’New Model... Original Parts’, seems that after the fisacos that were 2 Fast 2 Furious and Tokyo Drift, the Fast and Furious has gone back to it’s roots, with Vin Diesel and Paul Walker (together with Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster) providing the thrills and spills in this 4th installment of the Street Racing, ’Pimp-my-ride’ franchise.
Fast and Furious (Part 4) takes place between the first and the second movies, hence Diesel’s and walker’s appearance. It takes place at the end of the first movie’s storyline, but you wouldn’t really notice that...
... what you would notice would be the opening chase / robbery sequence which kicks off the movie with a bang! Of course, if you’ve seen the first movie, there is nothing much new to add... it is action, stunts and a whole lot more of things crashing and burning.
Making a reappearance from Tokyo Drift is the character of Han, who according to me, was really cool in a Zen-sort of way in Tokyo Drift... sadly, he is packed off after the first 5 minutes of the movie.
So, what are our boys up to? Well, Vin is his usual ’I rob cars and stuff with my dialogues being in monosyllables’ and Walker is his ’Cop turned FBI now to go undercover, AGAIN’...
Well, fate makes them meet up together again as they try to take down a drug lord, who (surprise, surprise!) needs ’drivers’ to transport the drugs across the border in the middle of the night...
... cur Diesel and Walker racing each other for a place in the mobster’s team... Diesel with his American Muscle and Walker with the Japanese Tuner Nissan Skyline GT-R.
Some reviews have described Fast and Furious as being ’Car Porn’, and I guess those 2 words perfectly surmise the movie.
The acting is non-existent and flat, the women seem to be interested in making out with each other, and the men seem to be interested in... well, the cars (duh!).
Indeed, like Pimp My Ride, the Fast and the Furious features a whole gazillion of tuned exotica, like the Skyline GT-R, Chevrolet Chevelle SS, Subaru Impreza WRX STi, and Dodge Charger R/T, among others. But, that being said, nothing can match the amazing plethora of Japanese tuners in Tokyo Drift, especially the red Mitsubishi Lancer Evo in Tokyo Drift.
There is a fair bit of racing in this movie and a couple of good chases, but Fast and Furious lacks the amazing drifting style which was present in Tokyo Drift, and Tokyo Drift’s chase through the capital of Japan, or even its last drift race down the mountain makes the chases in Part 4 seem a bit... dull in comparison.
Ultimately though, it is a welcome return of Diesel and Walker to the franchise which will ensure that Fast and Furious retains its appeal among die hard petrolheads and rabid Diesel fans. If you want 90 minutes of adrenalin pumping cars and well... more cars, then the Fast and Furious: 4 is for you... me? Well, I’d rather watch the rerun of Tokyo Drift.