The new Fast & Furious joint is out. Despite the clouds, it’s a beautiful day,
I never would have assumed they would make eight more of these and a spinoff after I saw the first one way back in the day, but here we are. I’m of the opinion that The Fast and the Furious (the first one) is my favorite of the series. That doesn’t mean it’s the best one (Fast Five) or the fastest and … furiousest of them all (In F9, the new one, Tyrese and Ludacris take a rocket car to space). But it’s the one that I associate the most with the franchise, despite the fact that it undoubtedly improves as it goes on.
This is probably because the first one came out when I was six or seven, and I thought EVERYTHING was dope when I was that old. There was a period of time where I wanted to rename myself “Oliver” because it sounded cool. No disrespect to all of the Olivers of the world that happen to be joining us here, but I was a massive herb then.
Anyway, the point is that The Fast and the Furious turned 20 this year, and I want to pay my respects. Here’s a list of my favorite things about my favorite entry in the series.
The Young Cast
Doing the same thing for a double-digit amount of years can wear on you. It’s noticeable when I watch Vin Diesel and the rest of the homies churn out another set of performances as Dom Toretto and his crew. They’re basically on autopilot now.
When you get paid as much as these people do, that’s the way it is sometime.
But watching the OG movie tells a different story. Diesel wasn’t all swole like he is now and actually performed his role with energy and charisma. You can see why people gravitated toward Dom then, unlike now, where it’s a very fair question to ask why people let this boring, mumbly, gravelly-voiced, clumsy man boss them around.
The Aesthetic
Rob Cohen may not be at the top of the list of directors who have graced the Fast & Furious franchise with his talent, but I’m a fan of the vision that he and his team had for the first movie. Cohen knew how to direct action sequences that looked natural.
He expertly used the California sun and sand to create the perfect landscapes for the nitrous-boosted cars to run wild. Nowadays, while the movies manage to reach new heights with every addition to the series, they don’t have the same spark that made the original feel fresh and vibrant.
The Action
To go off of that last point, the street races are excellent. MARVEL AT THESE.
Ja-Rule/”Nooooooo, Monica!”
Remember when Ja was one of the biggest rappers on the planet and not just a punchline and fraudulent festival endorser? It’s crazy how things change, man.
Anyway. His cameo is excellent.
The 2001 of it all
The clothes. The music. The cars. The fact that the big heist that Dom’s crew planned was to steal TV/VCR combos and other dated electronics. It’s beautiful.
Corona
Fun fact: I drink Corona explicitly because Dominic Toretto drinks Corona.
What can I say? I thought everything was dope when I was six. Some things stick.