Emma Sjöberg in Taxi 2 (2000)
Pics
Review
When you hear that Luc Besson wrote the script for Jason Statham’s 2002 tire-screecher The Transporter, you might wonder what on earth he was doing on such a project. You’d stop wondering the second you found out that Taxi 2, the sequel to Besson’s 1998 film Taxi, holds the record for the largest opening weekend box office in French cinema history. The premise of Taxi was simple – a pizza delivery driver who wishes to become an F-1 pilot instead finds himself slumming it as a taxi driver. When his souped-up taxi breaks the speed limit by a ridiculous amount, he’s asked to help catch some bank robbers in order to save his license. Loud engines and improbable car chases ensue. And ensue. And ensue.
For the sequel, Besson hasn’t exactly stretched himself, but most would suggest he doesn’t have to be. The audiences came in huge numbers not because this was a story that had to be told but because the film contains some of the biggest and most ridiculous car chases ever put on film. While the first film featured a cranked-up Peugeot that ripped up the roads, the sequel gives that car wings so it can jump further, a higher top speed, a parachute, and of course, the ever-present automatic sick bag flap that opens in front of the passengers whenever the brakes are applied.
This time around there’s a plot involving the kidnapping of some Japanese dignitary by the Yakuza, which gives the producers plenty of opportunity to engage in complex fight scenes and a little racist humor which probably isn’t nearly as out of place in France as it is here. Mind you, if you watch Lethal Weapon 4 and Rush Hour, North Americans aren’t averse to laughing along with racist humor, so no marks lost there.
Sami Narceri stars as Daniel, the husband to a sex-mad woman (Marion Cotillard) and driver of the fastest taxi this side of the Riviera. Naceri is just right for this role, completely goofy, unattractive, and very much the kind of cab driver you’d hope to get if you needed to get to the airport in the next ten minutes from 200 miles away. Where the film goes wrong isn’t in the casting, its in the tendency to leave reality completely behind and expect the audience to come along regardless. When the chases are ground in reality, they’re awe inspiring. In fact, there’s a lot of humor built into these changes that will come at you out of nowhere and add to the experience. It’s when the driver hits a button on his dashboard and wings shoot out from the sides of the car that you’ll start groaning and checking your watch.
A lot of fun and well worth tracking down, even if it’s only to observe the sleek styling and aerodynamic lines of the gorgeous Emma Sjöberg; my advice is to leave your expectations at home and just enjoy the ride.
Nudity Report: Far too perfect to be in any way human, Emma Sjöberg shows the only skin in the flick, but you have to be quick with the freeze frame to see it. As she’s tossing a fellow police officer over her shoulder, we get a quick glimpse of what appears to be flesh-colored panties.. but they’re so flesh colored that it looks very much like we’re seeing her corned beef curtains. Check out the pics and tell me I’m wrong!
Ratings: IMDB: 6.3/10, OZ: 4/5 - Big fat silly fun.
Box Office: Surprisingly, since the original never made a splash in North America, this flick made $559,000 domestically. In France it broke records.
Versions: CABLE TV/IMPORT DVD – though no US version of this film has been released to DVD or VHS yet, it’s a safe bet that it won’t take long. Flicks like this do good biz on the rental circuit.
Written by: OZ