Furious 7

***DISCLAIMER*** The following review is entirely my opinion. If you comment (which I encourage you to do) be respectful. If you don't agree with my opinion (or other commenters), that's fine. To each their own. These reviews are not meant to be statements of facts or endorsements, I am just sharing my opinions and my perspective when watching the film and is not meant to reflect how these films should be viewed. Finally, the reviews are given on a scale of 0-5. 0, of course, being unwatchable. 1, being terrible. 2, being not great. 3, being okay. 4, being great and 5, being epic! And if you enjoy these reviews feel free to share them and follow the blog or follow me on Twitter (@RevRonster) for links to my reviews and the occasional live-Tweet session of the movie I'm watching!  I'm not a car guy but I sure do love the roar of the engines and the fast action these films provide.

Furious 7 ? 4 out of 5

I guess you can say that the Fast and the Furious franchise is a guilty pleasure of mine but I?ve recently decided to stop using that term.  There?s no reason why something you enjoy should make you feel guilty.  If something entertains you?in any way, shape or form?then enjoy the hell out of it and don?t call it a guilty pleasure.  For example, I think the Final Destination films are stupid but stupidly fun and I get entertainment from that.  In a similar fashion, I openly admit that the Fast films are popcorn action spectacles filled with fast cars, insane action and gratuitous amounts of scantily clad ladies always making their way into shots but I find them fun for that.  In all honesty, the only film in the series I didn?t really care for was the second one but this one?Furious 7?was the most insane of all the films they?ve done so far and, you know what?  It was a goddamn blast!!!  (That?s right, a ?blast? with three freakin? exclamation points.)

Young lady, that skirt is way too short.  You are not going out dressed like that.

He's on the phone trying to get Liam Neeson to be
in the next film.

After leaving Owen Shaw (Luke Evans) in a broken state in the last film, Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and Brian O?Conner (Paul Walker) seem like they are going to settle into a relatively normal life.  However, Shaw?s brother Deckard (Jason Statham) is out for revenge.  After killing Han (Sung Kang)?the events seen in Tokyo Drift?and severely injuring Agent Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson), he sets his sights on taking out Dom and his crew.  However, a mysterious man calling himself Mr. Nobody (Kurt Russell) gets Dom and Brian?s team; Letty (Michelle Rodriguez), Roman (Tyrese Gibson) and Tej (Ludacris), and offers them a unique opportunity.  A terrorist by the name of Jakande (Djimon Housou) is after a super computer program called The God?s Eye and he kidnaps a hacker named Ramsey (Nathalie Emmanuel) to help him use it.  If Dom, Brian and the gang can get The God?s Eye, Mr. Nobody?s strike team will help them take out Deckard.

Hmm, Diesel is picking up a car.  You know what?  Fuck it.  At this point, these
characters are basically superheroes.

You can hate these films all you want but you gotta hand
it to the series for the stunts they do.

Furious 7 is basically a balls-to-the-walls, non-stop, adrenaline-laced, nitrous oxide-boosted thrill ride of popcorn action and spectacle that is hurled at your face with absolutely no fucks given?and I loved every goddamn second of it.  Haters of this franchise like to thumb their noses at the films and act like their intelligence is automatically higher because they don?t like it.  Over and over again I?ve been called stupid because I want to veg out and enjoy a wild action film like this once and awhile but one thing they never take into consideration is the powers behind these films are anything but lacking in intelligence.  The films wouldn?t be making the money and be one of the biggest franchises out there if they weren?t completely immersed in the psyches of their target demographic.  The series is also smart in the fact that it keeps trying to remain fresh.  When you compare this outing to the first film, there?s almost like they are from two different genres.  The films are now heist/crime thrillers and no longer racing films with a hint of crime action thrown in.  This feature continues with the new direction the franchise went and having Dom and the gang as basically vigilante superheroes in supped up cars continues to prove to be a working formula.  The action may be mindless but the production behind sure know what the fuck they are doing.

Sometimes I just want mindless explosions instead of deep characters and
rich dialogue.

