Much like its predecessors, “The Fast and the Furious” and “2 Fast 2 Furious,” the appeal of “Torque” isn’t driven by the story or the actors, but by the motorcycles that dominate the majority of the movie. The film does a sensational job of flaunting its two-wheeled thrill machines, but its lack of plot and painful dialogue result in a last-place finish.
Back from a six-month hiatus, Cary Ford (Martin Henderson, “The Ring”) returns to the States to visit his old girlfriend Shane (Monet Mazur) and clear up a false accusation with FBI agent McPherson (Adam Scott) regarding motorcycle gang leader Henry James (Matt Schulze) and his stolen drugs.
When Ford’s return becomes common knowledge to both parties, James’ desire to quickly extract revenge results in the death of a rival bike-gang member and causes his older brother Trey (Ice Cube) to join the fun in hunting down Ford and his friends. The framed Ford claims that he can prove his innocence to McPherson and Trey, but fails to deliver the evidence until the end of the film.
“Torque” wouldn’t be half bad as a silent film (with no dialogue or music) but director Joseph Kahn essentially chops it up into little music videos that run the risk of sending the audience into a collective fit of seizures on several occasions. The explosive motorcycle scenes that convert the film’s B-movie script into an action flick are always well-paced but the excruciating dialogue is just too much to overcome.
“The Fast and the Furious” series has been a pleasing experience (all three films have been backed by the same producing team) but with each installment, more and more seems to be missing. “2 Fast 2 Furious” lost its star and “Torque” loses everything else except the same action-packed adrenaline rush that coursed through the earlier films. “Torque” is a must for motorcycle fans, but everyone else should approach it with some discretion.
2.5 / 5 Stars
