“The Stunt Driver” A Humorous, Introspective Look at The Mad Canadian

Big Stunts, Bigger Personalities

When it comes to stunts and daredevils, most people only know of Evel Knievel. It’s as if he is the only living stunt driver ever, the spectacle of his leaps being the benchmark to which all other stunts either stem from or are solely recognized through. And it’s those preconceived notions that make The Stunt Driver work so well. The film explores the community beyond the name that often represents it, and gets into the weeds of what it takes to literally defy death for sport. The film reunites Goon star Jay Baruchel and writer/director Michael Dowse to retell the fascinating life of Ken Carter, a stunt driver known as The Mad Canadian.

Through a hybrid of archival footage, mockumentary-style camerawork and some traditional biopic beats, The Stunt Driver brings the larger-than-life persona of Carter to the big screen and with a broader reach beyond the Canadian borders. It captures the charm and magnetism of its subject, allowing you to fully understand what made him such a character and so easy to watch, let alone root for. The Stunt Driver smartly injects humor into a story that – spoiler alert – doesn’t end well for most involved but never goes as far as to mock its subject. There’s a version of this kind of film that does, and Dowse is a smart enough filmmaker to treat Carter and his life with respect and even reverence.

The Man, The Myth, The Canadian Legend

Written and directed by Michael Dowse (Goon), The Stunt Driver follows Ken Carter aka The Mad Canadian, a daredevil and stunt driver a bit down on his luck and overshadowed by the more mainstream Evel Kinevel (an excellently smarmy Ben Foster). Desperate to prove himself as a real stuntman and make a name for himself that will last, he sets out to attempt a world record jump over the Saint-Laurent River. This requires a custom made, one of a kind rocket car, a perfect ramp to be built from scratch and whole lot of math that provides a slim window of success and an even slimmer window of not dying in the attempt.

Stops and starts and setbacks collide with Carter’s own undeniable self-confidence, and his push to do the jump may end up costing him everything before he ever lifts off. The Stunt Driver covers over a decade of Carter’s life and the multiple failed attempts he experienced. Baruchel transforms into Carter, tapping into the legendary persona of the man, the myth, the Canadian legend. Though he does look more like Jay with a mustache, the cadence and intonation, along with his charm and easily watchable promos are all completely Carter. Near the end of The Stunt Driver, there’s some archival footage of Ken promoting his next jump and the sound and mannerisms are uncanny.

It’s some of Jay’s best work, embracing his heightened, always-on nervous-edge comedic style that aid in bringing Carter to life. The melding of footage with reenactments gives the illusion of danger without ever having to put the cast and crew at risk. The Stunt Driver is a movie ABOUT stunts without ever having to bring them to life. The prep, the meticulous planning, the expression of danger, the genuine fear that wafts over even the most daring men is ever present each time Carter gets into his rocket car. It highlights the amount of things that can go wrong and often do, and the never shies away from the consequences of what happens when you ignore them.

The Humor Works But So Does the Tragic Heart

While Dowse is content with letting improv experts like Baruchel and Helms take the reins from time to time and letting Ben Foster cook doing…whatever it is Ben Foster does, The Stunt Driver never loses site of the inevitable tragedy that befalls most stunt drivers. Flirting with death as a career choice is bound to wreak havoc on those who do it for too long, and the film is always quick to let itself sit in those more somber and heartfelt moments. The Stunt Driver has a real feel the fear element that starts to creep up, and you really start to understand the pressures to be great and make a name for yourself in this community, even if it will almost certainly kill you.

There’s a lot of goodwill gained here in The Stunt Driver. There’s a lot of moving pieces that work, and its short, less-than-100-minute runtime is certainly helpful in not overstaying its welcome. But the oscillating between the heart and humor amid a tragic ending (and a number of other tragic events that befall this ragtag group of stunt workers) gets a little stuck at times. It sees The Stunt Driver start to spin its wheels and begin to sprawl out a little too far across Carter’s life.

It opens with a radio interview in which Ken gets hypnotized before his attempt and expresses some vulnerability about being afraid, but there’s never really a payoff to these kinds of strange inclusions. His relationship with his wife is also kind of sidelined, fitting in more as a building block of convention than anything meaningful to the overall story of Carter and his work. It’s as if Dowse and Baruchel become TOO close to their subject and get lost in a very unique and robust life. Even people closer to the project feel as if they’re on the outside looking in; Ed Helms as the architect of the rocket car comes in and out of the story without any clear direction despite being a vital part of the picture.

Final Thoughts

All in all, The Stunt Driver is a fun but ultimately safe portrait of an unsafe profession. It’s powered by a transformative Baruchel and larger than life man who’s hard not to enjoy spending time with. The film explores an unknown world of daring feats and never forgets the most important lesson: this stunt shit is dangerous and will most likely kill you. It takes a very special kind of person to even want to do this, and Ken Carter was definitely a special kind of guy, built for the extreme and passionate about his work.

The Stunt Driver gave me just enough to want to know more – maybe even check out the documentary about him. So any film that instills a new thirst for more knowledge about its subject is a successful one in my book. So though everything in The Stunt Driver may not all work together, the pieces and cliff notes of The Mad Canadian are enough to prompt you to educate yourself and become exposed to a whole new world of death-defying antics.

It may not stay with you for a long time, but The Stunt Driver is worth firing up the engines and taking off a ramp with for a bit.

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