Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.0

Hit & Run Blu-ray Movie Review

Vehicular manslaughter...

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown January 8, 2013

Hit and Run writer/director Dax Shepard takes a valiant shot at reviving the car chase action-comedy but comes up short with an uneasy mix of quirky rom-com convention, uninspired action and reckless R-rated antics. For every Bradley Cooper or Jason Bateman Shepard and co-director David Palmer lure on set, a Tom Arnold tags along. For every sharp bit of scripting Shepard strings together, a tiresome stretch of desperate dialogue follows. For every scene-stealing sports car or off-road monstrosity, there's a forgettable oddball behind the wheel... save the aforementioned Cooper, miscast as a dreadlocked gangster who's memorable for all the wrong reasons. No, Hit and Run isn't as brain-bakingly bad as Guns, Girls and Gambling, which also arrives from Universal this week, but it isn't remotely remarkable either. Especially for a high-octane road film with such genre-skewing aspirations.

Hard truths...

Before turning state's evidence and earning his way into the Witness Protection Program, Yul Perrkins (Dax Shepard, Parenthood) was a getaway driver for hot-tempered gangster Alex Dimitri (Bradley Cooper, The Hangover). Four years later, he leads a new, less dangerous life, not as wheelman Yul Perrkins, but as mild-mannered nobody Charlie Bronson, an identity that has successfully kept him out of harm's way. His cover falls apart, though, when Charlie refuses to let his longterm girlfriend Annie (Kristen Bell, Forgetting Sarah Marshall) pass up a job opportunity in Los Angeles. Soon Charlie and Annie are in the fast lane to LA, pursued by bumbling U.S. Marshall Randy Anderson (Tom Arnold, True Lies), Annie's obsessive ex-boyfriend Gil (Michael Rosenbaum, Smallville), Gil's gay brother Officer Terry Rathbinn (Jess Rowland, The Princess Diaries 2), and gun-wielding psychopath Alex and his cohorts in crime, Neve (Joy Bryant, Bobby) and Alan (Ryan Hansen, Friday the 13th).

Hit and Run's rom-comming is actually its greatest asset -- surprise! -- and the quieter moments between real-life couple Shepard and Bell are some of its most appealing. Had Annie been completely in the dark, shocked that the man she loved was in the Witness Protection Program at all, it might have even hoisted the rest of the film out of the mud. Scratch that. Had Shepard filled the surrounding scenes with anything other than witless quips, tepid tough guy talk, poorly conceived gags, listless chases, weightless shootouts, dim-bulb slapstick or dead-end character arcs, this would be a different review. Instead, we're treated to a none-too-slick setup more contrived than the punchline (Annie's ex tracks down a killer on Facebook and clues him in to Yul's whereabouts), and forced to watch Annie brush up on Charlie's past, uncover secrets and lies, react accordingly, dodge bullets, narrowly escape death and come out on the other side of it with a deeper affection for her boyfriend and, hey, maybe even that job she was willing to risk Charlie's life to win.

It only gets worse when the engines roar and the bullets fly. Shepard fails to engage, Arnold hams it up to irritating ends, Rosenbaum takes three wrong turns too many, and Rowland... huh. It's only been two hours. Why can't I remember anything about Rowland? Moving on. Bryant, Hansen and most every other character actor pile on as if it were a twenty-one car pileup, and Beau Bridges, stepping into the role of Charlie's disappointed dad, may just be the only one on screen who finally starts to realize what kind of movie Shepard is slapping together. And Cooper? Before his turn as Dimitri, Cooper was on a solid streak. With Hit and Run, though, brace for impact. He earns a few laughs other actors might not, but I'm guessing this misfire was a personal favor. Otherwise a new agent is in order. The third act is even more ludicrous, with one of the most monotonous car chases in movie history, a second chase that's somehow even more pedestrian, and a tacked on ending as predictable as it is sophomoric. But don't worry. Shepard includes a shot of a morbidly obese orgy midway through Charlie and Annie's trip to LA, just in case anyone is still on the fence as to whether they're watching a decent flick or a misguided homage to '80s chase cinema.

Hit & Run Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Very little to gripe about here. Hit and Run may be a clunker but its 1080p/AVC-encoded video transfer provides plenty of power under the hood. Sun-bleached colors in high-contrast heat don't detract from the strong primaries, warm skintones and deep blacks that lend Bradley Stonesifer's California summer photography welcome depth. Detail is striking too, with crisp edges and well-resolved fine textures, although delineation is less than forgiving, soft shots pop up here and there, and minor crush is present. None of it is alarming or even the least bit debilitating, and macroblocking, banding, aliasing and other issues are either nowhere to be found or altogether negligible. Criticism will no doubt be leveled at the film's cinematography, but the encode itself delivers.

Hit & Run Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Universal's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track isn't quite the full throttle lossless experience car chase aficionados live for. The problem? The soundfield isn't all that immersive. The rear speakers have their fun, sure, but fail to engage as often or as precisely as the on-screen action suggests they should. Otherwise, everything is primed for high octane thrills, regardless of whether or not they actually arrive. Dialogue is crystal clear, without any prioritization mishaps or congested voices to speak of. The LFE channel, meanwhile, revs, thrums and roars to life, its output as aggressive as it is potent. Dynamics are impressive as well, and Julian Wass and Robert Mervak's music fills the soundstage nicely, even when the chases favor the front array of speakers more than anything to the rear. Ah well. This one comes oh so close. Close enough for a solid score.

Hit & Run Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Street Legal (HD, 2 minutes): Writer/director Dax Shepard talks cars, car chases and chase flicks.
• Run and Gun (HD, 3 minutes): A by-the-numbers plot-synopsis EPK with Shepard and Kristen Bell.
• Love on the Run (HD, 3 minutes): The romance and romantic comedy of Hit and Run.
• Deleted Scenes (HD, 19 minutes): Twelve scenes in all, most of which wallow in semi-improvisational hell.

Hit & Run Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Hit and Run lives up to its namesake. At the very least, you'll have a bad headache and a sore neck by the time the credits roll. Shepard gives it his best, and even puts together a fairly impressive cast. A good try and decent actors only go so far, though, especially when a slapdash script, mediocre performances and dull car chases litter the road. Universal's Blu-ray AV presentation will earn the film additional mileage, but even then twenty-seven minutes of extras doesn't cut it. If you can't resist the curiosity, give Hit and Run a rent. Otherwise, search out vehicular thrills elsewhere.