This movie is driving me crazy. It's an awful skid mark on film.

Rating: 5/10 (15 May 2013)

The Fast and the Furious is just a movie with gas fumes of half-baked ideas for a popcorn flick. The movie is simple mindless full of hot chicks and fast cars. 'Petrolheads' probably did like it as it was the sleeper hit of 2001, and spawned many sequels. Still, the movie had mixed reviews, and in my opinion, they didn't go all the way in entertaining the kind of audience this movie was aimed towards. In the movie, there were few street races and not to mention the fact that the street racing element is just dressing for a bland, generic plot of thieves stealing commercial goods. If I went to go see a racing movie, and found myself watching a Point Break (1991) rip-off. I would be disappointed. The story goes like this, rather than having intense full-throttle action fun, awesome high-speed stunts, and full-on pedal to the metal intensity, the movie goes into another direction by having an undercover cop, Brian (Paul Walker) infiltrates an underworld subculture of Los Angeles street racers looking to bust them for stealing goods. He soon befriends the leader of the group, Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and begins to question if he should turn him in, or let him free for one last ride. The movie is supposed to be fast and the furious, but it's not- it's slow pace like a grandma driving in the fast lace in the highway. The limit racing in this movie are over so quickly they're just boring as the movie puts countless amounts of filler scenes of talking that don't further the plot. There are unfinished sub plots. The movie spend all that time developing a love interest, and then you aren't going to let us know what happens? What the hell, movie! I know the movie was going to be for the low-brow, so I didn't expect a life lesson, I want to entertain. This movie was flat out lackluster. There's not enough action. The movie has a lot of flash, but the characters are dull and not interesting enough, with cars replace for personalities. That is, of course, with the exception of Toretto, who thanks to that scene about his dad and Diesel's performance, shines above the material. Still Diesel's acting is mediocre, at best. I presumed they were going to sell them off for upgrades to their cars and bikes, like Toretto was doing with his stolen goods. It's not made clear, though. It doesn't make much sense, either. The cars in the film are not that real to the real deal. Doing a wheelie while burning the the rubber on the rear tires of a 900hp Charger at the same time is simply not possible. First of all, don't expect any kind of realism from this movie. I was dumbfounded when the Brian's Honda floorboard came out of his passenger side when he used his nitrous boost and then his engine blew smoke. Next scene, after this, he picks up someone who was running from the cops with his car and drove away as if it's brand new. I didn't know Brian's puke green car came with a healing factor modified in his engine. What is with each of the "underground street races" have so many spectators on long streets block off. Not once, you think the police would just look for a large street block off and arrested them. The women in this movie are just drop dead hot, but it's weird for them to be hanging out at underground racing. I don't see many women there, at less not as hot as Jordana Brewster. The movie is supposed to be about Import-car racing which is a spectacle started by Asian American auto enthusiasts. How does "The Fast and the Furious" pay tribute to the sport's Asian American heritage? Make them the villains in the film. The movie has a lot of loud noises, and soundtrack full of the worst music artist at the time, Limp Bizkit and Ja Rule. The techno rock is a bit annoying. Like the 1955 film, The Fast and the Furious which is not based on, but took the title rights from, this movie is less for smart adults and more for kids who shell out money to pimp their car and add a 4" diameter exhaust to it, thinking it's cool. Don't get me wrong, I love cars, but you don't see me endangering other drivers by driving fast illegally on city urban street. I like driving fast in the country side where it's less dangerous for other drivers. I think the movie glorified the illegal street racing way too much that it's a bit unhealthy. I think the movie is a bit far fetch from reality where most illegal street racers end up getting killed due to crashes or other car racers car-jacking your car before you can race. So it's not worth it. People like seeing cars go vroom and potential cause untold amounts of property damage. That must be it. Still, there are better movies than this. Go see the chase scenes in Bullitt (1975), the French Connection (1979) or Ronin. (1998). Even modern movies like Drive (2011) are better than this movie. If you have to watch the movies, go rent it, don't buy it. I wouldn't advice thinking too much into this, it's just mindless popcorn flick and also don't complain if you hate it, cause I did warn you about seeing it. It's still driving me up the wall.