An Adrenaline-Soaked Action Thriller
If you’re in the mood for a high-octane thrill ride, you can’t really go wrong with Burn Out. Featuring some heart-stopping motorcycle action and a simple but effective plot line, Burn Out is an exciting French film worth its weight in gold.
The story itself is pretty conventional and revolves around a promising upcoming motorcycle racer called Tony. On the cusp of making it into the big time, Tony finds his world turned upside down when he learns his girlfriend has got mixed up with some dangerous people. Determined to help her out, Tony plunges into the dark underbelly of crime, striking a deal with the man his girlfriend owes money to. In exchange for paying off her debts, he agrees to moonlight drugs across the city in order to prevent either of them meeting an unpleasant end.
While Burn Out’s story is pretty run-of-the-mill, the sound design is most certainly not. From audio muffling and silence through to the roar of motorcycle engines and wailing police sirens, every part of Burn Out’s audio has been used to heighten the script. This is further helped by some of the point of view shots and captured motorcycle scenes as Tony dodges and weaves his way through a myriad of hazardous terrain. It makes for one terrific action trip too and when it comes to these set pieces, Burn Out captures the adrenaline-soaked tension perfectly.
Burn Out is an enjoyable action thriller but it doesn’t reinvent the wheel or introduce anything that hasn’t been done before. There are numerous thrill rides like this out there and whilst its unlikely to compare to the likes of the original Fast and Furious or The Italian Job, it is a respectable candidate in this genre nonetheless. There’s some nice moments here involving Tony as he grapples with his own mental well-being but as a nitpick, I would have liked to see a little more characterisation for some of the antagonists beyond the archetypal crime boss trope.
Still, despite all of that Burn Out is a surprisingly gripping action thriller. It’s not perfect but it is an enjoyable film and one certainly worth checking out if you’re in the mood for a good action flick. The motorcycle scenes are legitimately exciting too and both the Sound and Stunt departments deserve massive props here for helping to bring this to life. It may not have the most original story, but what it does have, it has in abundance.
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Verdict - 7/10
7/10