I have to admit to expecting I would like this film, but then I have been a fan of Andrew Lau Wai Keung’s films for some time, especially since STORM RIDERS, and the YOUNG AND DANGEROUS FILMS, and with this cast I was expecting a lot, though the bad digital racing scenes from LEGEND OF SPEED did worry me a bit, but I shouldn’t have been worried. This is an excellent film with great characters (especially Bunta played by Anthony Wong Chau Sang) and an enjoyable and good story-line. I haven’t read the Manga or seen the Anime (except a race compilation), but I think I would like it, and I hope they do a sequel to this excellent film, one of the best Hong Kong films I have seen in a while.

REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS…

Jay Chou plays Takumi Fujiwara a kid who works at a gas station, and whose friend Itsuki Tachibane (hysterically played by Chapman To) wants to be a street racer and goes to the mountains to downhill race, but ends up wrecking his car, but on later that night a mysterious old Toyota AE86 from a local tofu shop flys by the the racer and beats him in a race down the hill using inertial drift. Takumi only wants to work and likes Natsuki Mogi (the super young and cute Anne Suzuki who did such a good job in Hana and Alice ) who has to be very proactive in the relationship to get Takumi moving, and wants him to drive her to the beach on Sunday. It turns out it is Takumi who drives his dad Bunta Fujiwara’s (hysterically played by Anthony Wong Chau Sang) car taking tofu for late night deliveries, which has been doing since eh was 13 on the mountains, and has really perfected his skills. When the drunken Bunta learns that his son is beating more powerful cars, he is proud and bribes his son to race again in order to get the car to go out with Natsuki. He wins and goes on the date, and gets his first kiss. Word gets out about this AE86 and other’s want to race him, and he even wins in his friend Itsuki’s POS AE86, though it is all over the road, learning that in fact his dad has finely tuned his AE86 to be the perfect drifting master. Takumi meets up with Ryousuke Takahashi (Edison Chen) who wants to race him, and they agree to do so in 3 weeks, but on the way down, Takumi is challenged by the actual racer Kyouichi Sudou (Jordan Chan) and not only beaten but blows his stock engine. And then his friend Itsuki tells him he saw Natsuki in a love hotel with an old man, which he doesn’t believe, and fights his friend. Meanwhile Bunta has an illegal racing engine put in the AE86, and shows his son how to do drive it, and Takumi agrees to race Ryousuke and Kyouichi, but on the way he sees Natsuki in a mercedes with her “Uncle” when she is supposed to be out of town, and he freaks out. He goes to the race, and starts in the back, but Ryoushuke lets him pass, then they both pass Kyouichi, but a car gets through, and Kyouichi tries to go anyway, crashing his car. Ryousuke manages to pass Takumi with his more powerful engine, but is wearing out his tires, and gets passed at the end by the talented Takumi, and asks him to join his racing team. Takumi leaves and sees Natsukio with the man getting out of his car, and runs crying, she tries to chase him, and had broken it off with her “Uncle” but… Crying Takumi drives off and tells Ryousuke he will join the team to the delight of his father.

The racing rocks in this movie, with only some digital, that enhances and doesn’t harm. This film is totally bad ass! I can’t wait for a sequel!!!!