Slight-of-hand cinematic trickery for the young and the gullible

Rating: Null/10 (17 September 2002)

Okay, I know this film was aimed at the 18-25 year market, and I watched it fully aware of the fact it would be filled with roaring supercharged cars and equally supercharged attitudes, but there was one glaring oversight that ruined the total effect for me. During the street racing scene, where the contestants successfully blocked off about 100 amazingly straight blocks of downtown LA with no apparent notice by the police or unsuspecting motorists, didn't anyone notice that the same supporters, friends, and female groupies were at the finish line RIGHT AFTER the racers arrived? I mean, no sooner had these guys pulled up than their adoring fans, who had been at the starting line, were piling all over their cars. What, did they follow them at the same 100+ mph speeds, or did they take the side streets? And I'd still like to know how they managed to block off all those intersections with hundreds of spectators without tipping the rest of LA off. For my money, I'd still take "Gone in 60 Seconds" or the classic "Vanishing Point." "Fast and Furious" was not a bad movie, but it was about as believable as "Cannonball Run."