Lifetime’s ‘Grand Theft Auto Girls’ is a high school teacher’s ‘Breaking Bad’ with a plot that goes off track
We aren’t new to movies dedicated to cars. While a few focus on the beauty of the man-made creation, some have used human obsession with the machine as their central aspect. Lifetime’s latest ‘Grand Theft Auto Girls’ is a thriller film that highlights both the above factors but is slowed down throughout by its fundamental flaws.
‘Grand Theft Auto’ opens to one of Emily Wheeler (Zoe Belkin) and Max’s (Samantha Helt) car heists, which they indulge in quite often for some extra bucks and to gain a sense of adrenaline rush. The movie shows Emily to be a highly-skilled mechanic, who is still in school and underaged to obtain a driver’s license. Yet, she and Max have managed to conveniently steal cars and get away with it for years.
However, smitten by the pay offered for high-end car robberies, Max convinces Emily to use her expertise in hotwiring to steal cars for Nestor’s chop shop. Emily agrees to involve herself in the carjacking ring, owing to her desperate need for money to be able to redesign her dead father’s old car.
The duo continues to successfully steal cars for Nestor (Eddie G) as the money flows in until their industrial art teacher, Mr Curnow (Tyler Gynes) catches them red-handed during one of their shenanigans and threatens to turn them in if they refuse to work for him.
The movie makes for a decent watch despite the predictable plot line until we witness Mr Curnow’s business association with Emily and Max. After this, ‘Grand Theft Auto Girls’ begins to feel like a high school teacher’s ‘Breaking Bad’, but only disastrous, unlike Vin Gilligan's creation.
Although the film tries to channel intriguing themes, the execution fails miserably. Not only does the unrealistic approach make it cringeworthy, but it also goes off track by trying too hard to retain its thriller factor.
Jason Bourque's ‘Grand Theft Auto’ trivializes the idea of carjacking by resting too much power in the hands of unarmed and ill-equipped teenagers, who manage to get away with their illegal act just by disguising themselves in hoodies.
Even in terms of the usual cop and thief drama, ‘Grand Theft Auto Girls’ doesn’t have much to offer. However, those of you who can entertain yourself with the thought of teenage girls in hot pants fixing cars, ‘Grand Theft Auto’ could serve as a one-time watch, but nothing more.