Furious 7 (2015) - Theatrical Review

Director: James Wan

Cast: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Jason Statham, Michelle Rodriguez, Dwayne Johnson, Kurt Russell

Country: United States

Rating: PG-13

Run Time: 137 minutes

Furious 7 had more hype surrounding it than any other Fast and Furious film before it. The previous entry, Fast and Furious 6, ended on a cliffhanger that finally caught the franchise up with The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift and set up a revenge filled seventh entry. If that wasn't enough to raise one's anticipation, tragedy struck when co-star Paul Walker died in the middle of production. Fans and the studio themselves were all left wondering what would happen to Furious 7 now that Paul Walker had died. After a year long delay and numerous reshoots, Furious 7 miraculously made it to theaters completed. 

Many people are singing the praises of Furious 7 as both one of the best of the series and the ultimate love letter to Paul Walker. While I agree that the film is the perfect tribute to Walker, I disagree that the film is one of the best of the series. In fact, I would say that this is a big step down from the highs of Fast Five and Fast and Furious 6. I personally believe that many people are letting their feelings for Walker's passing cloud their opinion of the film. I don't mean to come off as insensitive, but I couldn't help but think of the infamous Game of Death debacle while watching this film. The plot presented here is one of the most confounding and nonsensical plots in the franchise's history. Whether this is due to the original screenplay or the rewrites that resulted from Walker's passing, Furious 7 is a confounding mess of a sequel that is purely an excuse for various set pieces. That being said, Furious 7 is still a fun blockbuster that delivers numerous stunt-filled set pieces and bids farewell to the beloved Paul Walker.

Walker takes one last ride with his final on screen performance.

Oh boy, the plot. Furious 7 easily could have been a simple and straightforward revenge film with souped up cars and explosions. After all, this is why I thought James Wan (director of the straightforward revenge film, Death Sentence) directed the film in the first place. Unfortunately, the plot goes haywire within the first 30 minutes and never finds its footing again.

After the death of two significant team members in Fast and Furious 6, Dominic Torretto (Vin Diesel), Brian O'Conner (Paul Walker), and friends find themselves in the crosshairs of Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham). Shaw wants vengeance for his brother's injuries during the finale of Fast and Furious 6. Before Shaw and Dom can throw down, Frank Petty (Kurt Russell) shows up and enlists Dom to help him find the God's Eye, a form of technology that allows one to locate anyone on the planet using cell phones and cameras. If Dom can get Frank the God's Eye, than Frank can get Shaw for Dom. However, Shaw repeatedly shows up to complicate Dom's opportunity to get the God's Eye every step of the way...which he needs to find Shaw...who shows up every time Dom tries to get the God's Eye anyway. Why do we have to put up with this ridiculous God's Eye plot when Shaw shows up every step of the way anyways!? You don't need the God's Eye Dom! Shaw always finds you! Just stand still and he'll show up!

This is Furious 7's biggest downfall: it's insane plot. It literally makes no sense whatsoever and I picked up on this during my first viewing, not after a second viewing or even hearing about the issue from someone else, so this isn't a minor nit pick. The only reason that the God's Eye plot is incorporated into the film is so that there is an excuse to transport our character's around the globe for various set pieces. I don't understand how Wan and screenwriter Chris Morgan could not have whipped up a more simplistic plot when the God's Eye is literally of no use to them. If Shaw keeps showing up, than they don't need this device to locate him! What ever happened to the basic revenge plot? This is not basic or simplistic at all. It is nothing but confusing, confounding, and convoluted. 

Diesel and Statham stare one another down.

This leads into the other major fault of the film: James Wan. I am sad to say it but James Wan is completely mismatched for this franchise. Even though I was excited for Wan's leap from low budget horror to big budget blockbuster, I didn't think that Wan would fail to understand the franchise as he did. Watching Furious 7 made me realize how accomplished a filmmaker Justin Lin was and how great his Fast installments were (installments three through six to be exact). Lin understood the franchise better than anyone else and knew how to balance the ridiculous excess with grounded character emotion and compact storytelling. Wan's Fast installment is plot driven from straight to finish, offering little to no time for the characters to breathe or act themselves until it comes time to say goodbye to Paul Walker. 

And even though Wan's installment is fast, fun, and entertaining, his failure to pace his action sequences well kills the film. That's the other problem with Wan, he knows no restraint. Lin's action sequences were short, compact, and edited in between lengthy character driven moments of his films. Lin understood restraint and knew that the action sequences would be nothing without significant character moments in between them. Wan on the other hand simply goes straight for the action and barely, and I mean barely, gives his characters a chance to act human in between the set pieces even though they launch their cars in between buildings and off of mountains.

