Crank: High Voltage (2009)

Last updated:
March 17, 2026

Some films whisper. Others shout. Crank: High Voltage, however, grabs you by the collar, tasers you in the neck, and screams profanities directly into your ear. This sequel dispenses with the rulebook entirely, consequently delivering one of the most unrestrained and gloriously insane action movies ever made. It is a cinematic energy drink spiked with battery acid and pure, unadulterated chaos.

Table of Contents

Detailed Summary

The plot of Crank: High Voltage is less a story and more a series of high-octane obstacles designed to push its hero to the absolute limit. In fact, it picks up at the literal second the first film ended. The narrative serves only to justify the next explosive set piece.

The Fall and an Abrupt Awakening

Miraculously, Chev Chelios (Jason Statham) survives his thousand-foot fall from a helicopter. He lands squarely on a car, bounces, and comes to a rest on the street. Before the dust can even settle, a van of Chinese Triad members scoops up his body. They transport him to a secret, grimy clinic where they begin harvesting his organs. Specifically, they remove his seemingly indestructible heart.

An Artificial Heart Problem

Chelios awakens on an operating table mid-procedure. The surgeons have just finished installing a bright red, artificial heart into his chest cavity. However, he quickly learns his new ticker, an AbioCor Artificial Heart, is powered by a cumbersome external battery pack. As soon as he disconnects from the main power, the pack’s internal battery begins to drain, threatening imminent death. His original heart, meanwhile, is placed in a red cooler and whisked away for an aging Triad boss.

Escape and the Need for a Jolt

In a daze, Chelios fights his way out of the makeshift hospital. He kills his captors and escapes into the Los Angeles streets wearing only a hospital gown. His battery pack beeps menacingly, therefore signaling a critical power failure. In a moment of sheer desperation, Chelios forces a man to attach jumper cables from his car battery directly to his tongue and his nipple ring, giving himself a life-saving jolt of electricity.

Medical Advice from Doc Miles

Chev immediately calls his back-alley physician, Doc Miles (Dwight Yoakam), for help. Doc Miles, in his typically unprofessional manner, explains that rubbing against things to create static electricity is the only way to keep the artificial heart’s internal battery charged. He also warns that excessive jolts could short out the device completely. Consequently, Chelios must find a way to maintain a constant charge while hunting down the thieves who stole his real heart.

The Hunt for Johnny Vang

Chelios learns that a small-time hood named Johnny Vang (Art Hsu) now possesses the cooler containing his heart. Fueled by rage and a dwindling power supply, Chev begins a violent rampage across the city. This destructive quest involves stealing cars, clashing with the police, and generating friction in the most public ways imaginable. For instance, he rubs up against anyone and everyone he can find just to stay alive.

Friction at the Racetrack

His search for Vang leads him to the Hollywood Park Racetrack. Here, he finds his girlfriend, Eve Lydon (Amy Smart), who is now a stripper. To generate a massive amount of static electricity, Chelios has vigorous sex with Eve in front of a shocked crowd of onlookers. Ultimately, the stunt works, recharging his heart and allowing him to continue his pursuit. The chase also introduces him to Ria (Bai Ling), a fast-talking prostitute who claims to know the location of Johnny Vang.

An Unlikely Alliance and a Shocking Revelation

Following a lead from Ria, Chelios storms the Cypress Social Club. Inside, he is shocked to find Venus (Efren Ramirez), the identical twin brother of his deceased friend Kaylo from the first film. Venus, suffering from “Full Body Tourette’s,” joins Chelios on his quest for revenge. Together, they discover the truth. The entire operation was orchestrated by the 100-year-old Triad leader, Poon Dong (David Carradine), who wants Chelios’s resilient heart for himself.

Movie Ending

The climax of Crank: High Voltage takes place at a massive power plant, a perfect setting for a man who needs electricity to live. Chev, alongside Venus and Ria, confronts Johnny Vang and his gang. In the chaos, they manage to retrieve the cooler with Chev’s heart. Unfortunately, Poon Dong arrives to claim his prize.

During the ensuing battle, Chev becomes so supercharged from a nearby electrical transformer that he begins to hallucinate. In his mind, he and Poon Dong become giant, Kaiju-style monsters battling over the power station, a clear nod to classic Godzilla films. Back in reality, Chev, now literally glowing with electricity, sets Poon Dong on fire with a single touch.

Doc Miles arrives just in time to perform an impromptu heart transplant, swapping the artificial device back out for Chev’s original heart. However, the procedure is far from sterile, happening right on the power plant floor. As Chev lies there, a high-voltage current from a power line arcs into his eye, setting him completely ablaze. He stands up, a man fully on fire, and defiantly gives the middle finger to the camera before the screen cuts to black. His ultimate fate is left ambiguous, but the implication is that even being on fire is not enough to kill Chev Chelios.

Are There Post-Credits Scenes?

Yes, there is a short scene after the initial credits begin to roll. It features a fictional Dutch talk show. On the show, Doc Miles is being interviewed about the successful procedure of transplanting Chev’s incredible heart into the chest of a female adult film star, who then demonstrates its resilience.

Type of Movie

Crank: High Voltage is an extreme action-comedy with heavy elements of black humor and satire. The film operates as a live-action video game, prioritizing relentless momentum and graphic, over-the-top violence over plot coherence. Furthermore, its tone is unabashedly offensive, hyper-stylized, and anarchic. It intentionally lampoons the conventions of the action genre by pushing them to their most absurd and illogical conclusions.

