This is the first movie of what has rapidly turned into a franchise of 9 movies with another one coming and 2 or 3 spin off movie. Although not that critically acclaimed with me giving this movie the highest score of us three with IMDb giving it 6.8/10 & Rotten Tomatoes 53%. Released in 2001 and made on a budget of $38m it went on to make $207.3m at the box office. Starring Paul Walker, Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster, Rick Yune, Chad Lindberg, Johnny Strong, and Ted Levine. I feel this will be quite a short review here.
The plot is one where there are lots of excuses to race fast cars against each other but there is a plot and it may be better than you think. Some electrical goods are stolen in the dead of night by a gang driving fast cars and they disappear off into the night, an undercover cop get assigned to hunt down the thieves. He decides to go off in search of the gang by looking into the fast cars community and ends up racing for his own car as he doesn’t have the money. He loses and then owes the car just when the police arrive so he helps the head of the gang escape but end up in a rival gang area who smash up the area and the men have to walk back. The cop starts to fall for one of the gang members and starts to find himself getting in with the gang so is relieved to see electrical goods at the rival gangs lair. So, tips off his people to raid them. This backfires when all the goods are accounted for pointing the finger of doubt back to his friends. Leaving him in a bit of a dilemma.
OK that’s enough and for me this is a good story hidden in a movie that’s about racing cars against each other in the street. This is a boy’s movie; well it has all the hallmarks. There’s hot women and men and fast cars undercover cops tracking down bad guys all things a boy would want which is where I was coming from. I have to admit this is not my type of movie and wouldn’t be my choice of movie to watch if sat here alone of an evening. My son loves these movies and he has them all (but I haven’t seen many of them) hence not many on here. My score is based on what I thought the quality of the movie as I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the movie as it does play the characters well and leads you into the movie even if like me this wouldn’t be the film I would naturally choose to watch so I hope you enjoy it too.
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