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"The Fast and the Furious" is based on a fairly simple premise; a cop goes undercover to infiltrate an illegal street racing team who may be involved in a series of truck hijackings. Things are complicated when he falls for Mia, the sister of Dominic Toretto, the charismatic gang leader. Then he must chose between loyalty to his new friends and his duty as a police officer.
This is an action film, pure and simple. Only one sentence is spoken during the first ten minutes of the movie, but the viewer is treated to such a breathtaking stunt driving sequence, that it barely matters. What follows is a series of set pieces interlinked with the usual action film banter. However, unlike last year’s abysmal "Gone in Sixty Seconds", there is an attempt at a plot and some semblance of character development. Although we are basically presented with a number of stereotypes, (the tough guy with a tragic past, the cop who loves to defy authority, the tomboy mechanic, the loyal thug and the smart kid from a broken home), one can’t help but like them or appreciate the camaraderie between them.
Vin Diesel does well as the soulful action anti-hero, Dom Toretto. He looks as capable of buying you a fuzzy kitten as ripping your arm off and beating you over the head with it. He is ably abetted by relative unknown Paul Walker as the pretty boy cop. Michelle Rodriguez of "Girlfight" fame is Dom’s feisty girlfriend Lette and Jordana Brewster is love interest Mia. Neither are given much to do, but they are both pretty enough to look at.
Of course, the real stars of the show are the souped-up cars that have a hell of a lot more under the bonnet than your average Ford Fiesta. They are brash and powerful and ever so sexy. Not bad, considering they started life as bog-standard Fords, Volkswagens and Honda Civics.
The visual style of the piece is sharp and edgy, with juddering camera work that conveys the sheer speed and exhilaration of driving at over 120 mph. The stunt driving is second to none and the CGI work is so accomplished that you can't see the joins. The soundtrack is a satisfying blend of hard rock and banging techno.And when you consider that this was directed by the man that brought us the execrable Joshua Jackson vehicle "The Skulls", it makes it all the more amazing.
The whole film hangs together nicely. It’s not going to win any Oscars, but it’s as exciting and fulfilling a piece of eye candy as you could hope to see this summer. So buy a big tub of popcorn, sit back, let your brain slide into neutral and let yourself be carried along.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Action/Adventure - Director: Gore Verbinski - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring:Bill Nighy, Keira Knightley, Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush, Orlando Bloom, Chow Yun-Fat
Production Year: 1964 - Action/Adventure - Director: Cyril Endfield - Original Language: English - Classification: Parental Guidance - Starring:Stanley Baker, Jack Hawkins, Ulla Jacobsson, James Booth, Michael Caine, Nigel Green
Production Year: 2002 - Action/Adventure - Director: Vincenzo Natali - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring:Lucy Liu, David Hewlett, Anne Marie Scheffler, Joseph Scoren, Matthew Sharp, Jeremy Northam
Advantages: Back to the cruising scene with great cars, great sound systems and great girls. Action packed Disadvantages: It's not as good as Fast and Furious, poor acting, unrealistic story
Advantages: Plenty of action, nice effects, Vin Diesel, no need to think too hard. Disadvantages: Not really any, unless you're expecting something that it's not.
![The Fast and the Furious [DVD] [1954] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/75101444.jpg "The Fast and the Furious [DVD] [1954] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]")
![The Fast And The Furious [HD DVD] [2001]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/78158583.jpg "The Fast And The Furious [HD DVD] [2001]")
![3 Classic Racing Films of the Silver Screen: The Wild Ride (1960) / The Fast and the Furious (1954) / The Big Wheel (1949) [DVD]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/78499914.jpg "3 Classic Racing Films of the Silver Screen: The Wild Ride (1960) / The Fast and the Furious (1954) / The Big Wheel (1949) [DVD]")
Sep 5th, 2001
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![The Fast And The Furious Turbo Edition [DVD] [2001]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/77912244.jpg)
