Rating: PG-13 | Runtime: 106 minutes
Release Date: June 22nd, 2001 (USA)
Studio: Universal Pictures
Director(s): Rob Cohen
Writer(s): Gary Scott Thompson and Erik Bergquist and David Ayer / Gary Scott Thompson (story) / Ken Li (VIBE magazine article “Racer X”)

I smell skanks.

Ah, The Fast and the Furious. The film that launched the careers of Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Jordana Brewster, and, for all intents and purposes, Michelle Rodriguez (who starred in Girlfight previously). This quartet was so hot after its release that some of them refused to demean themselves by starring in a sequel. Yet, just a short eight years later, they’ve all jumped at the opportunity to reunite with their fast cars for a fourth installment. Oh how the mighty fall. Especially when they weren’t too mighty in the first place.

I had my own preconceptions about this popcorn flick that made me never want to take a chance on it. I thought the acting would be amateurish and campy. The story ludicrously absurd. And the cheese factor too high to overcome. Well, after finally sitting down to check it out, I realized I was clairvoyant. I hoped to at least have fun (and for a couple moments I did), but this Rob Cohen disaster proves to be a throwaway overall that only shows how influential teenage boys are to the Hollywood machine. How else could we have three theatrical sequels to a made-for-TV movie at best?

I definitely see the similarities to Point Break that my friend told me existed. It even goes to the point where I could have believed Paul Walker was Keanu Reeves if I closed my eyes. Where this film goes wrong, though, is having Brewster siphon some of Walker’s love away from Diesel. What works so well in that Kathryn Bigelow classic is that there are more than just allusions to a man-crush between Reeves and Patrick Swayze. That dynamic doesn’t quite exist here.

Walker’s Spilner/O’Connor may respect Diesel’s Toretto, but he never idolizes him. He sees a misguided soul who watched his father burn to death on the racetrack. He sees a man who is nothing without his sister and racing team—his own makeshift family. Whether Toretto is behind the truck-jacking or not, Walker is only staying close to find out … and get with Mia, of course.

Speaking of that truck-jacking—is it just me or is that opening scene completely out-of-place? The film begins with four Hondas harassing a trucker before taking the driver out and, presumably, stealing his shipment. The cut is so abrupt that you never find out what, if anything, they do with that cargo. In fact, because the next scene is in daylight with Walker, I thought maybe he was already involved and waiting for the rest of the crew. Instead, he floors his car, swears, and is suddenly at Mia’s diner. It’s so discombobulating that I wanted to just turn the film off. Only once Walker goes back to work at Harry’s do we find out why he swore. And it’s even longer until we discover where those trucks come into play. But this isn’t trying to win storytelling awards. It’s just doing its best to entertain and titillate. Unfortunately, it did little of either.

The acting is pretty forgettable across the board with Rodriguez proving the best of the four in a limited role. I didn’t mind Diesel too much since the guy has charisma, but Walker’s Keanu-speak was distracting because I don’t remember him ever talking like that in other films. And when the cast is rounded out by stilted delivery from Rick Yune, Ja Rule, and Matt Schulze—the moment when Brewster asks Walker out and Schulze elbows the wall in anger made me laugh out loud—you know you shouldn’t be expecting much else. Although, Chad Lindberg’s whiz-kid engine technician showed a lot of promise. I guess even the most asinine films have a diamond in the rough somewhere.

If anyone reading this has wanted to see it, don’t let me stop you. I’m the first to admit that I have never seen the appeal of cars—speed, aesthetic, or otherwise. Since The Fast and the Furious is all about the cars, it had a pretty large strike against it from the beginning. I also don’t particularly care for action films devoid of a strong story. That said, however, I had a fun time with the trucker’s revenge sequence while watching Diesel attempt to save Schulze. It all kind of gets ruined with Vin’s “anger” afterwards and his blind rage for payback against Yune’s Johnny Tran, but at least one high-octane moment kept my interest.

It’s a good thing too because the ending is as abrupt as the start—answering any questions about where our two leads’ relationship will go with wordless looks and nods. These two understand each other. They are kindred spirits who’ve opened their souls. One’s a hardened criminal and the other an undercover cop, but both have the streets to unite them. No loose ends are sealed and the fate of many is left unanswered. I would love to see how Walker explains who was stealing the electronic equipment to his superiors, though. The filmmakers probably never thought they’d get a sequel and decided it really didn’t matter.

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Vin Diesel and Paul Walker in Universal’s THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS.