Through the end of May, I’m looking back at the nine movies of the “Fast & Furious” franchise, watching most of them for the first time. Next up is the seventh movie, “Furious 7” (2015):
STRENGTHS
The seventh film, which finds Chris Morgan returning as the writer but James Wan taking over directing duties from Justin Lin (who helmed parts 3-6), has the requisite action spectacle and banter, plus a smidgen of commentary about spy software via God’s Eye. The farewell epilogue to Brian and the late Paul Walker is done with class.
WEAKNESSES
Yes, “F7” is a fun movie; I won’t argue with its defenders on that point. But it’s throwaway entertainment, and it could’ve been so much more. Terminators are easier – much easier — to kill than these people. Dom (Vin Diesel) unquestionably should’ve died at least four times in this film. This “fun” approach undercuts any real stakes, something that’s present (if barely) in earlier films.
“Furious 7” (2015)
Director: James Wan
Writer: Chris Morgan
Stars: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Dwayne Johnson
COOLEST CHARACTER
Ramsey (Nathalie Emmanuel). Ramsey is a programmer – she develops God’s Eye – and hacker on par with Tej (Ludacris), and she has one of those smooth British accents. She fits right in with the crew, which was in need of a little more gender balance.
WOMEN’S ROLE
Mia (Jordana Brewster) now cranks out kids like she used to crank out tuna sandwiches; although she has been an active participant in past films, Mia represents domestic life here – leaving bullet-loving Brian with a tough choice. Letty (Michelle Rodriguez) kicks her usual amount of ass, even holding her own for a while against henchwoman Kara (Ronda Rousey); Rousey is the third fighter-turned-actor to enter this franchise, following Dwayne Johnson and Gina Carano. As noted above, Ramsey is a welcome addition to the team.
VILLAINS
Not one, but two, respected actors play villains. Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) is out for revenge on Dom for killing his brother in the previous movie. Plus, in a bit of unnecessary complexity, the U.S. government also wants Shaw for some reason that’s quickly stated but was missed by me. Jakande (Djimon Hounsou) is in the over-the-top baddie mode, angry and cursing as he aims to retrieve Ramsey – whose knowledge is needed for God’s Eye to work, or something like that. He’s also obsessed with killing Dom, not realizing that Dom is inexplicably invincible.
TOO GOOD FOR THIS MOVIE
Kurt Russell as Mr. Nobody. The head of a secret U.S. agency with even more clout than Hobbs’ DSS, Mr. Nobody essentially points Dom at the villains to make it easier on himself. Russell adds way more panache to “F7” than it deserves.
MOST THRILLING SEQUENCE
It had to happen eventually: Dom’s racing team runs into bad-guy vehicles armed with armor-piercing mounted machine guns. Smartly, they all line up behind Tej’s bulletproof SUV. One thing leads to another, and Brian is fighting a kung-fu lackey in the back of a van. It’s a crazy sequence, but it’s a throwback to previous films in that it’s barely plausible. That can’t be said about most of the “F7” action.
THAT’S RIDICULOUS
I had thought the pre-“Tokyo Drift” adventures take place before 2006, since these interquels have been careful to show flip phones. But “F7” reveals – via her headstone from when people thought she was dead – that Letty’s “death” was in 2009. Thus, “Tokyo Drift” takes place in about 2015. So that explains everyone’s aging – except for Sean (Lucas Black), who ages nine years between two scenes.
Dom and Shaw crash their cars into each other at full speed, twice. Both are unharmed both times.
The gang parachutes their cars into enemy territory. We’re told GPS on the parachutes leads them to the road. The logic is shaky as hell, but admittedly, the portrayal of the parachuting cars isn’t too shabby.
Dom, with Ramsey as a passenger, drives his car off a cliff to escape Jakande’s men. They are strapped in similar to NASCAR drivers, granted, but it pushes believability that they are both more or less fine.
Dom jumps a car through the air from one Abu Dhabi skyscraper to another. Then he does it again, into a third skyscraper.
Dom vaults his car off an incline, hooks a bag of grenades to the enemy chopper and crashes into the pile of concrete below. (Earlier, a parking garage had blown up, as tends to happen in these movies.) After failed CPR and Letty’s inspirational speech that prompts him to continue to live, Dom turns out to be fine.
The hospitalized Hobbs flexes and rips off his cast, and heads into battle. (Actually, that sounds about right for The Rock.) Then he crashes an ambulance into a guided missile in order to block it from hitting his allies. He walks out of the windshield area, sideways, in perfect health, with a one-liner in the chamber (“I am the cavalry.”).
CHEESIEST DIALOGUE
Roman (at Han’s funeral): “Promise me something, Brian. I don’t wanna go to any more funerals.”
Brian: “Only one more.” (They see Shaw’s car driving by). “His.”
FAMILY VALUES
Knowing Walker died during the period of this film’s shooting, I figured Brian would get killed off, but Morgan and Wan come up with an artful, classy conclusion wherein Brian decides he’s ready for the domestic life. Family-oriented Dom is certainly wired to understand that. They meet for one last ride, and each takes a different fork in the road.
FINAL THOUGHTS/EXPECTATIONS
Every viewer draws their line somewhere, and for me it’s “F7” that goes too far in defying the believability of the gang surviving – let alone being uninjured. It’s too bad, because the plot and villains are decent, and Brian’s dilemma of action versus family life is a good one. The epilogue/Walker-tribute no doubt had many fans shedding well-earned tears. For the first time in a while, there isn’t an obvious thread to hand off to the next movie, so it could go in any direction.
Schedule of reviews:
Saturday, May 16: “The Fast and the Furious” (2001)
Sunday, May 17: “2 Fast 2 Furious” (2003)
Wednesday, May 20: “The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift” (2006)
Thursday, May 21: “Fast & Furious” (2009)
Saturday, May 23: “Fast Five” (2011)
Sunday, May 24: “Fast & Furious 6” (2013)
Wednesday, May 27: “Furious 7” (2015)
Thursday, May 28: “The Fate of the Furious” (2017)
Saturday, May 30: “Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw” (2019)