Entertainingly Impressive, Brilliantly Witty and Emotionally Established. However...

Rating: 8/10 (2 April 2015)

The opening of Fast and Furious 7 unleashes Jason Statham as Deckard Shaw upon the screen, the older brother of Owen (Luke Evans), the lead antagonist from the previous feature. The power exhibited during this opening however is seldom felt again, and despite Mr Statham's astounding capabilities, the script inhibits his quality to the extent that he is generally about as threatening as a pebble in one's shoe.
Upon Deckard igniting his quest for vengeance against Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel), and the other individuals involved in hospitalizing his brother, by killing Han (Sung Kang), Toretto, who, as always, is marvelously portrayed, finds himself outmatched. A man with the alias Mr. Nobody (Kurt Russell), a high ranking CIA operative, who is as suave as he is cool, approaches him. Tasked in removing Deckard, Mr. Nobody provides Toretto with an opportunity to get out in front of his opponent with a device called God's Eye, capable of hacking into all video surveillance devices and utilizing them to find anyone in the world. Unfortunately, the creator of this software, Ramsey (Nathalie Emmanuel) has been abducted by terrorists, and as any action by America would constitute an international incident, alternate means are necessary for a safe extraction - enter Toretto and his crew. With the device, they will be able to track Deckard - however, like any film, it is never that simple.
Unfortunately, this particular plot seems awfully redundant. Returning to the 'pebble in one's shoe' reference, Deckard continuously shows up at every confrontation to acquire his pound of flesh - basically, Toretto needn't fly halfway across the world for some gadgetry - he could just plant himself on a park bench and wait half an hour for Deckard to come to him. True, the storyline makes for some outstanding car sequences: ploughing through trees while crashing down a cliff; cruising through a luxurious suite on one of the topmost floors of a tower; racing down the streets of Los Angeles with a Predator drone in tow, among others, are all fantastically executed, though none of it feels to have been a legitimate requirement. Moreover, almost all of the action scenes require suspension of disbelief, the fact the characters are capable of surviving some of the incidents being highly suspicious.
The banter exhibited between Tyrese Gibson as Roman, and Ludicrous as Tej, is as humorous and witty as it was in the previous installment, if not even more entertaining, the few stunts Tej becomes involved in really accentuating his character's persona. Even Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) has more than a few memorable one-liners, despite his small role, and the inclusion of Eden Estrella as his charmingly enjoyable daughter Samantha, adds further depth. However, it is Michelle Rodriguez as Letty, whose performance is the most outstanding. A conversation between her and Toretto at the beginning, where she reveals the heart-wrenching pain of being crippled by amnesia, sets the scene for her character's journey, and lines she admits towards the end of the feature are beautifully impacting.
The tribute at the feature's end to Paul Walker is very touching, and the words Mr Diesel says are as brotherly as they are passionate. During the film, Mr Walker seems to have less screen time as Brian O'Connor than he had in previous movies. Any digital superimposing that was promulgated to complete his role in the movie was amazingly established, Brian's story focusing on whether he would dedicate himself to living with Mia (Jordana Brewster) and their son, as a father who drives a mini-van (one of the film's most comically painful scenes), or continue to involve himself in fierce confrontations.
Despite Deckard been largely alone in his plot for vengeance, other antagonists are portrayed by the unmistakable Tony Jaa, who participates in a number of amazingly choreographed fights, and the always impressive Djimon Hounsou, as terrorist leader Jakande. Respectively, both actors received limited roles, and deserved more screen time, especially considering Mr. Hounsou's presence can equally rival Mr. Diesel's. Towards the end of the feature, it is annoying that Jakande is only capable of saying 'what?' almost a dozen times as his plans are individually and irreparably torn asunder, while the vendetta he has against Toretto is as immature as it is unnecessary.
The musical score strongly resembles the former films, which assisted in immersing this feature in the franchise, and though, for the most part, the movie flowed gloriously, it was towards the end that the film began to feel unnaturally forced, the conclusion to the final battle being as anti-climatic as it is predictable. Too many coincidental moments flooded this movie, in which a protagonist arrived at the right moment to save another hero, while at the same time, unanswered questions, like, how a group of terrorists, armed with sophisticated technology, managed to make it onto American soil undetected - leave notable holes in the plot.
For the most part, entertainingly, characteristically and emotionally, Fast and Furious 7 delivers on all fronts, with impressive visuals, action-packed scenarios, well executed humor, tension and drama. It is unfortunate the villains, who were equally superb, did not receive the same attention, and it is further unsatisfying that the concluding battle seems to crash and burn, much like some of the damaged vehicles.