Fast and Furious

Review by Loc

Since when did it become obvious that a fourth installment of the street racing series was not only needed, but wanted by “fans” of the originals? Seriously, the last flick, The Fast and The Furious: Tokyo Drift made half as much as the second film, checking in at a paltry $62 million dollars. Really, this is what warrants quad-quels nowadays? Ah, it has been long enough since the original film debuted in 2001 and all the subsequent iterations watered down that crisp, clean, original formula. So maybe it was time to get the band back together! Quick hit: no, it wasn’t!

Fast and Furious brings the original players back to the street with Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Michelle Rodriguez, and Jordana Brewster comprising our starring couple of couples. This film actually is a mid-three-quel or a sequel-in-a-half, as far as timelines go. Strangely enough, this franchise feels continuity is important and thusly, creates a space five years after the original film for this one to take place. As a result, this is the 4th installment, but it takes place between the 2nd and 3rd films. But who really cares, all that matters is that the band is back together!

No, it doesn’t! For the first time in any of these movies, including the original, Fast and Furious tries to present a real plot. Why!? Every other film was simply a street racing, semi-action, low on IQ romp dressed up as something else. Like in the original, we were supposed to be following an undercover Paul Walker who was infiltrating the street racing scene, but really it was street rocket scenes glued together by bad acting. Now, in Fast and Furious, you have a sorta redemption, crime-thriller, revenge flick masquerading as a brainless street racer flick. And unfortunately for this franchise equation, these converses are not equivalent. I apologize for referencing a mathematical formula, but my brain rebelled after getting dumb from watching the flick.

So, with this “plot” driving the movie, we get collateral damage as well, in the form of pensive Vin Diesel and matured Paul Walker. Look, the original film is no masterpiece no matter how hard it tried to recreate the Point Break feel. But at least you had a goofy-ass Paul Walker, who while oblivious to his DBag status, was at least called out on it by those around him. And you had Vin Diesel, in arguably his star-making role, embodying the justifiably confident badass that owns everyone.

Now you have a “real fed” in Paul Walker, forcing him to cleave what little charisma he already possesses, and a saddy sad but maddy mad Vin Diesel out on a revenge mission. He’s like a robot, and you might expect that out of his acting already, but he’s like that only cranked to “11” on the dial. If you’re gonna bring the band back together, at least let them play their old songs.

Overall, this is a flat film. This is the first time I’ve ever said this, but the choice to focus on an actual plot cut the legs out from this film. If you can’t have Vin being Vin and cool street races, then this isn’t the Fast and Furious that I know! There was one magnificent line, when Vin states the obvious after beating Paul in an early race, but an entire movie isn’t worth that one chuckle. Out of the 1500 horses under the hood of the Chevy, Fast and Furious sputters along with 650 horse power. This movie needed to be a fun adrenaline ride, not a “everyone’s a downer” flick of brooding.