Every Furious film has offered up sweet fast-pace action and this one is definitely no exception.  In fact, the action that comes into play might be some of the best and most excitingly constructed action I?ve seen.  Whether it?s the intense rescue of Ramsey from the hands of Jakande?s right hand man played by Tony Jaa or the all-out war that explodes across the scene and culminates in The Rock blasting every living thing to hell with a BFG, the action is blood-pumping, energetic and flippin? exciting.  It was an odd choice to have horror director James Wan take on a Fast film but he not only proved that he was up to the challenge but the way he constructed every shot and the sweeping, dynamic camera movements during the fun that he proved to be an extremely versatile director and that the depths of his talent clearly have no bottom.

For example, this scene in a rolling bus between Paul Walker and Tony Jaa
was extra amazing, awesome and exciting.

It would have been even cooler if he was playing
Jack Burton.

One thing that kinda surprised me a bit was with the cast.  It?s already freaking cool as shit that Kurt Russell was brought on because that man is cooler than cool and has a resume made up of some of my all-time favorite films.  Additionally, I really enjoyed Jason Statham as Deckard Shaw.  I?m honestly not the biggest fan of Statham?I don?t care for the Transporter films or the Expendable movies?but in the right role in the right film, I really enjoy the man and he was a perfect antagonist for the story.  Additionally, I was a little surprised by how much I enjoyed Tyrese Gibson and Ludacris in this sequel.  In previous films, I didn?t really care for their performances or their characters because I found them very uninteresting and the performances to be a little hacky?I always found them to be trying too hard to either be funny or be cool.  However, in this one, I found I really enjoyed them.  In fact, I actually found myself laughing at Gibson?s antics?something I never did in the other films.

Statham, seen here in what I can only describe as the cover to his
acoustic emo rock album.

Speaking of the cast, this film was the last feature to have Paul Walker in it due to his untimely death.  Overall, the production did a great job of using face-replacement, body doubles and digital scene swaps from previous films to fill in what they weren?t able to get before Walker passed.  More importantly, though, the story does a tremendous job of closing off Brian?s part of the family?s journey and it created something that offered closure and offered it up with a heaping dose of emotion.  It was honestly very hard to not cry watching it.  I?m not saying I did because I totes didn?t.  Someone broke into my home and started cutting onions and the speed at which they entered my domicile caused dust to stir and get in my eyes but I certainly didn?t cry.

This was very sweet--SHUT UP!  You're the one crying.

Hey, Lucas Black is back.  I wonder if we'll ever see him
in another one...

My complaints about the film are very few.  For example, the story is in a little bit of need for some further development.  This especially comes into play with Djimon Hounsou?s character.  While his placement makes sense it doesn?t stop him from feeling like he was a last minute addition to the story.  Additionally, the film expands on Letty?s amnesia and decides to resolve it but both its resolution and its treatment is very lackluster and very sloppily thrown into the mix.  Finally, I was a little disappointed that The Rock was written out of most of the story but when he comes back into play when the film?s mini-war starts up, this complaint becomes null and void because he makes a show that would rival his best wrestling match he?s ever done.

Looking at this picture will instantly cause you to go through puberty.
If you've already gone through puberty, prepare to go through it again.

Like I said, I won?t call Furious 7 a guilty pleasure because this movie is just hardcore popcorn action movie greatness.  James Wan makes the movie look fantastic, the cast is great, the stunts are eye-poppingly incredible, the action is exciting as hell and it continues to prove why this franchise makes butt loads of cash and that it isn?t slowing down and getting complacent.  From beginning to end, the film is a slick spectacle of insanity and it?s a freakin? blast to sit through.

FAST & FURIOUS 7 (2015) REVIEW : One Last Ride, For Paul

Sebagai salah satu franchise terbesar di perfilman Hollywood dan sudah mencapai seri ke enam, Fast & Furious tentu memiliki banyak fans setia. Meski, pakem cerita dari Fast & Furious pertama hingga seri terakhirnya sudah memiliki banyak perbedaan. Tetapi, Fast & Furious tetap saja menjadi salah satu franchise yang dinantikan kemunculannya bagi semua orang dengan timeline cerita yang mulai menarik. Terlebih, dengan mid-credit scene di seri ke enamnya.

