The Death Race video game, released in 1976 was one of, if not the very first video games made from a movie (in this case, the original Death Race 2000, released in 1975). It was highly controversial for its time because it was so violent.

The remake of the 1975 film is called simply Death Race (they dropped the date from the title, presumably so that they can just point to “a nebulous future”). It is appropriate that its predecessor spawned the “video game from a movie” genre, because the film is a video game. Normally I would compare a game to a movie but for this one we’re going the other way.

Death Race is Mario Kart meets Manhunt meets Grand Theft Auto IV.

And I’m totally not kidding. Memorize the Manhunt box cover; you’ll be seeing it a lot.

The movie stars Jason Statham’s Beard and Abdominal Muscles as Jason Statham, a scruffy dude who drives a car and kicks ass. He is (of course) wrongfully framed by Joan Allen who needs him to drive cars in prison. His chief mechanic is Al Swearengen and his arm candy is Smoking Hot Chick With Awesome Boobs.

It is a film that takes place in a world where everything is grey. And I mean everything: don’t adjust your set; the color tubes have not blown out. Somehow the cinematographer managed to turn bright red colors into overcast skies (even Smoking Hot Chick’s boobs are grey). This works, though. It’s arty and stylized, but in the end any artistic merit it may have is wasted because we’re really only there to see guns, cars, and boobs.

The film is exactly what it says on the tin and it is exactly what your expectations lead you to believe.

The opening crawl says “In 2012, the United States economy collapses.” So Obama apparently isn’t going to be that great of a president. We also seem to have reverted back to a completely industrial economy. Who knows what the future holds? It doesn’t matter; that’s all unimportant.

What is important is that you turn your brain off at the door. Sit back, enjoy the hot chicks, fast cars, and explosions.