Furious 7

RECOMMENDED

I have not been an avid follower of The Fast and Furious Franchise but I wish I had, because Furious 7 was one of the most fun and thrilling films I have watched this year. The film not only boast strong cast of cool and fun characters, it is also densely packed with amazing action sequences while leaving room for some really heartfelt moments.

I went into Furious 7 not knowing what to expect other than the fact that the film is going to pay tribute to the late Paul Walker, who passed away in a tragic car accident before filming could be finished. Although I am not familiar with any of main characters, or what happened over the past 6 installments, they do not stop me from immediately connecting with the characters during the film. It was then I regretted not having followed the franchise more closely.  The film helped a lot in subtly and seamlessly introducing characters to non-followers. I greatly enjoyed the dynamic of the group, or should I say “family”, and how each of them had their moment to shine.

One thing that Furious 7 was never short of was action. The film was jammed pack with scene after scene of intense car chases. I’m not going to give anything away in this spoiler-free review but the scenes left me on the edge of my seat with adrenaline pumping through my veins. The film also incorporates a lot of humor into their action sequences and adopts light tone. The down side of this is that it made me feel as if none of the characters were in actual danger and that they were going to make it out of every scenario unscathed. Perhaps the franchise has already dealt with death in the past and wanted to avoid another similar scenario, especially after Paul Walker’s passing.

The film ended with a tribute to Paul Walker and I have to say that it was genuinely heartfelt and beautifully done. It clearly captured Paul’s legacy in this film and served as a touching goodbye to the series’ main star. The studio had made the right approaches on overcoming such a tragedy and managed to finish the film in memory of Paul. In addition, the visual effects team has also done a great job in creating a CGI version of Paul for the unfinished scenes, of which I could hardly notice the difference.

In all, Furious 7 has struck the balance between creating an action packed thriller and creating an emotional tribute to their late star. Viewers, regardless of whether they followed the franchise, are definitely going to be entertained and it is definitely not a film to be missed.