Redline (2007 film)
Redline | |
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Directed by | Andy Cheng |
Screenplay by |
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Produced by | Daniel Sadek |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Bill Butler |
Edited by | Dallas Puett |
Music by |
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Distributed by | Chicago Pictures |
Release date |
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Running time | 95 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $26 million |
Box office | $8.3 million |
Redline is a 2007 American
Redline was released in North America on April 13, 2007.
Plot
Natasha Martin is a beautiful auto mechanic and aspiring musician who is invited to join music producer Infamous aboard his private jet en route to Las Vegas in appreciation of her services on his Ford GT. She is also a highly skilled race car driver, but is haunted by memories of her father's death at a NASCAR race many years ago. Meanwhile, on another side of town, USAF veteran Carlo, returning from a tour of duty in Iraq, meets up with his brother Jason before heading to Vegas themselves. Carlo is not happy that Jason is living with their mob boss uncle Michael D'Orazio, whom he blames for their family's destruction. They are unaware that Michael has been running an unsuccessful counterfeiting ring and owes millions of dollars to another syndicate led by the "Godfather".
On the outskirts of Vegas, a high-stakes race event is being held, with Michael, Infamous, Hollywood producer Jerry Brecken and Chinese businessman Marcus Cheng placing their bets over who has the better car. When Infamous' driver fakes an ankle injury, Natasha becomes Infamous' driver in exchange for $300,000 and a recording contract. However, she is unaware that Infamous has to place her on his wager, as Michael - who has been obsessed with her since watching her band perform on stage earlier - has placed four platinum bars at stake. At the same time, Brecken wagers his brand-new Enzo on Natasha.
Natasha (driving a
Natasha wakes up in Michael's mansion, realizing that she is now his property. Meanwhile, Carlo meets up with an old military friend and picks up some ammunition and gear before riding a Ducati 999, to Michael's mansion, intending to kill him. Instead, he rescues Natasha and evades Michael's guards. Michael and Natasha hide out in a motel, where Nat calls her mother, to assure her she’s safe. Natasha finds Carlo in a bar sulking, and both bond due to their similar losses of close relatives. They share a gentle dance together before presumably making love in their motel room. Meanwhile, Michael has his guards kidnap Natasha’s mother to blackmail her into driving for him at the next race at Red Rock Canyon in Nevada. After receiving an ultimatum by the Godfather to pay him $80 million following a botched attempt at giving him counterfeit bills, Michael raises his funds for the upcoming race by borrowing money from the banks using his mansion as collateral.
In the final race, Michael, Brecken, Infamous and Cheng place their bets for a combined purse of $100 million. Infamous and Cheng are eliminated from the race after their cars (an SLR and a Porsche Carrera GT, respectively) are involved in separate crashes. During the race, Natasha (driving Michael's Enzo) receives a phone call from Carlo notifying her that he has rescued her mother. While she is several car lengths ahead of Brecken's Saleen S7 Twin Turbo, she stops the Enzo an inch away from the finish line and gives the S7 the win, costing Michael the race.
With no money left, Michael is given a last ride from the Godfather's henchmen. To repay Natasha for handing his driver the victory, Brecken gives her a recording contract (which shortly gives her a gold record and lands her on the cover of Variety), an Enzo and a Koenigsegg CCX. The film ends with Natasha (in the Koenigsegg) and Carlo (in the Enzo), now in a relationship, racing each other before being chased by the police on the freeway.
Cast
- Nathan Phillips as Carlo
- Nadia Bjorlin as Natasha Martin
- Jesse Johnson as Jason
- Angus Macfadyen as Michael D'Orazio
- Tim Matheson as Jerry Brecken
- Eddie Griffin as Infamous
- Denyce Lawton as Mianda
- Kevin Levrone as Sante
- Barbara Niven as Sally Martin
- David Dayan Fisher as the Godfather
- Hal Ozsan as Mike Z
- Todd Lowe as Nick
- Neill Skylar as Mary
- Marc Crumpton as Trevor
- Faleolo Alailima as Diggs
- Michael Hagiwara as Marcus Cheng
- Christopher Backus as Tony Nefuse
- Mary Elise Hayden as Liz Athens
- Amber Lancaster as Angela
- Ernie Reyes Jr. as Ernie
- Joe Sagal as the Elvis announcer
Daniel Sadek, the film's producer, makes a cameo appearance as a poker player, alongside professional players Gus Hansen and David Williams.
