(In theaters, June 2001) Yes! After a diet of pretentious pseudo-profound cinema and ultra-hyped moronic flicks aimed at retarded teens, it’s such a relief to find a honest B-movie that fully acknowledge what it is. If you like cars, you’ll go bonkers over The Fast And The Furious, one of the most enjoyable popcorn film seen so far in 2001. The plot structure is stolen almost beat-for-beat from Point Break, which should allow you to relax and concentrate on the driving scenes. There aren’t quite enough of those, but what’s there on the screen is so much better than recent car-flick predecessors like Gone In Sixty Seconds and Driven that director Rob Cohen can now justifiably park in the space formerly reserved for Dominic Sena and Renny Harlin. The film’s not without problems, but at least they’re so basic that they’re almost added features. The protagonist is supposed to be played by Paul Walker, but don’t worry; bland blond-boy gets each and every one of his scenes stolen by ascending superstar Vin Diesel, whose screen presence is of a rare distinction. Feminists will howl over the retrograde place of women in the film, but even wannabee-sensitive-guys like me will be indulgent and revel in Jordana Brewster and Michelle Rodriguez—not to mention the other obligatory car-babes kissing each other. Despite the disappointing lack of racing in the first half, there is a pair of great action sequences by the end, the best involving a botched robbery attempt on a rig with an armed driver. That scene hurts, okay? I still would have loved a better ending, but otherwise, don’t hesitate and rush to The Fast And The Furious if you’re looking for a good, fun B-movie.
(Second viewing, On DVD, March 2002) There isn’t much to that film, if you look closely; three or four action scenes, conventional plotting, a few hot young actors and that’s it. But once again in B-movie-land, it all depends on the execution. Here, the young actors are really hot (from Walker to Diesel to Brewster to Rodriguez), the direction is unobtrusive enough and the film is infused with a love of speed that manages to make all quibbles insignificant. The ending is still problematic, with all its unresolved plot-lines, but the film holds up very well to another viewing. The DVD includes an amusing director’s commentary, deleted scenes (some good, some less. Unfortunately, the director once refers to an alternate ending that’s not included), a rather good making-of, three rather bad music videos and a bunch of other stuff.
(Third viewing, Streaming, December 2025) Decades later, the publication of Barry Hertz’s history of the Fast and Furious franchise suddenly had me hankering for a re-watch of the series’ first instalment. As many have since said, The Fast and the Furious really holds up. At its core, it remains a solid genre thriller, streamlined to focus on the essentials. The story moves fast except when it slows down for just-enough background for the characters, the Los Angeles setting or the car culture that’s central to the film’s comfort. The few action sequences are handled with a professional’s touch, with just enough non-mimetic material (such as some brief CGI, or the sped-up transitions from day to nighttime highlighting the different realms of the film) to highlight the metal-on-metal tactility of the stunts. It’s easily watchable without too many dull or dumb moments. And the soundtrack is terrific — although that may just be me recognizing the tracks I was listening at the time. But it’s the the halo effect of its many sequels’ blockbuster success that helps lift it up even further: Paul Walker is quite good here, and Vin Diesel is remarkable. Even comparing this relatively grounded first installment to its increasingly bombastic follow-ups isn’t that big of a jump: You can see where the most successful bits of the sequels come from, and where some of the characters are introduced. The sequels also manage to tie up the loose ends of the abrupt ending, and develop some half-baked ideas. But even taken on its own, The Fast and the Furious is a slick, fast, well-made action movie — well worth a look even a quarter-mile, er, a quarter-century later.
