Review of 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003) by Kj P — 23 May 2013

The Fast and the Furious proved a success with action fans and was a box office success. And just like with every success out of a movie, it usually results in a sequel and even a franchise. So, when they brought in 2 Fast 2 Furious, you'd think that it would deliver the same kind of adrenaline heavy action that its predecessor did. However, this is not the case.

While The Fast and the Furious may have been mostly brainless, at least it didn't go over the top with it. But 2 Fast 2 Furious goes from brainless but exciting to downright stupid. It looks like that the sequel was only made to coax off the success of its predecessor.

The first may not have had much of a plot, but it made more sense than the one presented in this sequel. The plot takes place at an unspecified amount of time after the first movie. Brian O'Conner (Paul Walker), after letting Dominic Toretto go free, is no longer a cop and on the run. He spends his time racing against locals to earn money to try and start a new life out of the authorities' reach. But he is eventually caught and put under arrest.

However, he is given a deal. If he can help in the capture of drug lord Carter Verone (Cole Hauser), Brian's criminal record will be wiped clean. Unable to do this on his own, he asks for help from his former friend, Roman Pearce (newcomer actor Tyrese Gibson), who holds a grudge against Brian for a wrong done to him. They are joined by Agent Monica Fuentes (Eva Mendes), who is undercover as Verone's mistress. But soon, they are hired by Verone for a money-laundering scheme, which could endanger their lives.

Instead of a follow-up, this feels more like a cash grab than a sequel to its predecessors. The only characters from the original film that return are Brian and his former boss. None of the other main characters return. They are replaced with new ones. But the characters in this sequel are more like cardboard cut-outs.

But the action scenes are where this movie fails the most. While the car chases and racers had excitement in the first outing, here they are just scenes to fill up the movie's running time. The only thing that is good about this is that the cars are nice to look at, but that's it. There is no style or adrenaline in these chases.

The acting is no better. Paul Walker is the only one of the main characters to return. But his weakness as an actor is more evident without being surrounded by his co-stars. Tyrese Gibson tries to be funny, but his humor falls flat and is a poor replacement for Vin Diesel. Eva Mendes doesn't have the same feel as Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster. All she pretty much does in the movie is serve as eye candy and have Brian make goo-goo eyes at her. Cole Hauser plays a one-dimensional villain. The rest of the characters in this movie are pretty much useless and only serve for one big drive-out during the climax.

2 Fast 2 Furious is the kind of sequel that you would get if you were to take away all the fun that the first movie had. The characters are nothing to sneeze at and the action scenes are perfunctory. It makes its predecessor's plot look almost Oscar worthy by comparison. It's all just about making money off of a box office hit.