The Story: Ford (Henderson) returns to Los Angeles after six months in Thailand, where he fled to avoid being framed as a drug dealer. Seems Henry (Matt) had hidden crystal meth in the engines of the two motorcycles he had asked Ford to watch for a few days. Ford panicked, hid the bikes and the drugs, and ran. Now he’s back, because he can’t stand the fact that he left his girlfriend Shane (Monet Mazur) high and dry and the object of a federal raid (it was her garage where the bikes were being stored). Now Henry wants his drugs back, but that’s not quite good enough for Ford. He wants to figure out a way he can get rid of Henry for good. Henry, however, is smarter than he looks, so he ratchets up the pressure by framing Ford for murder, promising that the eyewitness (Jaime Pressly) will forget what she “saw” the minute Ford turns over the meth.

Much violence and chaos ensues, as the person Ford is supposed to have murdered was the less-than-bright brother of Trey Wallace (Ice Cube), leader of the feared biker gang the Reapers. Trey is less than thrilled about his brother’s death and less than patient about the idea of revenge. Meanwhile, FBI agent McPherson (Adam Scott) is also on the warpath, as Ford had slipped through his fingers the first time.

UMSFC Review: Not only does Torque not flinch from the inevitable comparisons to The Fast and the Furious, it invites them. From the opening sequence, in which Henderson throws a beatin’ on two drag racers—one big bald dude and the other a lean tattooed hombre driving a yellow car—it is plain that this movie is out to prove that no matter how tough, fast, and strong street racers are, bikers are tougher, faster, and stronger. Henderson makes a much more believable hero than Paul Walker, perhaps because Henderson actually can act. Ice Cube turns in a solid performance as the angry and grieving Trey, even infusing Trey with a slight character arc. And Matt gets to show us distilled evil, which he plays with quiet and extreme intensity. It’s another role he’ll be under appreciated for, but hopefully the right people are watching and he’ll get to stretch his skills in different types of roles.

If you’re looking for a serious action drama complete with tortured psyches and soul-searching, look elsewhere. If you’re looking for fun, intense action sequences, gratuitous flashes of skin, and sassy one-liners, then you’ve come to the right place. Torque doesn’t pretend to be anything other than what it is, and what it is, is a wild ride.