 

Tahun ini, Fast & Furious hadir dengan seri terbarunya untuk melanjutkan timeline cerita dari Fast & Furious 6. Justin Lin, sebagai sutradara, meninggalkan seri ini dan memindah tangankan tempat tertinggi itu ke tangan James Wan. Film ini pun sempat sedikit terhambat karena kabar duka yang menimpa salah satu pemainnya. Paul Walker, salah satu pemeran utama di film ini meninggal akibat kecelakaan mobil di saat proyek film ini sedang berjalan. 

Setelah timeline cerita yang memiliki kesinambungan yang menarik, di Fast & Furious 7 melanjutkan kisah dari seri nomor 6 dan berkesinambungan dengan seri yang ketiga. Di mana, Deckard (Jason Statham) membalaskan dendam adiknya yang sudah di serang oleh Dom (Vin Diesel), Brian (Paul Walker), Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) serta kawanannya. Hidup mereka pun penuh dengan ancaman yang datang silih berganti yang disebabkan oleh Deckard.

Setelah kejadian na?as yang menimpa Hobbs, Dom dan Brian memutuskan untuk memburu Deckard untuk menangkapnya. Tetapi di tengah misinya untuk memburu Deckard, Dom dan Brian diberi tugas untuk mengambil barang yang sudah meretas sistem keamanan negara. God?s Eye, suatu sistem yang dapat menjadikan apapun menjadi sebuah ?senjata? ampuh untuk mengetahui keberadaan musuh. Dom dan Brian tahu hal tersebut berguna untuk memburu Deckard dan mau menerima misi tersebut.

Setelah Fast Five yang telah mencapai titik paling tinggi dari segala aspek filmnya, tentu mustahil ada seri lain dari film ini yang bisa melampaui seri kelima dari Fast & Furious. Benar juga, Fast & Furious 6 mengalami sedikit kemunduran jika dibandingkan dengan seri kelimanya. Tangan hangat Justin Lin memang bisa membuat franchise Fast & Furious naik level. Meskipun, para fans akan merasa kecewa karena hilangnya pakem ?balapan? yang ditawarkan sejak seri pertama. Tetapi, hal tersebut sudah diperbaiki lewat seri ke enam yang kembali menghadirkan pakem tersebut.

Maka, setelah kepergian Justin Lin dari bangku sutradara, Furious 7 pun berpindah tangan ke James Wan yang biasa menangani film-film horor. Hal ini pun membuat para penonton skeptis bahwa Furious 7 akan bisa tampil prima layaknya kedua seri sebelumnya. Tak di sangka, Furious 7 menjadi salah satu seri terbaik dari aksi Dom dan Brian. Memang tak tampil se-prima Fast Five dalam segi cerita, tetapi Furious 7 memberikan sesuatu yang lebih gila dan berbeda dibandingkan seri lainnya.

Jangan ragukan Fast & Furious dalam memberikan sekuens-sekuens gila menggunakan mobil balap. Akan selalu ada inovasi di setiap serinya saat mengendarai mobil balap. Begitu pun dengan seri terbaru dari franchise ini, James Wan memberikan kegilaan tanpa batas yang memang akan berada di luar logika manusia. Tetapi, inilah tujuan dari franchise ini bukan? Menyajikan kegilaan tanpa batas yang akan membuat penontonnya merasakan sensasi menyenangkan saat menontonnya. 

Akan ada banyak adegan dengan level kegilaan yang sangat besar dan megah. Bagusnya, James Wan pun bisa menghadirkan nyawa ke dalam setiap adegan sehingga rangkaian adegan itu tak hanya menjual kemegahannya tetapi juga ada tensi yang pas di dalamnya. Dan hal ini akan berdampak pada respon penonton yang tak akan berhenti berdecak kagum dan takjub dengan sekuens menyenangkan yang ditawarkan oleh James Wan ke dalam Fast & Furious 7.

Tak hanya decak kagum, tetapi ada sisi emosional yang akan terasa berbeda jika dibandingkan seri-seri sebelumnya. Untuk mengenang Paul Walker, James Wan dan Chris Morgan memberikan adegan penutup yang bisa membuat penontonnya menitihkan air mata. Pintarnya, mereka mengemas adegan perpisahan dengan Paul Walker dengan elegan. Mengemasnya lewat dialog-dialog indah penuh simbol dan makna yang dalam tentang suatu perpisahan dengan seorang sahabat. 

