TITLE: Furious 7
DIRECTOR: James Wan
CAST: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Jason Statham, Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster, Tyrese Gibson, Ludacris, Dwayne Johnson, Kurt Russell, Tony Jaa, Djimoun Hounsou, Ali Fazal, Ronda Rousey
CLASSIFICATION: 13 LV
RUNNING TIME: 138 minutes
RATING: 3 stars (out of 5)
Theresa Smith
FURIOUS 7, the latest film in the Fast & Furious muscle car franchise, bucks all trends by being better than expected. In fact, it follows the Fast & Furious trend started in number 4, when the films actually started getting better.
Wonderfully diverting, silly and fun, the film is filled with relentless action on a large scale, with one set piece following the next as property is destroyed in spectacular, albeit consequence free, fashion. It even has a bit of sentimental oomph (sniff sniff) as Dominic Toretto (Diesel) constantly reminds all and sundry that family is all.
Ok, so the stunts are totally over the top – we aren’t even jumping the shark here, we are jumping three buildings and a helicopter.
But the precision driving is spot on and the film gives fans exactly what they expect – fast cars screeching down the road, hot girls dressed in less and a tight, loyal crew that will do anything for their family.
What? You were expecting a street fight?
The film starts off with Jason Statham striding through a hospital he has just destroyed as an excuse to drive off in a really gorgeous Jaguar F-Type. Because, yes, bad guys drive Jags.
He plays Deckard Shaw, brother to the bad guy from Fast & Furions 6 and he wants revenge. Now, the person in the hospital bed is actually hooked up to all sorts of beeping machines, and he threatens the hospital staff to keep his brother alive.
It starts on a confusing note and, well, don’t investigate the details too closely. Really. Don’t go looking for impeccable logic in this overly convoluted storyline. Instead, sit back and just watch the impossible stunts unfold. Director James Wann does a great job of juggling multiple action sequences which run parallel and even when you are about to cover your eyes groaning at the sheer ridiculousness of it all, you still watch between your fingers.
Shaw targets Dominic Toretto and his friends, which include Agent Hobbs (Johnson), and we even see some people pop up we haven’t seen since four films ago. While well-edited, the film does feel like a callback celebrating the franchise’s entire history.
Offered government resources by a friend of Hobbs – played by Kurt Russell with the almightiest of winks – the team is assembled to track down a hacker who has created a brilliant programme all the bad guys, and a few good guys, want.
This is where the precision driving really comes in, and Tony Jaa puts in an appearance as a bad guy, with those slick moves that not even Brian O’Conner (Walker) can quite overcome. Of course, the big fight is the one between Diesel and Statham, and before they get down and dirty there is the obligatory game of car chicken.
The franchise has created its own shorthand: you’ve got to have Dominic in his long-sleeve white T-shirt, revving up the black monster of a Dodge Charger R/T, while Brian scrambles to take out the rank and file and keep the plan running.
Tej and Roman have to constantly bicker about the best course of action and, of course, Lettie has to drive in at the last minute to save the day. Or person. Or both.
Ultimately though, this was always about the bromance between Dominic and Brian and the film’s ending will have the biggest car fans sniffing quietly into their popcorn.
But, for now, this one is very much for the fans – one long, sentimental goodbye to Paul Walker – and it is hard to see that any sequel will top that fade to white.
If you liked Fast and Furious way back in 2001, you will like this.
WIN! WIN! WIN!
To celebrate the nationwide release of Furious 7, Tonight is giving 5 lucky readers the chance to win a Fast and Furious 7 hamper. Each hamper consists of a water bottle, a T-shirt, and a selection of Fast and Furious DVDs.
To stand a chance of winning, all you have to do is send your name and contact details to [email protected]. Please put “Furious 7 Competition” in the subject field.
The competition closes on Wednesday, April 8, at midnight. Only the winners will be contacted.