Furious 7

Directed by: James Wan

Written by: Chris Morgan

Starring: Vin Diesel

Paul Walker

Tyrese Gibson

Jordana Brewster

Michelle Rodriguez

Dwayne Johnson

Jason Statham

Runtime: 142 minutes

Release date: April 3, 2015

This movie is a classic example of a how a popular movie turned into a commercial franchise that was far removed from its original theme. Every petrol-head loved the first three movies and hated every other movie after that for killing its core spirit. Furious 7, is probably one of the worst movie so far in the franchisee and that is surprising considering that it is supposed to be an ode to Paul Walker. The movie is a direct continuation to the sixth movie in the franchisee and is also a storyline continuation to Tokyo Drift and hence it is highly recommended to watch both of these movies before venturing into this one. After defeating Owen Shaw and getting a clean slate in London, Dominic Toretto (Diesel) and Brian O’Connor (Walker) have given up on their past and are trying to live normal lives. Especially Brian who is trying to fulfill his duties as a father for the sake of his wife even though deep down he misses his cars and the rush of adrenaline. However, their normal lives get shattered when Deckard Shaw (Statham), Owen’s brother comes hunting for revenge. Dom and Brian can only stop Deckard and save their families by helping a covert government agency get a software known as God’s Eye and use it to track Deckards every move and eventually finish him. Like I mentioned earlier, the movie has to go down as the most bizarre, badly scripted and completely irrelevant movie in the franchisee ever. The movie assumes you have seen Tokyo Drift and the sixth installment only yesterday since the references are far too strong to remember for a movie that came out years ago. A lot of the stunts in the movie are way too unreal and completely bizarre. The story seems like a jigsaw puzzle simply glued together with no clear transition between one sub-plot to another. The poor script can partly be put down to Paul Walkers death and the massive re-writing of his dialogues, footage and script that was needed to be done at the very last minute. A huge let down from such a great franchise and a huge let down to Paul Walker for having being remembered in possibly the worst movie ever.

Maybe it is my own bias, but I just could not see why the film received the praise it got. It is too long, even for me, and I am one of those people that would watch a four hour long cut of “The Return of the King.” Although I would credit director James Wan for his courageous move to branch out of his signature realm. Sure the product is not good, but I would give him a thumbs up for trying.

In conclusion, “Furious 7” is a clunky mess of a film. The action sequences are tepid to say the least. The dialogue consists of exposition and the word “family” and the acting at this point is not even legible to call it half assed anymore. The movie’s main marketing stance is a “touching” tribute to Paul Walker, and even the eulogy is not that emotional.