Furious 7 memang tak bisa serapi Fast Five dalam menjalankan setiap ceritanya. Terlalu banyak subplot cerita yang akhirnya membuat Furious 7 pun memiliki masalah dengan lubang-lubang di setiap ceritanya. Akhirnya, beberapa karakter pun memiliki kurang memiliki motivasi kenapa akhirnya dia harus ada di dalam filmnya. Pun, di sekuens paling akhir, akan terasa adanya tarik ulur emosi yang kurang tertangani dengan baik oleh James Wan. Dan hal itu disebabkan karena banyaknya Side Plot yang ditulis oleh Chris Morgan di dalam naskahnya yang tampil kurang rapi.

Naskah milik Chris Morgan pun memang sengaja tampil ringan dan biasa saja dengan penuh konflik klise yang pernah penontonnya lihat di berbagai film serupa. Ayolah, apakah kalian mengharapkan sesuatu penuh twist and turn untuk film Furious 7 agar bisa terlihat bagus? Toh, dengan segala macam plot yang ringan, James Wan masih bisa memberikan segala tensinya yang menyenangkan dan emosional sehingga Furious 7 bisa tampil prima dengan naskah dan plot yang ringan. 

Memang, Furious 7 tak bisa tampil serapi Fast Five yang sudah berada di level yang paling atas dari Franchise ini. Beberapa penuturan kisahnya mungkin akan terkesan masih berantakan sehingga terasa mengendur di adegan final-nya. Tetapi, James Wan berhasil membuat Furious 7 berada sedikit di bawah Fast Five dengan segala sekuens-sekuens gila yang didukung dengan camera work yang mendukung hal gila itu. James Wan berhasil menjadikan Furious 7 lebih terkenang di hati penontonnya and For Paul.

FAST & FURIOUS 7 (2015) REVIEW : One Last Ride, For Paul

Sebagai salah satu franchise terbesar di perfilman Hollywood dan sudah mencapai seri ke enam, Fast & Furious tentu memiliki banyak fans setia. Meski, pakem cerita dari Fast & Furious pertama hingga seri terakhirnya sudah memiliki banyak perbedaan. Tetapi, Fast & Furious tetap saja menjadi salah satu franchise yang dinantikan kemunculannya bagi semua orang dengan timeline cerita yang mulai menarik. Terlebih, dengan mid-credit scene di seri ke enamnya.

 

Tahun ini, Fast & Furious hadir dengan seri terbarunya untuk melanjutkan timeline cerita dari Fast & Furious 6. Justin Lin, sebagai sutradara, meninggalkan seri ini dan memindah tangankan tempat tertinggi itu ke tangan James Wan. Film ini pun sempat sedikit terhambat karena kabar duka yang menimpa salah satu pemainnya. Paul Walker, salah satu pemeran utama di film ini meninggal akibat kecelakaan mobil di saat proyek film ini sedang berjalan. 

Setelah timeline cerita yang memiliki kesinambungan yang menarik, di Fast & Furious 7 melanjutkan kisah dari seri nomor 6 dan berkesinambungan dengan seri yang ketiga. Di mana, Deckard (Jason Statham) membalaskan dendam adiknya yang sudah di serang oleh Dom (Vin Diesel), Brian (Paul Walker), Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) serta kawanannya. Hidup mereka pun penuh dengan ancaman yang datang silih berganti yang disebabkan oleh Deckard.

Setelah kejadian na?as yang menimpa Hobbs, Dom dan Brian memutuskan untuk memburu Deckard untuk menangkapnya. Tetapi di tengah misinya untuk memburu Deckard, Dom dan Brian diberi tugas untuk mengambil barang yang sudah meretas sistem keamanan negara. God?s Eye, suatu sistem yang dapat menjadikan apapun menjadi sebuah ?senjata? ampuh untuk mengetahui keberadaan musuh. Dom dan Brian tahu hal tersebut berguna untuk memburu Deckard dan mau menerima misi tersebut.

Setelah Fast Five yang telah mencapai titik paling tinggi dari segala aspek filmnya, tentu mustahil ada seri lain dari film ini yang bisa melampaui seri kelima dari Fast & Furious. Benar juga, Fast & Furious 6 mengalami sedikit kemunduran jika dibandingkan dengan seri kelimanya. Tangan hangat Justin Lin memang bisa membuat franchise Fast & Furious naik level. Meskipun, para fans akan merasa kecewa karena hilangnya pakem ?balapan? yang ditawarkan sejak seri pertama. Tetapi, hal tersebut sudah diperbaiki lewat seri ke enam yang kembali menghadirkan pakem tersebut.

