Get revved up for a bit of car porn.

The second instalment of what will become an on going film franchise, 2 Fast 2 Furious ticks all the boxes of the action junkie fan. Paul Walker is back as Brian O'Conner and joined by Tyrese Gibson and Eva Mendes, who all get involved in an undercover job to bring down Cole Hauser's nefarious bad guy. There's lots of awesome cars, pecs and breasts, noise, carnage, violence and awful dialogue. The story is weak, but are we really looking for some brains over brawn here? We want car porn and we want it now! And so it delivers as per our polite request. John Singleton directs, David Arnold scores the music and Matthew F. Leonetti photographs the sumptuous Florida locations. 6/10

Not quite as good as the first one / not really a worthy successor.

It's nice but it lacks depth and isn't the story continuation that I hoped for. I really miss Dom and Mia. Roman Pearce is a cool and funny new character. His friendship with Brian is nice but I miss the family aspect that Dom brings. Agent Bilkins is also funny btw.

The music is still great and I like how they lead with it right away during the very intro. I also loved that super cool/funny intro animation. And the CGI animation during the end credits was also nice (it's old and not good by modern technical standards but I still appreciate the artistical style).

The best thing about this movie is definitely Brian O'Conner and his beautiful Nissan Skyline with the blue lighting. I want to try out driving a Skyline ever since because it's not just beautifully looking but also cool under the hood. And this movie might also be the reason why I like chucks :D Unfortunately, I don't find them as comfortable as sports shoes but they're nice for driving due to the more direct feeling. The only drawback is that they make my heel-and-toe style a bit more difficult. Speaking of that: Surprisingly I didn't see a heel-and-toe shift once in this video. It looks like they're always shifting up :D


Not surprising though as this isn't a realistic movie and the physics are seriously off in many ways. Even just minor details like the breaks breaking when Brian's car get's hit by that EMP-style device. The breaks don't need any electronics (even for the break assistance) and it could at most break the infotainment system, engine (ignition), and power steering (but I assume they didn't use electronic power steering at that time and hydrolic power steering should be unaffected too).

And that staring trick while driving is of course just completely stupid and not cool at all (it's kinda funny in the movie but one should never attempt it IRL and it's dumb - why would one even do it?).

And, e.g., the fast backwards driving wouldn't work either due to the lack of a reverse gear with the right ratio. I do wonder though how fast those cars would go in reverse. The modern cars I've driven are all limited to 20 - 35 km/h.

Anyway, just some notes/thoughts. I don't mind that it isn't accurate at all. It's cool to watch and that's what matters. I'd like to see a making of. It felt like most of the shots where composited together. And lot's of cuts, of course (one wouldn't shift that much and the cars would go way faster).

Sadly, this sequel really did miss Vin Diesel. Paul Walker tries, he has a glint in his eye, and Tyrese Gibson gives it all he has as the wise-assed sidekick "Roman" but sadly this entire thing resembles an hybrid of "Starsky & Hutch" meets "Miami Vice". Plenty of squealing rubber, the cars and the people all look great but the thinnest of plots and some seriously woeful dialogue make this better to watch with the sound turned down. Poor stuff.

***Paul Walker and Tyrese Gibson team-up to bring down a pompous drug lord in south Florida***

Now living in the Miami area and no longer an undercover cop, Brian O’Conner (Paul Walker) is compelled by the authorities to work with a US Customs agent (Eva Mendes) to nail an arrogant drug lord (Cole Hauser). To accomplish this, he teams-up with an old street-racing buddy (Tyrese Gibson) who’s in dire need of redemption.

Paul Walker is the only notable cast member to return for "2 Fast 2 Furious" (2003). The others won’t return until the fourth installment, “Fast & Furious” (2009). Anyway, I like the beginning of this sequel better than the first movie. Director John Singleton has a better eye for photographing women, at least as shown in the first 40 minutes or so; plus I appreciate the diverse cast, which also includes the likes of Ludacris as Tej, cutie Devon Aoki as Suki and James Remar as a lead agent.

But as effective as Gibson is here, he can’t rival the charisma of Vin Diesel. And somewhere just after the midpoint I started to get a little bored. Nevertheless, “2 Fast 2 Furious” is an entertaining race-oriented action thriller. It basically mixes the first movie (2001) with “Licence to Kill” (1989).

The film runs 1 hour, 47 minutes and was shot in the Miami area.

GRADE: B-