Shuto Kousoku Trial 2 (1990) [Film Review]

Shuto Kousoku Trial 2; or, Gas Gas Gas
     It's the best! With GTR nobody will beat me!
After the troubled release of the original Shuto Kousoku Trial movie in 1988, Nikkatsu studio did not back down, and this time, they joined forces with the Drift King himself, Keiichi Tsuchiya, and Toei’s V-Cinema line in order to continue the series in straight-to-video format. Shuto Kousoku Trial may be a production made on a smaller budget and in 4:3 aspect ratio, but it still manages to retain the spirit of the original movie.

Release Info

Directed by: Shuji Kataoka Starring: Daisuke Nagakura, Arthur Kuroda, Naomi Ashizawa

Language: Japanese Original Title: 首都高速トライアル 2 Runtime: 67 min

Synopsis
Takahiro Yamane (Daisuke Nagakura) is a street racer who looks up to Japan’s all-time best driver, Keiichi Tsuchiya. Takahiro’s friend/ex-mentor is Junichi Tashiro (Arthur Kuroda), the proud owner of Skyline R30 who dreams of getting a GT-R. However, he gives up racing in order to marry his girlfriend, Nozomi (Naomi Ashizawa). Sawaki (Minoru Toyoshima) is a hot-headed racer who wants to break records on the Shuto Expressway. As a result, he challenges Takahiro as well as Junichi...

Skyline GT-R
Shuto Kousoku Trial 2 seems to owe its existence purely to Keiichi Tsuchiya and its anti-street racing message. Whereas the original praised the glory of midnight car chases, the sequel puts up a giant warning sign saying that if you want to become a professional driver, then you have to abide by the law and hone your skills on a race track rather than a city street. However, the movie is not all about preaching because it provides the much needed dosage of car action set to the beats of City Pop.

The first film focused primarily on Skyline R30, but Shuto Kousoku Trial 2 presents us with Nissan R32, 300ZX, and Silvia, all battling each other in epic style. For this film, J-singer Saori Sato provided the songs (which were subsequently released on her album called Lady). Apart from her cameo appearance (as herself giving the main protagonist a mixtape with her best hits), we can also see her performances of All Eyes and Naga-denwa no ballad themes intercut with the chase sequences. You really can’t get more 80s than that.

Interesting is also the role of Keiichi Tsuchiya who basically plays himself and always appears in the film’s calmest moments, just to give a word of advice to the main hero. Similarly to Obi-Wan Kenobi, he says that a driver should trust his feelings (and refrain from participating in illegal races).

With regard to performances, I know that you can’t expect a lot from these sequels which had relatively unknown actors, but I particularly liked the performance of Minoru Toyoshima as a girl who is enthusiastic about her boyfriend’s passion for driving. The final scene in which she waves a checkered flag between two speeding GT-Rs is so beautifully done.

Recommendations
If you can’t get enough of speed chills from Initial D, Wangan Midnight, and The Fast and The Furious, then turn to the series that started it all. No racing franchise has yet managed to surpass the class and practical car action of the Shuto Kousoku Trial movies.

Overall score: 7/10

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