Hot Rod - Through hell at full throttle

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Movie
German title Hot Rod - Through hell at full throttle
Original title Hot rod
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 2007
length 88 minutes
Rod
Director Akiva Schaffer
script Pam Brady ,
Akiva Schaffer ,
Andy Samberg ,
Jorma Taccone
production Lorne Michaels ,
John Goldwyn
music Trevor Rabin
camera Andrew Dunn
cut Malcolm Campbell
occupation

Hot Rod - Full Throttle Through Hell (Original Title: Hot Rod) is a 2007 comedy film directed by Akiva Schaffer , who was involved in the script. Andy Samberg played the main role .

action

Rod Kimble has been a self-proclaimed stuntman since his youth. He emulates his late father, who worked as a stuntman for Evel Knievel and who had an accident trying to jump out of his shadow. Rod, however, is not very successful. Supported by his crew made up of his two friends Rico and Dave, who are responsible for the material, and his half-brother Kevin, who takes over the management, he makes all kinds of jumps on his moped, but most of them go wrong.

His everyday life is shaken when he learns that his stepfather Frank is dying because the family lacks the money for a heart transplant. While the family is sadly resigned, Rod does not want to let Frank die before he finally respects him as a man. So he decides to raise the $ 50,000 with a stunt. In this stunt he wants to outbid Evel Knievel by jumping over 15 school buses. For the organization, 5,000 dollars are needed, so that Rod and his crew, along with his childhood sweetheart Denise, who has now joined them, make various small appearances at birthdays and similar events. Of course there are many mishaps that Kevin records on video camera.

When he cuts it into a film, Rod wants to show it publicly in order to earn more money. The demonstration does not go as planned, because Rod is perceived by the audience as a joke and not as a stuntman, whereupon he throws the projector out of the window. In the process, he also damages a car, so that the $ 5,000 collected up to that point is gone and the jump over the 15 school buses is a long way off. In addition, his mother reveals to the broken-up Rod that his father was not a stuntman at all, but a salesman in a tire shop and Evel Knievel had himself photographed with him as a guest in town. Since this photo is all Rod has of his father, who has been spinning stories about his father since childhood, his mother did not want to take away the illusion. Rod decides to end his stunt mandate. Only when Kevin revealed to him that uploaded clips from the movie about Rod had received more than 100,000 views and a local radio station wanted to sponsor the event with $ 15,000 did Rod return to his passion and prepare for the stunt.

On the day of the decision, he gets a motorcycle from Dave, a pyro show from Rico, a new costume from Kevin and a kiss from Denise, goes onto the ramp and jumps. He's fast enough, the jump succeeds, but on the way Rod lets go of the motorcycle. He ends up injured on the landing ramp, but comes to and insists on not being carried out, but on walking, even if supported. To the cheers of the audience, the donation display points to $ 50,000 and Frank is ready for an operation. At the end of the film, Rod manages to get Frank to finally recognize him as a man and a son.

criticism

Andrea Niederfriniger writes in the “Filmreporter.de” portal that the film is a “bizarre summer comedy” . Roger Ebert from the “Chicago Sun-Times” also rates the film positively. He thinks the film is "funny because it's honest" . The film benefits from Sissy Spacek's portrayal of the mother playing “upright, without bending, as if she were not in a comedy” .

Cinema magazine was cautious: “The sketch parade oscillates between 'Napoleon Dynamite' and 'Jackass' and is really funny in places. Unfortunately, despite parodies from the 80s, the gag tank runs empty quickly. "

The magazine "Rolling Stone" emphasizes the "gift for visual gags" of the production team. However, that was the only positive point. Sissy Spacek and Ian McShane are "underemployed" or "overqualified" , some jokes are repeated so often that the humor "evaporates."

The magazine “Variety”, however, is not very fond of the film. Although the film causes some laughs, very little attention is paid to the characters.

Peter Hartlaub from the “San Francisco Chronicle” thinks the film is an “exceptionally stupid comedy” .

S. James Snyder of the "New York Sun" also describes the production as a "thin, mindless comedy that gives the appearance of a five-minute You-Tube clip that has been blown up to 80 minutes" .

Individual evidence

  1. - ( Memento of the original from June 11, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.filmreporter.de
  2. https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/hot-rod-2007
  3. http://www.cinema.de/kino/filmarchiv/film/hot-rod-mit-vollgas-durch-die-hoelle,1318348,ApplicationMovie.html
  4. http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/movie/11714028/review/15747170/hot_rod
  5. Archive link ( Memento of the original from March 9, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.variety.com
  6. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/08/03/DDIERBUF52.DTL
  7. http://www.nysun.com/arts/by-all-means-crash-and-burn/59796/

Web links