By Tanya Batson-Savage, Staff Reporter
From left, Roman Pearce (Tyrese), Brian O'Conner (Paul Walker), Jimmy (Jin Auyeyng), Suki (Devon Aoki) and Tej (Chris 'Ludacris' Bridges) in the movie '2 Fast 2 Furious'. - Contributed
THE FAST and the Furious is one of many movies which did not deserve a sequel but got one anyway. So, 2 Fast 2 Furious came to be. Since it is already made, one may simply buckle one's seatbelt and tag along for the ride.
2 Fast 2 Furious may not be the ride for a lifetime, but it can temporarily sate (and maybe even inspire) the need for speed, assuming you left your brain at home, or at least, are able to shut it off at will.
Although the billing suggests that 2 Fast 2 Furious stars Paul Walker and Tyrese, the truth is that it is the cars who do most of the work, with a little support from Tyrese.
Where this movie improves upon the last is in translating the speed of the driving to the audience. The cinematography and the directing combine to make you feel every change of gear and experience an adrenaline rush. The car related stunts are not as impressive, as in The Fast and The Furious, but will do.
What is truly incredible about 2 Fast 2 Furious is that it may actually make you appreciate Tyrese's presence, which not even his abdominal muscles can normally make happen. Tyrese replaces Vin Diesel, and may not have the height, but has sufficient bulk and tattoos, to fill the role.
Despite being unable to make an interesting flick (since the Coca Cola commercial) Tyrese manages to be the only spark of life in this movie. Through his character, Roman Pearce, a bit of humour is added to this flick, though some latent racism also comes through.
Walker, on the other hand, continues to 'impress'. It is absolutely amazing that he continues to get acting roles despite his consistently atrocious performances. One cannot tell if no one cued him in when it was his turn so he simply does not know what is happening, or if that is supposed to be his poker face.
He seems to be unable to realise the difference between being calm, collected and suave and looking blank. His acting skills, or lack thereof, are taken a few notches lower by the fact that he speaks in the same monotone, regardless of what is happening. Against this, it was no wonder that Tyrese comes across as a breath of almost fresh air.
Thankfully, Ludacris, God bless his afro, is not given more than he can handle. Much is not asked of him and he delivers. His speaking parts are largely like intros to rap videos, and thus, he was in his element.
There are movies which have been able to marry the urge for speed with having a good plot and engaging characters, 2 Fast 2 Furious is not one of them. What is truly most annoying about this movie is the attempt to force a very hackneyed plot down the movie's throat, despite its attempts to resist it. All such attempts are extremely painful.
Michael Brandt and Derek Haas are bold enough to have themselves named the writers of this flick, and to tack on a lacklustre romance between Walker's Brian O'Conner and Monica Fuentes (laughably played by Eva Mendes). Of course, there was no chemistry, and since it would require acting by Walker, the 'romance' fell very flat.
This time around, it was decided to create a more obvious, active villain. However, after ripping off a series of drug dons from made-for-TV movies combined with a scene from Missing In Action, they come up with an uninteresting villain who at least wears nice pants.
The addition of the more active villain was also a part of the attempt to upgrade the out-of-car action. This, too, should have been left alone under the premise that if you cannot fix it, leave it. As such, one is slapped in the face with a very disappointing climax. It was as if just as the movie was supposed to get good, they ran out of ink and so just tacked on a full stop as the grand finale.
2 Fast 2 Furious (and we still do not know who is furious) is somewhat racist, extremely sexist and certainly, stupid. However, it does have some pretty good looking, very fast cars, so maybe you can let it slide. Just do not expect too much.