Maka, setelah kepergian Justin Lin dari bangku sutradara, Furious 7 pun berpindah tangan ke James Wan yang biasa menangani film-film horor. Hal ini pun membuat para penonton skeptis bahwa Furious 7 akan bisa tampil prima layaknya kedua seri sebelumnya. Tak di sangka, Furious 7 menjadi salah satu seri terbaik dari aksi Dom dan Brian. Memang tak tampil se-prima Fast Five dalam segi cerita, tetapi Furious 7 memberikan sesuatu yang lebih gila dan berbeda dibandingkan seri lainnya.

Jangan ragukan Fast & Furious dalam memberikan sekuens-sekuens gila menggunakan mobil balap. Akan selalu ada inovasi di setiap serinya saat mengendarai mobil balap. Begitu pun dengan seri terbaru dari franchise ini, James Wan memberikan kegilaan tanpa batas yang memang akan berada di luar logika manusia. Tetapi, inilah tujuan dari franchise ini bukan? Menyajikan kegilaan tanpa batas yang akan membuat penontonnya merasakan sensasi menyenangkan saat menontonnya. 

Akan ada banyak adegan dengan level kegilaan yang sangat besar dan megah. Bagusnya, James Wan pun bisa menghadirkan nyawa ke dalam setiap adegan sehingga rangkaian adegan itu tak hanya menjual kemegahannya tetapi juga ada tensi yang pas di dalamnya. Dan hal ini akan berdampak pada respon penonton yang tak akan berhenti berdecak kagum dan takjub dengan sekuens menyenangkan yang ditawarkan oleh James Wan ke dalam Fast & Furious 7.

Tak hanya decak kagum, tetapi ada sisi emosional yang akan terasa berbeda jika dibandingkan seri-seri sebelumnya. Untuk mengenang Paul Walker, James Wan dan Chris Morgan memberikan adegan penutup yang bisa membuat penontonnya menitihkan air mata. Pintarnya, mereka mengemas adegan perpisahan dengan Paul Walker dengan elegan. Mengemasnya lewat dialog-dialog indah penuh simbol dan makna yang dalam tentang suatu perpisahan dengan seorang sahabat. 

Furious 7 memang tak bisa serapi Fast Five dalam menjalankan setiap ceritanya. Terlalu banyak subplot cerita yang akhirnya membuat Furious 7 pun memiliki masalah dengan lubang-lubang di setiap ceritanya. Akhirnya, beberapa karakter pun memiliki kurang memiliki motivasi kenapa akhirnya dia harus ada di dalam filmnya. Pun, di sekuens paling akhir, akan terasa adanya tarik ulur emosi yang kurang tertangani dengan baik oleh James Wan. Dan hal itu disebabkan karena banyaknya Side Plot yang ditulis oleh Chris Morgan di dalam naskahnya yang tampil kurang rapi.

Naskah milik Chris Morgan pun memang sengaja tampil ringan dan biasa saja dengan penuh konflik klise yang pernah penontonnya lihat di berbagai film serupa. Ayolah, apakah kalian mengharapkan sesuatu penuh twist and turn untuk film Furious 7 agar bisa terlihat bagus? Toh, dengan segala macam plot yang ringan, James Wan masih bisa memberikan segala tensinya yang menyenangkan dan emosional sehingga Furious 7 bisa tampil prima dengan naskah dan plot yang ringan. 

Memang, Furious 7 tak bisa tampil serapi Fast Five yang sudah berada di level yang paling atas dari Franchise ini. Beberapa penuturan kisahnya mungkin akan terkesan masih berantakan sehingga terasa mengendur di adegan final-nya. Tetapi, James Wan berhasil membuat Furious 7 berada sedikit di bawah Fast Five dengan segala sekuens-sekuens gila yang didukung dengan camera work yang mendukung hal gila itu. James Wan berhasil menjadikan Furious 7 lebih terkenang di hati penontonnya and For Paul.

