| Taxi |
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| Rated PG-13 |
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| By Todd Karella October 8, 2004 |
| ~Buckle up for an entertaining ride~ |
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| Normally when a Saturday Night Live alum takes his career to the big screen it’s a tired rehash of a previous character made into a full-length film. It’s one thing to invent a character for a 5-minute sketch, but another to use the same tired jokes over and over for nearly two hours. Fortunately, Jimmy Fallon does not do that.
Instead, Fallon brings a new character along for the ride. While most critics may pan the film because there is no memorable SNL character, the audience will find this an enjoyable change and a unique comedy |
| A big part of the film’s success has to do with casting. The Taxi driver Belle (Queen Latifah) is such a charismatic person that she livens up any script. And of course you can’t go wrong with beautiful Brazilian supermodels, whose leader is Vanessa (Gisele Bundchen) as the villains of the story.
Washburn (Fallon) is a police officer with a problem: He can’t drive. Whenever he gets near the driver’s seat he panics. After his third accident and crashing into a storefront in reverse, his lieutenant takes away his license and puts him on foot patrol. While on patrol, a call comes over the radio about a bank robbery in progress. So what’s a cop to do with no license? He stops a Taxi. Only this cab is being driven by Belle a former bike messenger who just got her Taxi license and has the most souped-up ride ever seen in the Big Apple. The crooks are more than what they appear to be. In the bank they are dressed as men, but as soon as they get out of sight they change into beautiful |
| supermodels. Unfortunately, the only two who know this are Washburn and Belle since she has the amazing driving skills and the vehicle capable of chasing them down. Of course, bringing a civilian into a car chase is against the rules and Washburn's lieutenant takes him off the case and impounds the Taxi with its illegal modifications. Needing to get himself back in good graces with the police force Washburn decides to take on the case himself. But in order to catch the bad guys he needs a vehicle. Although Belle is furious with him, she agrees to team up once again if he can get her car out of the impound lot. The two manage to track down the bank robbers and get caught up in a crazy hostage exchange as they trade money for the lieutenant during a high-speed chase. While the basic story is a familiar one, it's the way that the cast interacts with one another that sets it apart. Fallon isn't the best actor, but with a supporting cast that includes Queen Latifah, Jennifer Eposito, and Ann Margret it couldn't go too far wrong. It's a safe formulaic movie for the former SNL cast member to begin his movie career. The film resembles one of your typical buddy cop films, with Belle as his reluctant partner. There are a number of great car chases with incredible moves and stunts, and a gratuitous twenty-car pileup that is just fun to watch. |