Welcome one and all to the 33rd part of my weekly blog, The 52 In 52. The concept is simple, each week I watch one of the films that have been gathering dust on my shelf and review it. Last week I reviewed sci fi/horror film, The Lazarus Effect.
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This week I am talking about The Fast And The Furious. For anyone that has been living under a rock for the past 20 years or so The Fast And The Furious launched a vastly successful film series but, for some reason or another I have never watched any of the films until now. Released in 2001 The Fast And The Furious was directed by Rob Cohen (xXx, Dragonheart) and was co written by Gary Scott Thomas (Hollow Man) and David Ayer (Training Day, Suicide Squad). This film launched the three main cast, Paul Walker, Vin Diesel and Michelle Rodriguez as household names and it is easy to see why this film launched a series.
I really enjoyed The Fast And The Furious and I am kicking myself for not watching it sooner. There are a few issues I have with the film. The film was made in 2001 and I have to admit it felt a lot older than that. It felt like an action movie that could have easily been made in the mid 90's. The dialogue is a little clunky and cringe worthy at times but, it doesn't feel out of place. The fashion and the soundtrack haven't aged well either but, again, it didn't feel out of place. There is issues with stereo typing that feel very odd and out of date too but, with a film made nearly 20 years ago I could expect it. The main story throughout the film was almost unimportant as the action is where the focus lay. The subplots, whilst entertaining, were a little under developed.
The action set pieces are the real star of the show, as you would expect. The opening sequence really sets the audience up for what they should expect from the rest of the film. The race scenes at the beginning of the film are shot in a way that are fantastical and are visually engaging especially the scenes between Walker and Diesel's characters as they race for the first time.
The cast, as I said, were hardly household names before the film and this film helped with gaining them more attention. Vin Diesel and Paul Walker put in decent performances with Diesel ramping up the swagger and smugness to an almost pantomime level . Paul Walker plays the cocky character with ease. The relationship between the two is decent enough. Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster were entertaining enough but, I would have liked to have seen them as more than just a pretty face on the screen.
Overall The Fast And The Furious is an admirable beginning to a franchise. Virtual unknowns in Diesel, Walker and Rodriguez prove to be a big hit, or at least that's they way it would seem seem considering there have been a lot of films since this. If you are looking for a mindless action I would recommend this.
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