Grade: B-

Verdict: Leave your brain in the trunk if you wanna zoom, zoom, zoom in Latifah's cab.

By BOB TOWNSEND
Cox News Service

Near the end of "Taxi," Washburn, the bumbling cop played by former "Saturday Night Live" comedian Jimmy Fallon, proclaims, "Crazy and stupid is my style." That easily sums up this quick but not so witty buddy comedy starring Queen Latifah ("Chicago") as Belle, a speed-obsessed New York cabbie with a fantastically pimped-out ride.

Based on the madcap 1998 French movie (and its three sequels) of the same name written and produced by Luc Besson (the director of "La Femme Nikita" and "The Fifth Element"), the Americanized "Taxi" isn't as stylish or frenzied as Besson's films. Instead, director Tim Story ("Barbershop") gives a shout-out to early '80s SNL-spawned products, such as "The Blues Brothers," by configuring a series of comedy skits interspersed with careening chases and slow-motion crashes.

At the center of the action, Belle, who dreams of becoming a NASCAR driver, has equipped her super-charged, bright yellow Ford Crown Victoria with all the bells and whistles of a Bond-mobile. Washburn, on the other hand, has serious vehicular-related issues. After he backs through a bodega window (resulting in the death of a parrot), he loses his license, his detective status and what remains of the respect of his boss and ex-girlfriend (Jennifer Esposito). But with Belle behind the wheel, he hopes to get it all back by catching a gang of female bank robbers, led by leggy, hard-driving fashionista Vanessa (supermodel Gisele Bündchen).

Stuck in the sort of mugging role she's probably outgrown, Latifah tries to make the most of this one -- especially when she's offering up one-liners ("I don't usually stop for white guys -- it's my way of balancing the universe") or giddily chasing Bündchen through New York's crowded streets.

In his first feature starring role, Fallon takes off on a few good funny-man flights, especially in a bit where he pretends to be a Cuban gangster. But he just as often appears jumpy and never really settles into his big-screen role. The greatest pleasure is Ann-Margret, who gets to play Washburn's perpetually drunken mom with a slurring and winking sense of humor that steals scenes.