Fast & Furious

Stars: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Jordana Brewster, Michelle Rodriguez, John Ortiz, Laz Alonso, Gal Gadot

Director: Justin Lin

A late-night lads' movie reuniting the main cast from the first of the original 'Fast and Furious' trilogy. Racer cop Brian O'Conner (Walker) must go undercover again to bust a drugs kingpin. Meanwhile, in his Mexican hideaway, O'Conner's former adversary, ex-jailbird and drag racer Dom (Diesel), now taken to hijacking giant petrol lorries to fuel the street-racing craze, learns that his lover and partner Letty (Rodriguez) has been killed by associates of the same druglord O'Conner is hunting.

Naturally their paths cross, and both men find themselves taking part in a perilous drugs run along underground tunnels between the US and Mexico.

Loads of car action here, fiercely well shot, and all the cliches of the genre. 'Maybe you're not the good guy pretending to be the bad guy,' Diesel chides Walker. 'Maybe you're the bad guy pretending to be the good guy.' And, propositioned by the druglord's mistress (Gadot) with doubles-entendres about boys and cars, Diesel growls 'I'm one of those boys who appreciates a fine body no matter what the make.'

Surviving numeorus hairsbreadth escapes, the charmed-life pair finally arrive at the bad guy's Mexican stronghold. 'This is where my jurisdiction ends,' says Walker. 'And this....' replies Diesel with heavy emphasis, 'is where mine begins.' Gung ho action, (barely) functional acting - it's really much the high-octane mixture as before, though filmed at a steaming pace by director Lin.

David Quinlan

USA 2009. UK Distributor: Universal. Technicolor.
107 minutes. Widescreen. UK certificate: 12A.

Guidance ratings (out of 3): Sex/nudity 0, Violence/Horror 1, Drugs 1, Swearing 1.

Review date: 04 Apr 2009