The Fast and the Furious
Year: 2001
Director: Rob Cohen
Starring: Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez & Paul Walker
Runtime: 106 mins
BBFC: 15
Published: 21/12/21
Director: Rob Cohen
Starring: Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez & Paul Walker
Runtime: 106 mins
BBFC: 15
Published: 21/12/21
When I think of the biggest film franchises in the world I think of stuff like James Bond, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the Harry Potter films. They are films that have made insane box office figures, attained unparalleled critical acclaim, and in the case of Bond, have been running for decades. One franchise I don’t ever think of, but realistically should be considered, is the Fast & Furious franchise. Since the original film released in 2001 to middling reviews and a respectable box office taking, the series has gone on to have eight fully fledged mainline sequels, a spin-off, and various other multimedia offerings like video games, live shows, and theme park attractions. Suffice to say, it’s one of the biggest film franchises in history, but despite being commercially successful it rarely achieves true critical success. So following the recent release of Fast & Furious 9, I’m going to cruise on through the series history and see how a film about street racing became the globe trotting explode-a-thon it is today.
Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) is the undisputed king of street racing in L.A., but by day he runs a car garage and market as a front, so the cops don’t come sniffing around. When Brian Spilner (Paul Walker), a regular at the market, becomes trouble for Toretto he shows him the door. But Brian wants to make it in street racing and challenges Dom to a drag race, after losing to him, Brian saves Dom from the cops and is welcomed into Dom’s crew to work off his debt.
Little does Dom know that Brian is actually an undercover cop investigating a string of truck robberies in the area. As Dom and his crew get pulled into a gang feud, Brian must choose what he values more, his job or Dom’s crew whom he has bonded with.
Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) is the undisputed king of street racing in L.A., but by day he runs a car garage and market as a front, so the cops don’t come sniffing around. When Brian Spilner (Paul Walker), a regular at the market, becomes trouble for Toretto he shows him the door. But Brian wants to make it in street racing and challenges Dom to a drag race, after losing to him, Brian saves Dom from the cops and is welcomed into Dom’s crew to work off his debt.
Little does Dom know that Brian is actually an undercover cop investigating a string of truck robberies in the area. As Dom and his crew get pulled into a gang feud, Brian must choose what he values more, his job or Dom’s crew whom he has bonded with.
The Fast and the Furious is so small scale and down to earth in relation to almost all of the more recent sequels in the series. It’s genuinely a film about fast cars, and the people who race them. I remember being really into the first couple of films when I was younger as I was really into racing video games, and The Fast and the Furious was the closest thing at the time to a film of something like Need for Speed.
But it’s so unlike its sequels post-Tokyo Drift that it really does make me question how this film ended up spawning the series it did, and ultimately, it’s down to the two leading men and the chemistry they share that really makes this film a success in the right places.
First, let’s talk about Paul Walker. I’ve never actually seen Walker in any films outside of the Fast & Furious series, but this guy gives everything he has to that character. His presence in the film is captivating and the way he performs really allows you to get inside Brian’s head and his motivations for doing things how he does.
As for Diesel, this was one of his first major film roles and I believe the first were he was in a leading role (he was Riddick in Pitch Black before this but I’m unsure if he’s considered the leading man in that film). As we all know, Diesel has proven over the years that he’s a great actor when the script allows for it and he does very good in The Fast and the Furious considering how below average the script for it is. This is most likely because the chemistry he has with Walker is electric, any scene where the two of them are on screen is excellent, and if its just the two of them it’s even better. I’m not saying this to discredit the performances of anybody else in the film, but honestly these two guys are so great together that the entire film is held on their shoulders.
I mentioned briefly about the underwhelming script, and that really shows in some of the dialogue exchanges, and particularly in the supporting cast (many of whom have shown how good they are in other films). Michelle Rodriguez for example is just a one note ‘bad bitch’ character who feels as though the role was written for a man. Her character does progress greatly over the series from what I remember, but in this one she’s just always angry and in a crappy mood and wanting to hurt someone. Almost all the dialogue is forgettable, save for a few exchanges between Diesel and Walker, and it’s clear that the main draw of the film was always the cars and the racing.
But it’s so unlike its sequels post-Tokyo Drift that it really does make me question how this film ended up spawning the series it did, and ultimately, it’s down to the two leading men and the chemistry they share that really makes this film a success in the right places.
First, let’s talk about Paul Walker. I’ve never actually seen Walker in any films outside of the Fast & Furious series, but this guy gives everything he has to that character. His presence in the film is captivating and the way he performs really allows you to get inside Brian’s head and his motivations for doing things how he does.
As for Diesel, this was one of his first major film roles and I believe the first were he was in a leading role (he was Riddick in Pitch Black before this but I’m unsure if he’s considered the leading man in that film). As we all know, Diesel has proven over the years that he’s a great actor when the script allows for it and he does very good in The Fast and the Furious considering how below average the script for it is. This is most likely because the chemistry he has with Walker is electric, any scene where the two of them are on screen is excellent, and if its just the two of them it’s even better. I’m not saying this to discredit the performances of anybody else in the film, but honestly these two guys are so great together that the entire film is held on their shoulders.
I mentioned briefly about the underwhelming script, and that really shows in some of the dialogue exchanges, and particularly in the supporting cast (many of whom have shown how good they are in other films). Michelle Rodriguez for example is just a one note ‘bad bitch’ character who feels as though the role was written for a man. Her character does progress greatly over the series from what I remember, but in this one she’s just always angry and in a crappy mood and wanting to hurt someone. Almost all the dialogue is forgettable, save for a few exchanges between Diesel and Walker, and it’s clear that the main draw of the film was always the cars and the racing.
Which funnily enough brings me onto the action sequences. The Fast and the Furious has some great drag racing scenes where the speed of the action is really well communicated. I feel like director Rob Cohen made a wise decision in not showing the drag races in real time because the ten second nature of those kinds of races would not make for lots of exciting racing material. Instead we’re given several angles of the race as it’s happening, with plenty of slow-mo, and even some under the hood CGI work to show what’s happening when the cars are shifting gears and activating their nitrous oxide speed boosts. The few longer action sequences, including the heist sections are also really engaging and that’s probably because there’s more going on that just racing. It’s easy to see how these scenes became the template for what would follow in the sequels, particularly from the fourth entry onwards, because they are the most entertaining parts of the film, and feature some impressive stuntwork.
The Fast and the Furious is a generally good film and you don’t need to be interested in cars to enjoy it, but it’ll definitely help. The main attraction is the chemistry between Diesel and Walker, and the heist action sequences. Whilst the script and the story leave a lot to be desired, it’s not unbearable and you don’t feel like you’ve had your time wasted even if you don’t get invested in everything that’s happening. Whilst I still can’t see how this film spawned the franchise it did, I can understand how it got a sequel in 2003’s 2 Fast 2 Furious. Overall, a fun action film you can just turn your brain off to.
The Fast and the Furious is a generally good film and you don’t need to be interested in cars to enjoy it, but it’ll definitely help. The main attraction is the chemistry between Diesel and Walker, and the heist action sequences. Whilst the script and the story leave a lot to be desired, it’s not unbearable and you don’t feel like you’ve had your time wasted even if you don’t get invested in everything that’s happening. Whilst I still can’t see how this film spawned the franchise it did, I can understand how it got a sequel in 2003’s 2 Fast 2 Furious. Overall, a fun action film you can just turn your brain off to.