The Fast and the Furious

Review by William Barker

The film begins with an impressive intro combining a trio of highly modified Honda Civics driving with such precision, it's really quite scary. The three tricked-up Civic's wait until the cover of night before attempting to jack an "18-wheel cash cow" full of goods, while cruising down the freeway at 60+mph.

After the amazing opening sequence, we're introduced to the film's lead actor - Brian (Paul Walker). While his acting skills aren't too bad, Walker's presence is fresh and he brings a bit of complication to the production as the undercover cop.

His mission is to crack open the truck-jacking racket, police believe is headed up by street racing punks. Anyway, Brian attempts to gain the trust of one of the illegal street racing's elite - Dominic (Vin Diesel). He does so by racing the hardened driver with a trunk full of NOS (aka nitrous oxide or nitro), before the cops rock up and start snapping limbs. What eventuates is the rescue of Dominic by Brian, giving the undercover cop his big break.

A film based on the import car scene (high-performance Japanese cars) dominated by the under-30s demographic would never have seen funding a few years ago, thanks to its subject matter.

But here it is - The Fast and the Furious.

Directed by Rob Cohen, the man behind such flicks as Dragonheart and The Skulls, it takes a predictable, yet exciting look at the import car subculture, which is gaining huge support in the US. The latter reason was assumed to have been why such a film rocketed into the No.1 box-office spot when it launched in the US earlier in 2001. It certainly didn't get there on the merits of acting...

Most will criticise this movie of being devoid of any real acting, but the street racing scene that the movie portrays is also a hot topic. I believe this was a brave move and since the movie did extremely well on a fairly low-budget (for Hollywood) we could see a few more flicks like this in the near future.

That said, it doesn't make the acting any better. There are a few puke-inducing lines in there, but on the whole it was worth the price of admission just to see the amazing cars and the incredible stunts. This is a car enthusiasts film, with the engine sounds accurately recorded, the cars immaculately detailed and the lingo is pretty faithful too.

Underlining the plot is Brian's fight with his conscience that works much to the film's advantage. Brian befriends Dominic but struggles to come to terms with what to do with him - turn him over or keep an ally?

As was mentioned, Paul Walker does an admirable job of injecting a bit of dynamism into the scene, while Vin Diesel is pretty solid, too. It's the minor roles that bring the movie down somewhat, plus it was a shame Jordana Brewster wasn't used a bit more. American muso-rapper Ja Rule also makes a cool cameo in one of the street races as well as his contribution to the score (also a US No.1 hit).

What it comes down to is the cars. If you like them - even a little bit - this movie is for you. The plot, while predictable, still manages to take you for quite a wild ride. Just don't expect The Bridges Over Madison County-style acting.

The Fast and the Furious
Rated: M15+.
Australian release date: September, 2001.
Director: Rob Cohen.
Cast: Paul Walker, Vin Diesel, Jordana Brewster, Michelle Rodriguez, Ja Rule, Rick Yune
Running time: 107 minutes.
Website: www.thefastandthefurious.com