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The Fast and the Furious (2001)

Director: Rob Cohen

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2 reviews

Movie review

From Time Out Film Guide

A surprise hit at the US box office, Cohen's teen hotrod flick revives fond memories of Roger Corman's B-movie thrills, the kind of unpretentious drive-in fodder directors like Demme and Scorsese cut their teeth on. Walker plays Brian, the good-looking young auto-fiend who none too subtly insinuates himself into the circle of Dom Toretto (Diesel) and his street-racing gang. Brian's an undercover cop, but he has more on his mind than speeding tickets: someone's been jacking trucks in daredevil stunt-driving fashion, and Dom is suspect numero uno. The twists are well signposted. Brian finds an alternate family among the desperadoes and falls hard for Dom's sister; when the time comes to do his duty, it feels like betrayal. It doesn't matter that we know where it's going, what counts is that Cohen keeps his pedal to the floor and that his actors gun their lines with absolute conviction. Loud cars, fast music: this movie knows exactly what it's about.

Author: TCh 0000-00-00 00:00:00

Time Out Film Guide

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User reviews of this film

yduric said...

Posted on Sep 01 2007 01:37 A real and genuine fun. And, most of all, but I think it is its major strength, unpretentious. This lack of pretention, however, does not prevent Vin Diesel from delivering a very good performance, perfectly suited for him, and Paul Walker to a certain degree as well: he is perfect as Vin Diesel's 'constant shadow' throughout the film. There is also a certain lack of credibility for what affects the plot, but finally, who cares? It is maybe also this lack of credibility which turns this real joy ride into a wish for absolute freedom and rebellion.

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Leona Luk said...

Posted on Jul 28 2007 16:54 I suppose it was fast, however I didn't find this all that furious. I felt that 2 Fast 2 Furious had more to offer, and Tokyo Drift was more fun to watch. Still, I guess one could feel compelled to complete the trilogy by seeing where this madness all began.

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