"Where Movie Critics Get A Taste Of Their Own Medicine!"
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Will this fast car movie make you furious?
by Herb Kane
June 30, 2001
out
of 4 stars (PG-13)
CRITIC DOCTOR EXAMINES: Owen Gleiberman (Entertainment Weekly), James Kendrick (qnetwork.com), Heather Wadowski (FilmThreat.com), Mick LaSalle (San Francisco Chronicle), Andrew O'Hehir (Salon.com), Berge Garabedian (Joblo.com), David Perry (cinema-scene.com), Dave White (ifilm.com), Roger Ebert & Richard Roeper ("Ebert & Roeper and the Movies" - Buena Vista TV), Rob Blackwelder (splicedwire.com) and Andrew Manning (radiofree.com)
When I first saw the movie trailer for "The Fast and the
Furious," I thought to myself, "Uh, oh," (as thoughts
of last year's "Gone in 60 Seconds" raced through my
mind). So will this race car movie drive down the same dead-end
road or will it pass the checkered flag?
"The Fast and the Furious" is a film about rival Los
Angeles street teams who use illegal street racing as their way
of establishing power. A rookie cop, Brian O'Conner (Paul Walker),
goes undercover as a racing team member to investigate truck hijackings
on the interstate. When he wins the trust of hotshot leader Dominic
Toretto (Vin Diesel), the story kicks into high gear - with Diesel
in the movie's driver seat.
Owen Gleiberman (Entertainment Weekly) said, "Diesel
can be a powerful actor (he ruled 'Boiler Room' like a pumped
up Miguel Ferrer), but 'The Fast and the Furious,' in trying to
make him 'noble,' just ends up bleaching his surly charisma."
If the bleach did anything, Owen, it made Diesel's charisma shine!
Indeed better roles will come for Vin Diesel, but his uniqueness
as an actor stands out in this film like big bright headlights.
Many critics agree:
Actor Paul Walker, on the other hand, got a bad rap from critics.
David Perry (cinema-scene.com) said Walker "fails
on nearly every level." Heather Wadowski (filmthreat.com)
said, "Walker is as bland as ever and supplies further support
for those who think he's landing roles simply based on his good
looks." Both critics just didn't get it. Walker's character
worked because of his chemistry with Diesel. If anything, this
is Walker's greatest career move!
Dave White (ifilm.com) said, "For the record, this
movie is actually stupider than 'Driven' and 'Gone in 60 Seconds.'
I know, I know, you're thinking, 'How can this be?' But it is
the truth."
That's the stupidest movie comparison I ever heard! For the love
of God, Dave. "Gone in Sixty Seconds" had no
story! The characters sucked! And the movie had fewer car scenes
(though many were good). I liked "Driven," but neither
film even comes close to "The Fast and the Furious."
Perhaps, Dave, you should have watched "Ebert and
Roeper."
This week on "Ebert & Roeper and the Movies"
(Buena Vista TV), Richard Roeper (Chicago Sun-Times) concludes
the movie should be called 'The Dumb and the Reckless.'"
Roger Ebert got it right (listen up Dave White):
"It got exactly what it wanted to get done. It delivered
this kind of summer exploitation mentality in a clever way, instead
of a dumb way."
Yes. We've seen this movie before and it even has some cheesy
dialog. Owen Gleiberman brilliantly calls it "'Point
Break' on hot wheels." It's not the smartest movie, but it's
not necessarily dumb either. But it does have a story and guts
- relying very little on CGI special effects. You feel the rush
when cars go fast and there is a really cool stunt scene involving
a train you must see.
Rob Blackwelder (splicedwire.com) said, "Can't somebody
just make a highlights film of race scenes from pointless movies
like 'Driven,' 'Gone in 60 Seconds' and 'The Fast and the Furious'
so we can watch the zooming cars without having to put up with
the brain-dead plots?"
Uh, Rob? Ever think of just going to a racetrack?
Andrew Manning (radiofree.com) summed the movie up best:
"Faster than 'Gone in Sixty Seconds' and more furious than
'Driven.'"
This movie rockets passed the checkered flag and wins 4 stars!
It's about time a light summer movie about fast cars kept my interest.
Get in your car now and go see it!
--CRITIC DOCTOR
© Copyright 2001 by Herb Kane
All rights reserved.
www.criticdoctor.com
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CAST:
Dominic Toretto: Vin Diesel
Brian O'Conner: Paul Walker
Mia Toretto: Jordana Brewster
Letty: Michelle Rodriguez
Johnny Tran: Rick Yune
DIRECTOR: Rob Cohen
PRODUCER: Neal H. Moritz
SCREENPLAY: Gary Scott Thompson and Erik Bergquist and
David Ayer
U.S. DISTRIBUTOR: Universal Pictures
RELEASE DATE: 06.22.2001
RUNNING TIME: 101 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG-13 (sexual situations and language)
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