2015: The Year in Film: "Furious 7" Review

The evolution of the "Fast and Furious" franchise from "throwaway 90's schlock" to "best non-superhero action series" is legitimately one of the more preposterous developments in the history of film. It may be THE most preposterous moment outside of when people let Birth of a Nation happen and rekindle the worst elements of neo-confederacy. Read more about my journey of discovery of the joys of this series here: Two Fast, Two Curious. Whatever the series was a decade ago, 5 and 6 were legitimately good, and a hell of a lot of fun, so Furious 7 immediately became one of my most anticipated movies of the year, especially in light of 6's post-credits sequence. The death of Paul Walker mid-shoot immediately cast a pall over the film, but it did lend an air of finality to the proceedings. It's safe to say that Furious 7 will be the end of the road for our heroes.

Furious 6 saw our heroes working on the side of the angels, working with Hobbs (The Rock) and the government to bring down a former British special forces soldier turned mercenary and his crew. After winning the day in ridiculous fashion, it's revealed after the credits that Tokyo Drift TAKES PLACE AFTER FURIOUS 6 and Shaw's brother (Jason Statham) is on the warpath for revenge. Down Han and Gisele, Torretto and co. find themselves hunted by a very, very bad man. They'll need to join forces for "one last ride" to stop the bad guy and win the day.

The Good: Vin Diesel's performance in 5, 6 and 7 is one of the great movie star turns of our time. I truly mean this. His Dominic Torretto barely speaks, and is the epitome of the "strong and silent" type. Brad Pitt in the Ocean's series and Vin Diesel in the F&F series put on a clinic of how to do more with less. The rest of the cast settles into their established roles, (newcomer Kurt Russell, especially, just chews up scenery) and they are clearly so comfortable riffing with one another that their chemistry and clear affection for one another is magnetic. It doesn't even matter that Paul Walker (RIP) was flat and boring, because everyone clearly likes each other. At its best points, these films are about close friends hanging out, and that's just fun to watch when it's accompanied by some of the more absurd action sequences ever put on film. Ludacris is enjoyable and Tyrese's character is ridiculous as always. The flick continues the trend established in 5 and 6 where our heroes, once small-time criminals, are now basically elite special forces, able to take on military and international terrorists without much of a problem, and I'm strangely comfortable with that. There's been a change behind the camera, with James Wan taking over for Justin Lin (who directed 3-6), and his action choreography is nearly as impressive. There's a sense of grand scale behind the action scenes in these films that's unlike nearly anything else that's being done today. The film embraces its absurdity and runs with it, encouraging the audience to laugh along with its ridiculousness. Plus, I won't spoil anything, but the film does a hell of a send-off for Paul Walker that's legitimately heart-wrenching.



The Bad: whether this is because Furious 6 was so good or because this film is relatively lacking, but it feels like a step down from 5 and 6. It's still big, and crazy, and a lot of fun, but the film misses Han and Gisele a lot, and we aren't given anyone to replace them really.  This flick also suffers from showing so many awesome moments in the trailer. Look at that trailer. Those scenes are ridiculous... and completely spoiled. Since we already know that's happening, it takes away from the "wow" factor in the movie itself. I mean, cars parachuting from a plane? Paul Walker running up a bus? Those are awesome and I wish I didn't already know they were coming. This film also suffers from a lack of the Rock compared to 5 and 6. The Rock is sidelined for most of the flick, which makes sense from a plot standpoint, it's hard for anyone to be outgunned when The Rock is on your side, but we need more Rock, guys. Also, this flick suffers from the absence of Lin's steadying hand. It feels juvenile in comparison to 5 and 6 in parts, and there are some gratuitous shots that honestly made me feel like a creep. WAY too many lingering shots on sexy ladies, which feels jarring in a series that legitimately had strong and well-rounded female characters in 5 and 6.

So, in all, if you like 5 and 6, you're going to like this one, even if it's not QUITE as good. The film really does a great job sending off Paul Walker, and honestly was a bit of a tear-jerker. I hope that his family appreciates the gesture, because I'm not quite sure that anyone has ever gotten as great of a send-off as the one this film gives him. He did legitimately seem like a good dude, so I'm glad that the flick saw fit to honor him in that way. A good, really fun, but not great conclusion to the most ridiculous series of all time.

7/10.