FURIOUS 7: Stunningly Stupid Stunts Frame A Fitting Farewell

Now playing at a multiplex near you:

FURIOUS 7 (Dir. James Wan 2015)

Up until recently, I hadn?t seen any of the FAST AND THE FURIOUS movies. So, not wanting to go in cold, I watched the previous six entries to catch up with the adventures of FBI agent turned outlaw Brian O?Conner (the late Paul Walker) and his ex-con BFF Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) before catching a screening of the latest, FURIOUS 7, which opens today. 

I really wasn?t into the series at first ? after the third one, TOYKO DRIFT (a stand-alone installment with different characters than the rest), I was wondering ?when do these start getting good??

But then I found four through six to be enjoyably stupid formula action films filled with ridiculous over-the-top stunts, of course involving cars but also planes, trains, tanks, etc., that are somehow ridiculously in-your-face effective.

Walker, perhaps the lead protagonist of the series, was killed in a tragic automobile accident halfway through filming, but he had completed enough that it?s barely noticeable that they helped flesh out his performance with his brothers (Caleb and Cody) acting as stand-ins with Walker?s face grafted on them via CGI.

As teased, Marvel-style in THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS 6, this time Walker, Diesel, and their trusty team made up of Tyrese Gibson, Ludacris, Michelle Rodriguez, and Jordana Brewster face off against Jason Statham as the brother of the previous film?s villain, something they borrowed from the DIE HARD franchise I guess.

Despite the fact that he hosted Saturday Night Live last weekend to promote this movie, Dwayne ?The Rock? Johnson sits most of this one out as Statham puts him in the hospital after a brutal fight at the Diplomatic Security Service offices.

Statham also blows up Diesel?s house (yay - explosions!), and the two almost get into an epic brawl, but it's interrupted by a smug, Belgian beer-loving Kurt Russell as a government agent, pretty much the equivalent of the role Harrison Ford played in EXPENDABLES 3.

Russell introduces the film's McGuffin: a program called ?God's Eye,? which can simultaneously access every surveillance camera on the planet. The device was developed by a hacker named Ramsey (Nathalie Emmanuel), who's been kidnapped by a terrorist (Djimon Hounsou), and Russell, who calls himself ?Mr. Nobody,? wants Diesel to get the gang back together to rescue Ramsey, and retrieve ?God's Eye,? which will lead them to the sinister Statham.

This involves the movie's biggest money shot, in which our fearless (well, except for Gibson - he shows fear) team skydive five cars out of a cargo plane in order to hijack a convoy in Azerbaijan. This jaw-dropping sequence climaxes with Walker scrambling to escape a bus before it falls off a cliff, very ITALIAN JOB-esque.

After that we get another scorching set piece that has Walker and Diesel jumping a car between the Etihad Towers complex in Abu Dhabi. Shades of MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: GHOST PROTOCOL and, unfortunately, TOWER HEIST, are inescapable, but the scene is exciting and funny enough to transcend them.

The big finale comes down to Diesel and Statham, who is simply the best villain the series has ever had (take that, Braga!) in brutal one on one combat in a collapsing parking deck, with cutaways to the other characters' own action dilemmas in a chaotic orgy of cars, grenades, drones, and helicopters. Yep, stuff gets blown up real good.

Working from a screenplay by Chris Morgan, who scripted the bulk of the F & F series, James Wan (SAW, THE CONJURING) confidently takes over from Justin Lin (director of installments 3-6), and shows that he's as suited for slick formula action tropes as he is for horror.

FURIOUS 7 is an above average assembly line action movie (especially compared to THE EXPENDABLES 3), and will delight fans of the franchise, though the biggest fans of the franchise appear to be Diesel, who co-produced, and his crew themselves. Diesel obviously genuinely means it when he says such lines like ?I don't have friends, I got family,? and the concluding tribute montage to Walker reflects that sweetly.

If I didn't know he had died I don't think I would've noticed that the work they did to cover Walker's absence. Whether CGI or his brothers as body doubles, the results are solidly convincing, and the movie stands as a fitting, heartfelt farewell in full.

And yes, I teared up a bit during that closing memorial montage. To steal a line from Phil Hartman's Bill McNeil from the great '90s sitcom Newsradio: ?You would have to be a robot not to cry at that movie!?

More later... 

