A Good Sendoff To Paul Walker

Rating: 7/10 (17 August 2019)

Furious 7 is a solid entry in the Fast and Furious franchise but it's, by no means, spectacular. I know you shouldn't expect too much from one of these movies, but, while, I liked and had fun with the film, I still think it's not on the same tear as the previous two movies. This is now the highest-rated movie of the franchise on Rotten Tomatoes and I don't think it warrants that. While I can definitely say I enjoyed this more than the first four installments I think it not as good as Fast Five or Six. The story has two main faults that put it bellow those films for me.
The film does many things right. It is a lot of fun despite by grips with it. Vin Diesel and the rest (for the most part) reprise their roles here and they do a pretty good job. The effects, like in the last two films are very well-done as well.
I also love what they did in the end. I loved the tribute to Paul Walker at the very end. It was sweet and served as a nice send-off too him. I'm glad he went out on a fairly high note. I didn't even notice it was his brother doing many of Paul's scenes. Whether it was the effects or the way it was shot, they did a good job in that regard.
The action is a lot of fun as insane as it is. I warn you will have to suspend your disbelief immensely to enjoy the action here. This took the over-the-top nature that the previous films had and intensified it to the tenth power. The action seems to get crazier with each film. However, despite it was still highly entertaining. This film might have the most and greatest action scenes of all the movies; even Fast Six.
However, as I stated before I have two major problems. One is that the film seems very unfocused. The previous films all had a simple structure and a basic singular goal. In this movie it starts out with Jason Statham's character hunting Toretto and the group. However, then it shifts to this completely out-of-nowhere plotline regarding the God's Eye and Djimon's character for the entire middle portion and Statham gets put on the backburner. Statham occasionally shows-up to remind us he's in the movie but not much focus is given to him.
Statham should have been the main villain and focus. He's the more interesting villain and one presenting the most personal conflict for the heroes. It's like they needed this other plot just to give the rest of the cast something to do and to show more over-the-top fights. Instead he's played as more of an afterthought for most of it which is my second big problem. Also the way he gets beaten is extremely underwhelming as well. Kurt Russell is there but he doesn't get to do much either. That is more of a minor grip but it irked me.
Overall, Furious 7 is an entertaining film with some great action. If you like Vin Diesel and the rest of the Fast crew (except Han) you won't be disappointed. I don't think it's as good as the previous few installments but still found it serviceable and a good send-off for Walker. If you like this series then check this out.