Victor Larios- Chato
Robert Beaumont- Derek
Brihanna Hernandez- Noza
Directed by Joey Curtis
Screenplay by Joey Curtis and Albert Hernandez
Distributed by Lions Gate Films
Rated R for pervasive language, some violence, sexuality and drug use
Runtime- 96 minutes
Website: http://www.streetsoflegend.com/
"Streets of Legend" is one of the worst movies ever made.
Ever.
This reviewer doesn't make this statement lightly because, in a way, he has a small amount of affection for the flick. Its premise is certainly interesting enough to warrant a viewing. Joey Curtis, the director, apparently had a supreme vision to make a "real" movie about the lives of people involved in the underground world of street racing. He shot the flick on real streets, using real cars and real drivers, with minimal help from the police in terms of logistics and whatnot. The characters in the story are not played by actors but by real people, most of them involved in some way with the actual world of street racing. It's amazing that Curtis was able to get what he got on such a small budget and with the cooperation of so many non actors. When you watch the flick, especially during the car scenes, you'll wonder how the heck he didn't have to contend with multi car pileups and lawsuits from people hurt and maimed in the aftermath. It is a sight to see, so to speak. But all of that wonder and respect stops after about thirty minutes. From then on, the flick is just annoying. You can barely hear the dialogue (if Curtis had paid more attention to the sound design and, you know, making sure we can understand what it is the characters are saying) and the quick cut editing and stylized neon cuts are just, well, boring. Parts of the movie play like bad cinematic scenes in a Playstation game. That ain't good.
The Flick
"Streets of Legend" is basically a love story. You have the hip and edgy street thug Chato (Victor Larios) getting it on with a girl in his car the night before he's supposed to see his girlfriend Noza (Brihanna Hernandez). He's tough, doesn't like his women disrespecting him, and he certainly doesn't want his girlfriend looking like a slutty tramp. He lives with his mother and grandmother and makes sure everyone knows that he is the man of the house and what he says goes. Noza is the respectable street chick with a penchant for praying to God for guidance and for help for her friends. Chato takes Noza with him to see his parole officer. Chato has to give a urine sample to check for drugs. He gets caught faking the test and is sent back to jail (it's either a really lame prison set, some kind of youthful offender boot camp thing, or just a roadwork weekend jail type deal. That part is unclear). Noza is upset and depressed and needs to go out with her friends.
Then we have Derek (Robert Beaumont). He's a hip and edgy white kid with a cool super car trying to figure out his life. He works for his father's house painting business, but it's a dead end. He knows he doesn't want that future, but isn't sure of anything else. He does know he likes to ride around in his car with his buddies and do the street racing thing. One night, while meeting with his fellow hoodlums, Derek accidentally meets Noza and a relationship immediately begins.
So then Chato, while in "prison" finds out about his "woman disrespecting" him and hatches a plan to escape. The plan is to run away. That's it. Chato gets back home and confronts Derek and Noza about their "unholy" relationship.
Now, what this flick has to do exactly with the world of underground street racing is unclear. The actual message of the movie is unclear. It's either a love story that just exists within the world of street racing and that's it, or it's a jumble of stuff that the director decided to throw in there because he thought it looked cool. Very little of it works beyond the first half hour.
On the positive side, the three leads are pretty good with their parts. Beaumont does the sensitive kind of rich white kid thing to decent effect, and Hernandez does the girl caught in the middle trying to figure it all out part throughout, even when the story makes very little sense. The breakout star of the flick, though, is Victor Larios. Chato is such a scumbag you can't help but watch him to see if he ever gets what he deserves. He cheats on his girlfriend, doesn't learn anything from "jail," and forces his grandmother to listen to ear splitting hip hop. And his stare can burn through steel. If he never makes another movie it will be shame. This movie should not be the last thing on his resume.
The rest of the flick is filled with the previously mentioned quick cutting tomfoolery and blasting music and barely audible dialogue, and what are claimed to be "real" fights. They may be actual fights, in that they involve real people actually hitting one another, but they're not the least bit interesting or shocking. Watching people slap one another while crouched down does not make a good screen fight.
"Streets of Legend" would be an interesting historical flick in the directing career of Joey Curtis if he ever hits it big with a real movie. Filming real people doing "real" things ain't going to cut it unless there is a reason for what is happening on screen. "Streets of Legend" barely gets into the subject matter it's supposed to be showcasing. If all underground street racing is is a bunch of degenerate hoodlums with supped up cars driving around the streets at night, acting tough and macho, then we need to see more of that. Make a story out of that. What we get isn't all that interesting in the end. It's a novelty that wears thin.
Too bad. Because there is effort here.
DVD Specifics
"Streets of Legend" is presented in 16 x 9 widescreen format with Dolby Digital sound. The sound is terrible (music too loud, dialogue not loud enough) and the picture is decent for a flick shot on video. The smoky look gets annoying quite quickly, though. It's like watching an old TV that's been on for five weeks straight and it gets those lines running through it.
Special Features
-"Mini documentary- racing extra"
This is a little documentary featuring voice over from the director Joey Curtis trying to explain what the movie is about while showing on the set footage. The movie was made over six years apparently. There's quite a bit of "keeping it real" talk that, perhaps, is appealing to those who feel the need to walk around telling everyone how they "keep it real." Curtis also explains how he wanted to really do a movie about the last underground subculture in America, the street racers. They're a dying breed, originals, the squares just don't understand, etc. It's all very hip and edgy. The documentary looks exactly like the movie. Smoky, hard to hear, and boring very quickly.
-"The Crash"
Another little documentary that "chronicles" the dream of Joey Curtis. This special feature would have qualified as fascinating if we were given some information on Curtis besides how he wanted to just go out and do a movie. More lame tough guy street talk follows.
-"Street Fights"
Behind-the-scenes of the "staging" of the real fights featured in the flick. A complete waste of time because so little information is given. The fights are even less interesting here.
-"The Blowout at 140mph"
More behind-the-scenes stuff featuring cars driving fast. It plays like a short movie. But it isn't interesting.
There are no commentaries on the DVD, which could actually be a blessing. Ninety minutes of people talking "about the street" for this movie just doesn't sound appealing.
Conclusion
"Streets of Legend" is a movie you should watch once, just to see what it's like. And perhaps if you're into the underground street racing scene, the flick will appeal to you. This reviewer is willing to admit that there could be stuff he's just not getting. On one hand it's an interesting exercise in movie making, doing it all on the fly. But that's about it. The movie, in the end, is just terrible.
Movie rating: 1.0
DVD rating: 4.0
The 411: “Streets of Legend” is a terrible movie. It’s an interesting premise, an interesting execution, but that stuff can only take you so far. The execution, even for a little movie, is awful. But then it may make sense if you like movies about hoodlum street racers.