FURIOUS 7: Stunningly Stupid Stunts Frame A Fitting Farewell

Now playing at a multiplex near you:

FURIOUS 7 (Dir. James Wan 2015)

Up until recently, I hadn?t seen any of the FAST AND THE FURIOUS movies. So, not wanting to go in cold, I watched the previous six entries to catch up with the adventures of FBI agent turned outlaw Brian O?Conner (the late Paul Walker) and his ex-con BFF Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) before catching a screening of the latest, FURIOUS 7, which opens today. 

I really wasn?t into the series at first ? after the third one, TOYKO DRIFT (a stand-alone installment with different characters than the rest), I was wondering ?when do these start getting good??

But then I found four through six to be enjoyably stupid formula action films filled with ridiculous over-the-top stunts, of course involving cars but also planes, trains, tanks, etc., that are somehow ridiculously in-your-face effective.

Walker, perhaps the lead protagonist of the series, was killed in a tragic automobile accident halfway through filming, but he had completed enough that it?s barely noticeable that they helped flesh out his performance with his brothers (Caleb and Cody) acting as stand-ins with Walker?s face grafted on them via CGI.

As teased, Marvel-style in THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS 6, this time Walker, Diesel, and their trusty team made up of Tyrese Gibson, Ludacris, Michelle Rodriguez, and Jordana Brewster face off against Jason Statham as the brother of the previous film?s villain, something they borrowed from the DIE HARD franchise I guess.

Despite the fact that he hosted Saturday Night Live last weekend to promote this movie, Dwayne ?The Rock? Johnson sits most of this one out as Statham puts him in the hospital after a brutal fight at the Diplomatic Security Service offices.

Statham also blows up Diesel?s house (yay - explosions!), and the two almost get into an epic brawl, but it's interrupted by a smug, Belgian beer-loving Kurt Russell as a government agent, pretty much the equivalent of the role Harrison Ford played in EXPENDABLES 3.

Russell introduces the film's McGuffin: a program called ?God's Eye,? which can simultaneously access every surveillance camera on the planet. The device was developed by a hacker named Ramsey (Nathalie Emmanuel), who's been kidnapped by a terrorist (Djimon Hounsou), and Russell, who calls himself ?Mr. Nobody,? wants Diesel to get the gang back together to rescue Ramsey, and retrieve ?God's Eye,? which will lead them to the sinister Statham.

This involves the movie's biggest money shot, in which our fearless (well, except for Gibson - he shows fear) team skydive five cars out of a cargo plane in order to hijack a convoy in Azerbaijan. This jaw-dropping sequence climaxes with Walker scrambling to escape a bus before it falls off a cliff, very ITALIAN JOB-esque.

After that we get another scorching set piece that has Walker and Diesel jumping a car between the Etihad Towers complex in Abu Dhabi. Shades of MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: GHOST PROTOCOL and, unfortunately, TOWER HEIST, are inescapable, but the scene is exciting and funny enough to transcend them.

The big finale comes down to Diesel and Statham, who is simply the best villain the series has ever had (take that, Braga!) in brutal one on one combat in a collapsing parking deck, with cutaways to the other characters' own action dilemmas in a chaotic orgy of cars, grenades, drones, and helicopters. Yep, stuff gets blown up real good.

Working from a screenplay by Chris Morgan, who scripted the bulk of the F & F series, James Wan (SAW, THE CONJURING) confidently takes over from Justin Lin (director of installments 3-6), and shows that he's as suited for slick formula action tropes as he is for horror.

FURIOUS 7 is an above average assembly line action movie (especially compared to THE EXPENDABLES 3), and will delight fans of the franchise, though the biggest fans of the franchise appear to be Diesel, who co-produced, and his crew themselves. Diesel obviously genuinely means it when he says such lines like ?I don't have friends, I got family,? and the concluding tribute montage to Walker reflects that sweetly.

If I didn't know he had died I don't think I would've noticed that the work they did to cover Walker's absence. Whether CGI or his brothers as body doubles, the results are solidly convincing, and the movie stands as a fitting, heartfelt farewell in full.

And yes, I teared up a bit during that closing memorial montage. To steal a line from Phil Hartman's Bill McNeil from the great '90s sitcom Newsradio: ?You would have to be a robot not to cry at that movie!?

More later...