 |
| Starring: Paul Walker, Vin Diesel, Jordana Brewster, Michelle Rodriguez, Rick Yune, Ja Rule, Beau Holden. Director: Rob Cohen Writers: Gary Scott Thompson, Erik Bergquist, David Ayer. Studio: Universal Pictures Rated: PG-13 (for violence, sexual content, & language) Runtime: 1 hour 47 minutes Year: 2001 Simply put, The Fast And The Furious is shiny and new on the surface, but familiar and stupid inside. The Fast And The Furious is a good B-movie. But it isn't a great one. And considering the people the movie is aimed for are teens, expect it to make a decent amount at the box office this weekend. And what wouldn't attract teens to this movie? The rock-rap soundtrack? The cast? The director (who has become famous for his flop The Skulls, also starring Walker)? I don't think so. That is probably what everyone will be attracted to, besides the car chase scenes. This is the Gone In Sixty Seconds of summer 2001. The plot is basic, it isn't really that important in the movie though. It is about a blond surfer-looking guy named Brian Spindler (Walker), an undercover FBI agent sent to the underground world of car racing to find the people who stole electronics from a delivery truck. He then meets Dominic Toretto (Diesel), an illegal car racer by night and one of the prime suspects, and his sister Mia (Brewster). At first, he is not on Dominic's good side, but after Brian saves his life from the cops, he is taken under the wing of Dom. Besides falling for Mia, Brian is let in on all of the secrets that Dom has and meets his gang, including Dominic's girlfriend Letty (Rodriguez) and the bad guys of the movie, a group of mean Asians who ride motorcycles and carry machine guns with them. But after Brian finds out that Dom had stolen the electronics and plans to do it again, Brian and Mia must rescue Dom and his friends from a life behind bars. The acting is pretty good. The real standout performances are from Diesel, Walker, and Brewster. They were believable and good in their parts. Ja Rule, who is billed as a main character in the TV spots, is only in there for five minutes, but manages to provide comic relief the whole time. The other members of the cast are decent, but Rodriguez is nowhere as good as she was in Girlfight. But the real stars of the movie are the car chases themselves. Not only are they good and cool, but they are also very inventive and break new ground in the genre. The only problem with the movie was the script, which did not live up to the potential the rest of the movie had. Overall, a good way to spend two hours. *** 1/2 stars --Cory Thompson |