Dax Shepard puts pedal to the metal as writer, co-director and star of freewheeling comedy thriller Hit & Run, which barrels along on a tankful of souped-up car chases, farcical pratfalls and dodgy gags.
Shepard’s reformed getaway driver, Yul Perrkins, has been hiding in the witness protection programme under the name ‘Charles Bronson’ (after the British convict, not the actor), but he sets himself on a collision course with his former partners in crime when he emerges from his northern California backwater to drive his girlfriend Annie (played by Shepard’s real-life gf Kristen Bell) to a job interview in LA.
Throw in Annie’s jealous ex (Michael Rosenbaum), a blundering federal marshal (Tom Arnold, an unexpected delight), Bradley Cooper’s vengeful dreadlocked ex-con and Yul’s tough-nut dad (Beau Bridges), and it’s clear that a comic pile-up is in store.
True, Hit & Run is very much hit and miss. The plot careers all over the place and a lot of the jokes definitely sputter, but with the laidback, goofy Shepard at the wheel, the film somehow keeps on the road. Besides, the cast appear to be having such a blast that it seems rude not to join in the fun.
In cinemas from Friday 12th October.
