Main cast: Scott Eastwood (Andrew Foster), Freddie Thorp (Garrett Foster), Ana de Armas (Stephanie), Gaia Weiss (Devin), Clemens Schick (Max Klemp), Joshua Fitoussi (Leon), Kaaris (Frank), Lester Makedonsky (Rémy), and Simon Abkarian (Jacomo Morier)
Director: Antonio Negret
I have to hand it to the casting people: Scott Eastwood and Freddie Thorp do look like half brothers here. Overdrive is basically the story of the two Foster brothers, who are car thieves, along with Andrew’s girlfriend Stephanie and Stephanie’s pickpocket friend Devin as they find themselves caught in a power struggle between two crime bosses Max Klemp and Jacomo Morier. The Interpol are also meddling, so it’s a party to remember.
This one is one of those heist movies that feature fast cars, and comparisons to the early The Fast and the Furious movies are probably inevitable, especially since Scott Eastwood resembles so much a bargain bin version of Paul Walker. Unfortunately, this one is bogged down by many twists and counter-twists that, ultimately, add up to either make no sense or are just plain unnecessary. I suppose the two scriptwriters want to show off how brilliant the Foster siblings are, but they do so at the expense of the story.
Not to mention, the cast members seem to have a chemistry comparable to strangers awkwardly forcing themselves to mingle in a party because they have nothing else to do. Scott Eastwood makes Paul Walker look so good in comparison, because he only has one single facial expression here – smug – and all his lines are delivered in a robotic monotone. Freddie Thorp is over the top obnoxious and loud-mouthed, although this could be due to the character he is playing as much as his constant overacting. Stephanie has little personality for too much of the movie, while Devin is written to be in either horny or eager for action mode. The crime bosses are far more memorable in their mugging and scenery chewing, and I wonder whether this movie would be more entertaining if Clemens Schick had been the one playing Andrew Foster instead of that plank Scott Eastwood.
This is a French-made film, and I am not sure what went on behind production, but I wonder whether the French cast members’ lines are dubbed here. This is because many of their lines are delivered in a bored, expressionless monotone manner, as if they are voiced by dispassionate underpaid actors freezing away in a studio rather than actors actually in a certain scene. As a result, it is hard to get invested in this film, not when the principal characters talk like they can’t wait to get their check, go home, and get some sleep. Also, the car chase scenes are surprisingly sedate for a movie of this nature. Maybe it’s a budget thing.
At any rate, Overdrive is a movie that is stuck in first gear from start to finish, bogged down by wooden acting and line delivery while lacking thrills one should expect from such a film. Go rent it for the pretty people, if you must, but it’s best to keep expectations close to zero in order to enjoy it even a little.
