Fast and Furious

Let's play a game. You make a movie that is a huge success and makes you a huge star. Naturally, talk of a sequel comes up, but you want nothing to do with it. So the sequel is made without you while you make such classics as Babylon A.D., Chronicles of Riddick, and xXx. Then eight years after the first movie, you finally return to the series that made you a star with a sequel. If you've guessed I'm talking about Vin Diesel, you win a cookie.

To be fair, I don't mean to criticize Diesel who I'm a fan of even if his choice in what movies to do isn't great. But eight years since the huge success of The Fast and The Furious and two sequels that he didn't star in (although he does make an appearance in Tokyo Drift), Diesel returns to the franchise with this year's Fast and Furious. What happened to both of the 'the' from the original title?

I haven't seen all of Tokyo Drift, and I liked 2 Fast 2 Furious as much if not more than the original, but it's still nice to see the whole crew back together for the third sequel. Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster both return with Paul Walker also coming back after sitting out 'Tokyo.' The story picks up five years since the original with Dom Toretto (Diesel) and his girlfriend Letty (Rodriguez) leading a crew in the Dominican Republic who take down high-octane fuel shipments. If you saw the trailer, you got a good idea of the very cool opening sequence as Dom and crew take down a semi leading four tankers down a rocky, windy mountainside.

But SPOILER ALERT their actions put them back on the radar of any number of law enforcement officials looking for them. Hoping to keep Letty safe, Dom leaves her but when hiding out in Mexico finds out that she's been murdered. Dom returns to L.A. and with just one clue about the murder gets back into the world of illegal street racing...sort of. Meanwhile, Brian O'Conner (Walker) is now working for the F.B.I. on a case to bring down a drug cartel led by a man called Braga. And what do you know, Braga is looking for drivers to get a new shipment of heroin across the U.S./Mexico border. What are the odds then that Dom's and Brian's paths cross? I'd go with pretty good.

What surprised me about this third sequel from beginning to end was the more serious tone. We're not talking hardcore cop movie, but 'Fast and Furious' is not so light and fluffy with its story. The first three movies were loud, colorful and in your face with hip-hop and rap playing from end to end. Directed by Justin Lin, this one leans more toward getting into the minds of both Dom and Brian, Dom looking for revenge pure and simple and Brian hoping to close a case that's been open for years. I guess that happens when revenge is added to a storyline, the darker tone, but it works here. Previous villains in the series were over-the-top but never very intimidating. John Ortiz as Campos, Braga's right-hand man, and Laz Alonso as Fenix, Braga's top driver, are both strong villains, bad guys you're really rooting for to get shot.

I know what you're saying though, enough with the casting and the story. Get to the RACING! I was disappointed with the driving sequences here. The opening sequence, Dom and Letty taking down fuel tankers, is top notch and a great way to get your blood flowing for the rest of the movie. But much of the rest of the movie's racing scenes are heavy on CGI. Say what you want about the previous movies, especially the first two, but much of the driving was done by...you know, actual drivers. The end has an exciting chase as Dom and Brian gun it for the border across the Mexican countryside, but it derails when they're chased into a tunnel that goes under the border. It's all CGI and not necessarily good CGI.

All flaws aside though, I really enjoyed this newest entry into the F & F series. It was good to see Diesel and Walker back together especially with so much unresolved between them since the original. Maybe it's just because I liked the characters to begin with, but I liked those scenes between them as much as I did the action scenes. They form the uneasiest of alliances because they have the same final goal so for me, any buddy movie tandem is a good one. Walker doesn't look quite as baby-faced as he did in the original, and Diesel is cool regardless.

Rodriguez makes a quick cameo and is dead in the first 20 minutes and Brewster is eye candy and basically a background player, but she's still there so we've got that going for us. Who would have thought there's some remaining sexual tension between Mia and Brian? Also keep your eye on Gal Gadot who plays Gisele, one of Braga's assistants who takes a shine to Dom. The Israeli beauty is drop dead gorgeous.

So maybe not as action-packed as the trailer made it out to be, Fast and Furious is a worthy sequel and one fans of the franchise should be able to appreciate. The trailer is one of my favorites and really got me psyched to see the movie. As pointed out before, it's also a shorter version of the great opening sequence. The song choice, Does it Offend You, Yeah?, is a good one although the use in the trailer is better than the actual song. So if you've made it this far in the review, kudos because I stopped writing about racing paragraphs ago. It's a good sequel with a darker, revenge-driven story. You won't be disappointed.

Fast and Furious (2009): ***/****