Okay to watch, but done before! (very minor spoilers)

Rating: Null/10 (20 February 2002)

As other reviews have stated, this is a carbon copy of 'Point Break', except with cars! Only thing is, 'Point Break' was much better! The plot points are just way too similar and even Paul Walker sounds like Keanu Reeves- which is really uncanny! The difference between the two films is that 'Point Break' had better characters, more realism and heightened suspense for an action movie! 'The Fast and the Furious' is strongly missing these elements. Some of the dialogue is really bad, but also the characters are very flat and there seems to be hokey attempts to develop some of them. Dominic (Vin Diesel) is developed slightly along with Jesse (Chad Lindberg), but Brian (Paul Walker), the main character, has no real apparent motive or development! Also, Dominic's sister Mia (Jordana Brewster) is completely uninteresting in a unconvincing romance between her and Brian.
The cars, and drag races themselves are well done and fast-paced. The editing and visual effects are great, and the cinematography is nice as well. Actually, the cinematography seems to be the core aspect of the scenes/shot rather than the performance. Director, Rob Cohen ('Dragonheart', 'The Skulls') seems to focus on action and visuals rather than drama in 'The Fast and the Furious'! The fact that the story is just too similar to 'Point Break' gives grounds of comparison for this film. 'The Fast and the Furious' lacks drama, and believability, even for an action film! The acting is nothing sensational, and is distracted by slick visuals and lame story-line and dialogue! It's okay to watch, and isn't as bad as others have said, but still I'm glad I didn't see this one at the cinemas. Average! Didn't absolutely hate it, and I was entertained with the impressive car racing scenes. **1/2 out of *****!