The Fast and the Furious Review
by Laura Clifford (lcliffor AT genuity DOT net)June 21st, 2001
THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS
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When Brian (Paul Walker, "The Skulls") starts hanging around the luncheonette where Mia (Jordana Brewster, "The Invisible Circus") works, he's singled out for a beating by the gearheads who gather there. That night, he shows up with his own hot rod and challenges Mia's brother Dominic (Vin Diesel, "Pitch Black") to a drag race. While Brian loses his car to Dominic, he gets into his good graces by spiritting him away when cops raid the gathering place. Dominic's gang are suspicious, but Brian's in - and undercover - investigating a speed racer robbery ring who prey on truckers in
"The Fast and the Furious."
LAURA:
Inspired by a magazine article on street racing, Gary Scott Thompson ("Hollow Man" story and screenplay by), Erik Bergquist and David Ayer (screenplay by) do plug 'n play by taking the plot from the Keanu Reeves/ Patrick Swayze starrer "Point Break" and changing its surfer thieves into drag racers. Yet director Rob Cohen ("The Skulls"), whose filmography inspired no hope going into this film, delivers a flashy B flick that's sure to attain a cult audience.
After some good-natured sword rattling among the street racing crowd, we experience the mind blowing experience of a 170 mph race in a consumer car converted to a nitrous oxide system (NOS in racer parlance). Brian glances through the windows of three other racers to make eye contact with Dominic (kudos to cinematographer Ericson Core ("Mumford") for employing an ace focus puller) in his Mazda RX-7. Then the camera follows Dom's arm to the stick shift, before we're sped through the car's engine and out via the exhaust just in time to see the cars leap off into the dark abandoned street beyond.
This scene is exhilarating, as are other set pieces involving a final robbery gone bad (as these final scores always do) ripped right out of "The Road Warrior," and a last race between Brian and Dom towards an oncoming train. The entire technical crew, including visual-effects supervisor Mike Wassel ("U-571"), sound designer Charles Deenen, editor Peter Honess ("L.A. Confidential") and production designer Waldemar Kalinowski ("Stigmata"), serve up first rate work. The awesome stunt team deliver leapss from one speeding vehicle to another as well as cars darting beneath the undercarriages of trucks.
Most of the acting is of the surface variety. Diesel has a commanding and likeable screen presence. Walker is a good looking kid who expresses excitement with speed and earnestness with undercover work. Chad Lindberg ("October Sky") is particularly empathetic as an ADD afflicted mechanical genius. Unfortunately, Michelle Rodiguez ("Girlfight") just cops a cool, tough tude as Letty, Dom's girlfriend, but at least she's believably tough and cool (and yes, she punches a guy out). The film also stars Rick Yune ("Snow Falling on Cedars") as Johnny Tran, leader of a rival motorcycle gang and Ted Levine ("Evolution") as Brian's boss Sgt. Tanner.
"The Fast and the Furious" may sound like the title of a daytime soap but it plays like a dumb B movie with tons of guilty pleasures under its hood.
B-
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