Cast

Jason Statham – Chev Chelios
Amy Smart – Eve Lydon
Dwight Yoakam – Doc Miles
Efren Ramirez – Venus / Kaylo
Bai Ling – Ria
Clifton Collins Jr. – El Huron
David Carradine – Poon Dong
Art Hsu – Johnny Vang
Corey Haim – Randy

Film Music and Composer

The film’s frenetic and eclectic score was composed by Mike Patton. Patton is famously the lead singer of experimental rock bands like Faith No More and Mr. Bungle. As a result, his score perfectly matches the movie’s chaotic energy, blending hard rock, chiptune, metal, and lounge music into an aggressive sonic assault. Notable tracks include “Sweet Cream” and the various video-game-inspired cues that pepper the film, reinforcing its Grand Theft Auto aesthetic.

Filming Locations

Crank: High Voltage was filmed almost entirely on location throughout Los Angeles, California. The filmmakers, Neveldine/Taylor, utilized gritty and diverse parts of the city to enhance the movie’s raw, unpolished feel. Key locations include the Port of Los Angeles, the Hollywood Park Racetrack (which has since been demolished), and various industrial zones. This on-the-ground shooting style, in contrast to sterile soundstages, gives the film an authentic and chaotic sense of place that is central to its identity.

Awards and Nominations

Despite its cult following, Crank: High Voltage was not a major awards contender, which is unsurprising given its genre and content. However, the film’s impressive stunt work did receive recognition. Specifically, it was nominated for a Taurus World Stunt Award for Best High Work, honoring the incredible stunts performed throughout the production.

Behind the Scenes Insights

Directors Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor pioneered a “roller-doc” style, often shooting scenes themselves on rollerblades while operating lightweight, prosumer-grade digital cameras to achieve the film’s signature kinetic look.
Jason Statham, known for his physical commitment, performed a significant portion of his own stunts, including many of the dangerous fight scenes and high-impact sequences.
The notorious sex scene at the racetrack was filmed in front of approximately 300 real, non-actor background extras at a live venue. Amy Smart later stated it was one of the most challenging scenes of her career.
The film was shot using a variety of accessible digital cameras, including the Canon XH-A1, a deliberate choice to give the visuals a unique, non-traditional texture.

Inspirations and References

The primary inspiration for Crank: High Voltage is classic arcade and console video games, most notably the Grand Theft Auto series. The film’s structure mimics a video game, with Chelios moving from one “mission” to the next, facing off against “bosses,” and needing to replenish his “health” (in this case, his electrical charge). In addition, the film incorporates 8-bit graphics for its opening recap and stylistic flourishes, explicitly highlighting this influence. The final fight scene is also a clear homage to Japanese Kaiju monster movies like Godzilla.

Alternate Endings and Deleted Scenes

The DVD and Blu-ray releases of Crank: High Voltage contain several deleted scenes. These include an extended version of the fictional talk show “Chico’s Talk” featuring Chev’s mother, additional comedic bits with Doc Miles, and more banter between Chelios and Venus. However, no significant alternate ending was filmed. The theatrical conclusion, with a burning Chev Chelios giving the middle finger, was always the intended finale for the film.

Book Adaptations and Differences

Crank: High Voltage is not based on a book or any other pre-existing source material. It is an original story conceived by writer-directors Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor, serving as a direct sequel to their 2006 film, Crank.

Memorable Scenes and Quotes

Key Scenes

The Jumper Cables: Chelios’s first desperate attempt to recharge, attaching car jumper cables to his tongue and nipple ring, perfectly sets the film’s absurd tone.
Racetrack Friction: The completely public sex scene between Chev and Eve at the Hollywood Park Racetrack remains one of the most audacious and talked-about moments in modern action cinema.
The Kaiju Fight: During the climax, Chelios hallucinates that he and Poon Dong are giant monsters battling over the power plant, a bizarre and unforgettable visual sequence.

Iconic Quotes

Doc Miles: “You got an AbioCor heart in you. It’s a temporary, total replacement heart. It’s the top of the line… for a fucking box of chocolates.”
Chev Chelios: (To a group of shocked onlookers) “Does it look like I’ve got time for a fucking lecture?”
Chev Chelios: “Listen, I am not a fucking Pez dispenser, you understand? I am not a do-rag. I am not a fucking fuzzy chew toy!”

Easter Eggs and Hidden Details

Director Cameos: Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor appear in a scene as two men tasering each other.
Chester Bennington Cameo: The late Linkin Park singer, Chester Bennington, who appeared in the first film, has a cameo as a man Chelios rubs against at the racetrack.
Maynard James Keenan Cameo: The lead singer of Tool and A Perfect Circle, Maynard James Keenan, has a brief cameo as a dog walker who is kicked by Chev.
Verbal Callback: When Johnny Vang shows Chelios his own heart in the cooler, Chelios yells, “That’s my fucking strawberry tart!” This is a callback to the first film’s nickname for his heart.

Trivia

The entire film was shot in just 30 days.
Many of the shocked reactions from bystanders in the film are genuine, as the crew often filmed in public spaces with minimal lockdown.
David Carradine, who plays the ancient Poon Dong, was 72 years old during filming. This was one of his final film roles before his death in 2009.
The script was written by Neveldine/Taylor without a studio deal in place. They simply wrote what they wanted to see, which accounts for the film’s unfiltered creative vision.

Why Watch?

Watch this film for a pure shot of cinematic adrenaline. It’s a non-stop, hyper-violent satire that pushes every boundary of taste and logic. If you appreciate unapologetic absurdity and action that never hits the brakes, this movie is an absolute must-see.