The Fast & Furious franchise's longevity is a mark of movie-goers' interest in seeing fast cars go fast on the big screen, and it seems Need for Speed is racing in to follow those tracks by putting cars and street racing front and center in a story that — according to the new full-length trailer — involves honor, love and redemption. Also fast cars and incredible stunts. Because that’s the kind of thing you want to see accompanied by the roar of an engine, right?
Directed by Scott Waugh, Need for Speed’s story doesn’t seem particularly original on paper. Guy gets out of prison and sets a course for vengeance against the betraying business partner who set him up and left him high and dry. It certainly sounds familiar enough. But throw in some fast cars, big stunts, a solid soundtrack and maybe a love story, and you’ve got yourself a winner right? Let’s hope so. It doesn’t hurt that the film stars Breaking Bad’s (Emmy winning) Aaron Paul. Also among the cast are Imogen Poots, Michael Keaton, Kid Cudi, Dominic Cooper and Dakota Johnson.
If I have one complaint about the trailer, it’s that last stunt, where Paul’s Tobey Marshall zooms off a cliff Thelma and Louise-style and is next seen dangling — in his car — from a helicopter. It’s a great stunt, but it’s probably something I would’ve preferred to see for the first time on the big screen, preferably not knowing it was coming ahead of time. As cool as it looks in the trailer, I was already sold on the stunt work right around the moment we see that police car flipping slowly through the air. With that said, if showing a bit too much is the only complaint I can share about a trailer, that’s probably a good sign.
Earlier today, Katey and Eric shared a set report for the film, which focuses on the stunt-work. That includes co-writer John Gatins discussing the camaraderie among the stuntmen:
"There’s a great history among these stunt guys. There’s a camaraderie and this amazing almost military like respect they have for each other, ‘cause they’re real jokers and they’re hilarious guys and you see them out and they’re full of life, but when it comes to doing the work, like -- when we get closer and closer to doing what they call the events, it gets quieter and quieter and they get more serious, and then literally, like, the last moment before they go to do it, there’s a lot of like, everyone stops to get out of their car, and all this hugging, and like, ‘Hey man, see you on the other side.’ They take it incredibly seriously."
You can read more about the Need for Speed stunts here.
Check out the previously released trailer here. Need for Speed arrives in theaters March 14.
