Initial D - Drift Racer (DVD)

Takumi Fugiwara is a tofu delivery boy that isn't into cars or so it appears, he just enjoys driving after all he's been doing it since he 10 or so. When he finally gets his license and is allowed to drive his fathers 86 legally he starts to realise that cars are more than a means of transport and that driving the same road late at night on deliveries he'd picked up some serious skills.

Now then before we go any further this is not ...
...follow's a couple of the storys from the anime. Some names have been changed, some characters are missing all together namley Itsuki and Iketani, these two have been replaced with one comical character who more than makes up for it. Takumi's names has changed infact it changes during the film, which can add to some confusion if your watching the subbed version.

This film is very well done and were it filmed in Japan with Japanesse ... more

Takumi Fugiwara is a tofu delivery boy that isn't into cars or so it appears, he just enjoys driving after all he's been doing it since he 10 or so. When he finally gets his license and is allowed to drive his fathers 86 legally he starts to realise that cars are more than a means of transport and that driving the same road late at night on deliveries he'd picked up some serious skills.

Now then before we go any further this is not exactly as the anime of the same name, it losely follow's a couple of the storys from the anime. Some names have been changed, some characters are missing all together namley Itsuki and Iketani, these two have been replaced with one comical character who more than makes up for it. Takumi's names has changed infact it changes during the film, which can add to some confusion if your watching the subbed version.

This film is very well done and were it filmed in Japan with Japanesse actors it would've been bigger than the "fast and furious" films. However putting its two major hang up aside this film is still a good film there are some scenes with excelent real life drifting although it does tend to rely a little too much on CGI for anything major. The story although being many of the best ideas from the first series melded into one film does spend a little too much time concentrating on the love interest but this doesn't get in the way too much.

A quick review but hopefully without too many spoilers;-

The film starts with a friendly meeting between Liang of the redsuns team and takeshi of the nightkids street racing team. These two it appears are good friends and have battled on the track and road before many times and they are here to arrange another meet. One of them suggests that they should go arround the local mountains and find the best late night street racers to challenge then after a given time a true great driver can be decided between the 2.

It's not long before Takeshi comes to Akina only to find the god of the moutain is our heros comical friend.
After making a fool of himself and damaging his car our comical friend goes home. Later on the same night Takeshi is driving the course for practise and our real hero comes.
At first it's just a set of headlamps sliding round the bend into rear mirror view then after a few more bends he's on Takeshi's bumper only wanting to get past and go home. Takeshi obliges with driving faster which quickly becomes a race as our hero behind is slower in the straights but miles fast in the bends which are everywhere on the akina mountain downhill pass. Before long our hero over takes Takeshi in a nice little manouver showing Takeshi some of the potential of our hero pulling off perfect weight transition in loose traction.
Our hero speeds off on his way home after delivery.

Takeshi meets with Liang and the story deals with their racing and helping our hero to progress into an even better driver.

One thing still has to said about Wuntai our hero's dad, plays the character very well although he's a little too heavy on the old Saki he's still very funny and a very integral part of the story when you realise how heavily tuned a car our hero unknowingly drives compared with other cars of the same type.

I very much liked this film with some very good bits of drifting some well placed comedy, likeable characters, with one crash towards the end that looks very similar to a certain Tokyo drift crash made just a few years later.

Well worth watching if you want a good driving action film!

(film only review) 

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