Background
Daniel Sadek, a third-grade dropout from Lebanon,[3] migrated to the United States, where he worked at gas stations and car dealerships. After seeing many mortgage brokers buy cars from the Mercedes-Benz dealership he worked at, Sadek entered the real estate business and set up the subprime lending firm Quick Loan Funding in 2002.[3][4] By 2007, Quick Loan Funding had approved US$4 billion in subprime mortgages, with Sadek's take-home earnings reaching US$5 million a month.[5] He used his earnings to buy several homes in Southern California and Las Vegas, build his collection of expensive supercars and feed his insatiable appetite for gambling.[3][4]
During this time, Sadek was engaged to soap opera actress Nadia Bjorlin.[3] Using his subprime lending firm as his source of funding,[6] he produced the film Redline to show off his car collection and help Bjorlin break out of the soap opera scene.[4]
Enzo crash incident
In March 2007, Eddie Griffin participated in a charity race at
Box office and reception
Redline was both a box-office bomb and a critical failure. The film opened at #11 at the U.S. box office, grossing US$3.9 million in 1,607 theaters in its opening weekend.[9] The budget of the film was US$26 million and after six weeks in theaters, the film grossed US$6.8 million in North America.[10] Furthermore, Cartoon Network sued Sadek for failing to pay the US$845,000 advertising fee.[3]
The film was not screened for critics before it opened, but critical reviews after its premiere were unanimously unfavorable. As of June 2020[update], the film holds a
Home media
Redline was released on DVD by The Weinstein Company on August 21, 2007.[14] Christopher Monfette of IGN gave the DVD an overall rating of 5 out of 10, citing that it gives "more of the same; none of the new."[15] The film has also been released on Blu-ray outside the U.S.[16]
Legacy
In the
Vanity Fair listed Sadek at number 86 in their "100 to Blame" for the economic crisis, dubbing him "Predator Zero in the subprime-mortgage game."[5]
See also
References
- ^ "Redline plays Fast and Furious with exotics". Autoblog. Retrieved 4 March 2007.
- ^ Jalopnik. Retrieved 2013-01-11.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Cassidy, Jon (2009-12-09). "Armed men invade subprime lenders home". The Orange County Register. Retrieved 2013-01-11.
- ^ a b c Ivry, Bob (2007-12-18). "'Deal With Devil' Funded Carrera Crash Before Bust (Update3)". Bloomberg L.P. Retrieved 2013-01-08.
- ^ a b Fierstein, Bruce (2009-09-28). "100 to Blame: Sex and the City, the Super Bowl, and More". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 2013-01-08.
- ^ Gittelsohn, John; Campbell, Ronald (2007-05-20). "High Roller of Home Loans". The Orange County Register. Retrieved 2010-05-04.
- ^ People Magazine (2007-03-27). "Eddie Griffin Crashes $1.5 Million Ferrari". Retrieved 2009-04-29.
- ^ Hollywood.com (2007-03-29). "Angry Eddie Griffin: "Ferrari Crash Was No Stunt"". Retrieved 2016-04-05.
- ^ "Redline (2007) - Weekend Box Office". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2007-09-23.
- ^ "Redline (2007)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2007-09-23.
- ^ "Redline (2007)". Retrieved 18 June 2020 – via www.rottentomatoes.com.
- ^ "Redline (2007): Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 2007-09-23.
- Jalopnik. Retrieved 2016-08-22.
- ^ CDUniverse - Redline DVD
- ^ Monfette, Christopher (2007-08-17). "Redline DVD Review". IGN. Retrieved 2013-01-08.
- ^ "Redline (2007)". Blu-ray.com. Retrieved 2018-08-16.
- ^ "Quick Loan Funding". The Mortgage Lender Implode-O-Meter. 2007-08-16. Retrieved 2010-05-04.
External links
- Redline at IMDb
- Redline at AllMovie
- Redline at the Internet Movie Cars Database