The Movie
Despite two interim "sequels," Fast & Furious is the first real continuation of 2001's The Fast and the Furious, bringing back as it does the four main characters: tough-as-nails hero-crook Dom (Vin Diesel, but he runs good on regular gas), lawman Brian (Paul Walker, although he prefers to drive), and the women they love (Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster).
Speed limits are exceeded, private and public property is destroyed, and blood is shed as D&B pursue a slippery, homicidal drug dealer, each for his own reasons. The movie can be a little annoying at times for its lack of logic, but it is ultimately about the cars, or more specifically the lust for automobiles. Even when they're parked, the camera hangs on them like objects of desire, and the action sequences are every bit as dynamic as we would expect at this point in the series.
Also read Joe Lozito's review of the theatrical release of Fast & Furious.
The Picture
The 2.4:1 transfer is truly outstanding. Colors are distinctive and superbly rendered. My eye kept scanning for imperfections but could find none. Well, nothing serious. There's only the slightest hint of grain, the tiniest loss of detail in shadows and backgrounds and such resulting from the digital video compression. Other than that the image is remarkably, consistently crisp, with nothing to come between us and all the layers of drama.
The Sound
This movie plays so loud that--early on--I actually considered turning the volume down, which is something I almost never do, but I decided instead to just hang on for the ride. Wise choice, as Fast & Furious works best when it's revved high, especially during the many car chases of course. The nimble dance of engines and crashes in the speakers combines with the lighting-quick film editing to make for many adrenaline-inspiring moments. There's a pleasing precision to the mix, from the footsteps to the gunshots and beyond, in addition to lots of bass, notably generous in the music.
The Extras
This is one Blu-ray that is totally tricked-out, from the director's audio commentary by Justin Lin on down. We're given a five-minute gag reel, the 20-minute short film "Los Bandoleros" written and directed by Vin Diesel, bridging the third and fourth movies, and a slew of featurettes on specific topics. They couldn't discuss "Muscle Cars" without the counterpoint of "Imports," naturally (seven minutes and five minutes, respectively). "Getting the Gang Back Together" spills on the reunion of the original cast (ten minutes), "Driving School with Vin Diesel" puts the muscled action hero behind the wheel (four minutes), "Shooting the Big Rig Heist" breaks down the opening sequence (ten minutes), "Races and Chases" exposes the tricks of the trade and the importance of making them feel right (eleven minutes) versus "High Octane Action: The Stunts" which covers everything else, particularly the creative demise of one of the bad guys (eleven minutes), while "South of the Border: Filming in Mexico" commemorates the first movie shot on location in Magdalena, for a realistic edge not possible in Hollywood (three minutes).
"Virtual Car Garage" is an interactive tour of the movie cars, with the ability to customize our own. Universal is also ushering in a new level of device interoperability with connectivity between the Apple iPod touch or iPhone and a compatible Blu-ray player over a home network, as an alternative means of controlling the Virtual Car Garage feature via a free downloadable application. Rachel Cericola explains it all here.
The "Fast & Furious video Mash-Up" enables aspiring DJ's to assemble and share music mixes from the movie, while the "Blanco" music video by Pitbull featuring Pharrell (four minutes) is the only bonus here not in glorious high-definition. Universal also adds their branded U-Control interactivity, namely "Take Control" Picture-In-Picture with Lin and star Paul Walker plus an in-movie version of the "Virtual Garage." Disc One is BD-Live-enabled, and Disc Two is a DVD containing a Digital Copy of the movie for iTunes and Windows Media.
Final Thoughts
Who doesn't like a good car chase? This movie's full of 'em, all the more enjoyable for their pristine high-def audio and video. And the extras are not only deep, but they give a glimpse of "next year's model."
Product Details
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