thornton somehow manages to make him not seem like this unoriginal protector of peace.

And then there's "Killer" (Oliver Jackson-Cohen, "Going the Distance"), a professional hitman assigned by an unknown figure to take Driver down. To him, it's just another job he can do with both arms tied behind his back, but his new target proves a complicated task. One of the few opponents Killer struggles to massacre, Driver shows himself to be a worthy adversary for the determined assassin.

Killer also has some personal stuff going on, his girlfriend-turned-wife no longer turned on by his exploits, begging him to give up the dangerous business. With an ego bigger than the pecs on The Rock's chest, Killer begins an obsession to track down Driver when the former is beaten in a gun battle.

"Faster" is an all-out, R-rated, straight-up revenge flick that serves no purpose other than to entertain a manly crowd. A total B-movie of guns and road-rage, it's built to be nothing more than a quickly forgettable audience-pleaser. It's bloody, it's cool, and it refuses to shy away from showing the red corn syrup dripping off the violent antics of its vengeful antihero.

A definite detour in Johnson's career, "Faster" puts the ex-wrestler back in the role of an action champion -- lets throw "Tooth Fairy" and "The Game Plan" behind us, people. Back to grasping a gun between his bone-crushing fingers, he looks so natural as the unstoppable beast in a tight leather jacket tearing his way through those who have wronged him. He conjures up some authentic sympathy, Driver having to watch as his own brother's throat is slit with a knife, but his character doesn't really need to go any deeper than this. And while the role doesn't allow Johnson to show off his notable charisma, he does well as a cold-blooded exterminator trying to set the score straight.

The film opens with a surge of energy running through its body, an adrenaline rush flowing through its veins as soon as Driver steps foot outside his decade-long cage. He runs through the desert as "Goodbye My Friend" by Guido and Maurizio DeAngelis plays overhead, his arms punching the air as he gallops through the sandy setting. This power bar, faintly resembling Neveldine/Taylor's "Crank," runs out fast, though, as the rest of the film fails to capture this sense of mayhem and enthusiasm, rooting more for sentimentality and emotionality -- which is a little hit and miss.

"Faster" also seems a bit too serious for its own good, with humour taking a gigantic side-step from the main proceedings, almost completely falling off the frame. It doesn't fully ruin the sense of fun that surrounds the film, but I couldn't help but feel that a more darkly comic tone would have been advantageous. The many subplots, which very nearly render the film's focus convoluted, are the ones to blame here, family matters seeming a tad pointless given the central plot at hand -- an ex-con's murderous rampage.

Nevertheless, "Faster" always has some revolver-blasting, car-smashing action lurking around the corner, Driver's quest for justice zooming along at a quickening pace. Director George Tillman, Jr. ("Notorious") films the action with efficiency and liveliness, the editing frantic but stable in clarity. A moment when the camera is positioned within a speedometer, looking up at a sour-faced Johnson, inspired a sly smile to creep up on my face.

"Faster" is a flick made entirely for popcorn-munchers who won't question the logic of a storyline. Dwayne Johnson's anticipated return to old-school action pictures is a rewarding one that, while far-fetched, manages to create such an ambience of full-throttle fun that one almost forgets the over-serious silliness of it all. It's harder, better, faster and stronger than most revenge flicks. Just remember to stay away from Disney from now on, Dwayne. If you haven't scared them off, that is.

7/10