I enjoy trucking movies, and to see a truck racing movie was an added bonus. I actually don't recall another movie that features truck racing (gonna have to put my thinking cap on for this one).
Thiago Martins stars as truck racer Roger. His Dad sponsors his racing team, but when his dad dies, they are faced with financial difficulty. To make matters worse, his dad owed money to a lot of companies, and owed a substantial amount to Odilon ((Evandro Mesquita), the film's antagonist.
Unable to settle the debt, Odilon offers Roger a job as a getaway driver, stealing cargo from other trucks. Roger asks his best friend Danilo (Raphael Logam) to help him. Unfortunately fate intervenes.
I actually really enjoyed the first act and most of the second act. The part where I started losing interest in the film, was where Danilo's 14-year old daughter Barbara (Vitoria Valentin) became a prominent character. With no family left, she had to stay with Roger. I found the story surrounding Barbara lame and unbelievable, and a very lazy set-up.
Oh, don't worry, it gets worse. During Roger's final race, this 14-year old girl gives an experienced driver like Roger tips on how to drive!! I don't know what's worse; the fact she was telling him what to do, or the fact he actually listened to her!! I'm sorry, that was just preposterous. This character managed to ruin the entire movie.
And then there's Roger's rival driver Rainha (Sheron Menezzes), whom I didn't really understand. Was she just another driver, or was she romantically involved with Roger in the past? She was the most incoherent character and her actions didn't make sense. While there's no chemistry between them throughout the movie, she suddenly ends up being the romantic interest during the film's final few minutes. Where did that come from??!
'Overhaul' could have been a great movie with better characters, and a better script. I thought the action sequences were very good. There's so much wasted potential here...
