1732. 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003)

Starring: Paul Walker, Tyrese Gibson, Eva Mendes

Director: John Singleton

Running Time: 107 mins

2 Fast 2 Furious is an American film and the sequel to The Fast And The Furious. Despite having left the police force, Brian O’Conner is called upon to bring down a dangerous criminal, but seeks the help of a former childhood friend and fellow street racer.

Although I didn’t think all that much of the first movie in this series, it did surprise me in some regards with its impressive action sequences and interesting main characters. When it comes to its sequel, not all of that carries over quite so well. Although impressing with even more entertaining action, the story here just doesn’t have any real intrigue to go along with that, and that makes it a much more lacklustre watch than I really wanted.

But, let’s start with the bright side, and the action. If there’s one thing about this movie that’s actually an improvement over its predecessor, it’s the action sequences. With even more cars, street races, stunts and chase sequences throughout, starting right from the opening 10 minutes, 2 Fast 2 Furious definitely impresses when it comes to providing a simple and entertaining action movie.

What’s more is that the action is a little bit more fun-loving this time around. Some elements of The Fast And The Furious were willing to go a little mad with the action, but it always returned it to a slightly more serious and crime-oriented story. Here, there are a good few races and chases with a lot of preposterous gadgets, tricks and accidents, and that really helps to make the film a lot more fun than you’d expect, allowing you to sit back and enjoy.

Unfortunately, the rest of the movie isn’t quite as good. First off, the story is a little bit of a disappointment, particularly compared to how the first film managed to deliver a surprisingly interesting dynamic and relationship between its two main characters.

Vin Diesel’s Dom Toretto doesn’t return for this second film, something that I was looking forward to following the impressive end to the last movie. Instead, we have a childhood friend of Brian O’Conner, Roman Pearce, who is played by Tyrese Gibson.

Now, Gibson and Paul Walker definitely don’t have the same sort of chemistry and dynamic as Diesel and Walker. There are times in the film’s first act where it’s relatively interesting to learn about their past, but once that’s out of the way, the story is much more like a buddy action movie than anything else, not really bringing their rivalry and tension to the forefront as the first film did very well.

What’s more is that the plot itself is a little too straightforward here. Whilst this sequel is willing to be a little less serious than the first movie, it’s still not quite ridiculous enough to be a full turn-your-brain-off blockbuster. The Fast And The Furious’ similarities to Point Break weren’t anything to be that proud of, but it did have an extra level of intrigue beyond just bringing down the bad guys, and that’s where this film really falls down.

Overall, I enjoyed parts of 2 Fast 2 Furious, particularly when it comes to the action sequences, and although its story and characterisation don’t match up to its predecessor, there is some joy to be found in this film anyway, and that’s why I’m giving it a 6.9.