Thursday 17 November 2016

Hot Rod (2007)


Directed by: Akiva Schaffer
Written by: Pam Brady

Self-proclaim stuntman Rod Kimble announces he will do a bike jump of a lifetime to get enough money for his step-father's surgery - so he can kick his ass.


The only thing I knew about this movie when I rented it was that it has incredible cast. That was the main reason I chose to watch it. It wasn't until later that I realised Akiva Schaffer directed the movie (I realised that like three minutes ago when I actually googled this movie and prepared to write this review). 

This movie has amazingly funny dialogue and writing, but also the typical physical stunts, or how the main character fails at them. Hilarious conversation and the bumbling around both work, and there are memorable scenes from both types. Good example of the humorous dialogue is this quote: "You look pretty." "What?" "I said you look shitty!"

Hot Rod's structure is typical to almost every comedy or drama that was ever made. But still as Rod is about to do this big stunt, it can go horribly wrong or amazingly well. That's the thing about comedies, they are unpredictable in a way. Only certain thing is that whether it goes wrong or right, it will be hilarious. 

I like the 80s aesthetic, but I'm still not entirely sure when the story actually takes place. There are other things I'm not sure about - like how old were the main characters? The way they acted and the stuff they said made it seem like they were teens or maybe early 20's. Of course it's even harder because of teenagers are mostly played by 20-somethings instead of actual teens. And the age thing didn't really bother me until Jonathan, who was played by Will Arnett (6' 2½''), showed up. The character is taller than everyone else and considering he had a real job and all seemed way older than everyone else. That made me think that maybe the main characters weren't as young as I thought, just a little immature.

Hot Rod is a pretty typical comedy. It makes you laugh, so it does its job well, but I don't think I'll be re-watching this any time soon.

☆☆☆☆☆
5 / 10

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