Prime Video movie of the day: Death Race sees Jason Statham do dystopia in an action-packed smash-em-up

It’s no Crank but the Death Race remake is still a lot of bleak, futuristic fun

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Death Racehas been described as “mindless” and “violent”, and that’s meant as a criticism. But if you’re a fan of high-octane action movies, mindless violence might be just the thing you’re looking to stream onPrime Video. And few actors do mindless violence as well as Jason Statham, who gets the lead role here.

Statham plays three-time speedway champion Jensen Ames who finds himself locked up in the country’s toughest prison for – wait for it – a crime he didn’t commit. Facing life in a jail so grim it could be an English holiday destination, Ames' future looks bleak until the warden gives him a choice: rot in jail forever, or race in the ‘Death Race’ and win his freedom. And let’s face it, with a name likeDeath Racewe’re not talkingMarioKart here.

Death Race is big, bad and oddly brilliant

Death Racehas been described as a remake of the violent, nihilistic mid-70s movie of (almost) the same name,Death Race 2000, but writer and director Paul WS Anderson has said it’s more of a prequel. But it shares the same bleak sensibility and violent approach: the vehicles in this race are heavily armed and the drivers aren’t scared of causing complete carnage.

To say thatDeath Racedivided the critics would be an understatement. Many reviewers absolutelyhatedit: Marcianne Miller of the NCBold Lifesaid that it was “so relentlessly sadistic, so grim, so basically without any redeeming human value that even a race fan like me ended up turned off by the so-called ‘ultimate in auto carnage’.” ButThe Agesaid it was “a must-see for petrolheads and cineastes alike”. Maybe that’s an AustralianMad Maxthing, because the same country’sDaily Telegraphsaid that “petrolheads and gorehounds, this backfiring blast of cinematic carbon monoxide is your film of the year”.

Lots of reviews said that the film is basically ideal for teenage boys, with theDaily Mirrorsaying that “Anderson serves up an unashamedly guilty pleasure that hits every note, particularly when the racing starts.” AndTotal Filmoffered some good advice: “Banish all memories of the original and you’ll find this a slick throwback in theDoomsdaymould. Tearing across the screen with all guns blazing, it’s disposable, enjoyable trash.”

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Writer, broadcaster, musician and kitchen gadget obsessive Carrie Marshall has been writing about tech since 1998, contributing sage advice and odd opinions to all kinds of magazines and websites as well as writing more than a dozen books. Her memoir,Carrie Kills A Man, is on sale now and her next book, about pop music, is out in 2025. She is the singer in Glaswegian rock bandUnquiet Mind.

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