Furious 7 is essentially three insanely long action sequences that run for far too long. Not counting small bursts of violence, the three massive set pieces of the film are a car chase down a winding mountain road, a vehicular heist inside of a skyscraper, and an all out war on the streets of Los Angeles. The all out war that ends the film must run for over 15 minutes. I didn't count, but I'll be damned if that isn't one of the longest action finales in cinematic history. I'll be honest by saying that the best action set piece in the film is the mountain road chase scene heavily advertised in the film's trailer. It's jam packed with stunts and a fight scene between Walker and Thai superstar Tony Jaa (Ong Bak), making his Hollywood debut. It also opens with our characters skydiving inside of their cars on to the top of the mountain, so you have to love that. There is also an awesome stunt where a henchman's car flies through the air and impales upon a spiked tree branch. It got a definite "oh!" out of me.

The furious team wind up in Abu Dhabi.

And while the Abu Dhabi heist in which Dom launches a car in between two buildings is pretty cool, the finale in which Dom and friends wage war against Shaw and generic bad guy Mose (Djimon Hounsou) is exhausting to watch. The sequence is filled with individual fights, shootouts, and chases that range from boring to exciting. There is simply too much going on in this finale to make sense of. Even the long awaited fight between Diesel and Statham, arguably two of contemporary action cinema's biggest icons, pales in comparison to everything else. I forgot to mention that there is a great fist fight between Statham and Dwayne Johnson at the beginning of the film as well. It completely slipped my mind. 

Still, there is some great visual eye candy in this finale, once again in the form of a fist fight between Walker and Jaa. This finale contains my personal favorite stunt of the film in which Jaa knees Walker into a door which they proceed to slide down a staircase on top of. It's absolutely awesome. Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) also shows up in the finale and steals the film from everyone else with some of the most hilarious and self aware dialog from the series yet. You'll be laughing along with Johnson once you see him snap his cast off like it's nothing. 

As far as the cast goes, all of the regulars do as fine a job as ever. Walker is unfortunately sidelined in favor of Dom's revenge plot against Shaw. I should probably mention that the digital effects and body doubles used for Paul Walker's incomplete scenes are pretty convincing. At least James Wan didn't resort to cardboard cut outs a-la Game of Death. Newcomer Jason Statham is great as the villain and adds a whole layer of epic bravado to the mix. Unfortunately, many of the supporting newcomers are completely devoid of character and barely even given names. Mosse is a generic villain, plain and simple, even though he is played by the great Hounsou. Jaa, an international action star in his own right, isn't even given a name or visual introduction. He simply appears on screen during the mountain chase. Rhonda Rousey also appears as a nameless bodyguard during the Abu Dhabi heist who has no purpose but to fight Michelle Rodriguez, a.k.a. one of the worst actors ever. Overall, I think the cast is very hit or miss despite their impressive international pedigree. Nobody tops The Rock though. He owns this movie for all of his limited screen time.

Nobody beats the Rock. I love this guy with all of my heart.

Despite all of Furious 7's pros and cons, the last ten minutes are the best farewell that anyone could have put together to honor Paul Walker's place in the franchise. It's rare, even unheard of, for a franchise featuring the same characters to last so long and to have one of their own die in real life. Therefore, Furious 7's farewell to Walker is one of the most meta farewells in cinematic history. Wiz Khalifa's "See You Again" is a beautiful farewell song for Walker that perfectly underscores the final scene in which Brian and Dom drive their separate ways. It's a fantastic visual to end on and arguably the best piece of filmmaking within the film.

I'm sad to say it, but Furious 7 is a mixed bag. Convoluted plotting, over long action sequences, and excessive computer graphics hamper the film from being as tight and grounded as the previous entries. However, few franchises do "fun" as well as Fast and Furious does. Therefore, you still get some blockbuster bang for your buck despite the film's flaws. Plus, Paul Walker's farewell tribute is a must see for fans of the series. A definite recommendation for fans of the series but a hesitant recommendation for the non-Fast fans. Even though I had major problems with the film, I could see it showing up as an honorable mention for the best action films of 2015 at the end of the year.

Rating: 6/10 - Furious 7 is a flawed sequel that properly pays tribute to Paul Walker.

Franchise:
The Fast and the Furious (dir. Rob Cohen, 2001)
2 Fast 2 Furious (dir. John Singleton, 2003)
The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (dir. Justin Lin, 2006)
Fast and Furious (dir. Justin Lin, 2009)
Fast Five (dir. Justin Lin, 2011)
Fast and Furious 6 (dir. Justin Lin, 2013)
Furious 7 (dir. James Wan, 2015)

Taste the Anticipation - Death Sentence: Theatrical Cut (2007)

Director: James Wan

Cast: Kevin Bacon, Kelly Preston, Garrett Hedlund, John Goodman, Aisha Tyler

Country: United States

Rating: R

Run Time: 105 minutes

Taste the Anticipation is a series dedicated to reviewing films in anticipation of a newer up and coming release. Whether it a previous franchise installment, a forgotten film within a director's immense oveure, or a thematically similar venture, anything is fair game as long as it relates to a newer cinematic product of sorts that I am anticipating.

James Wan is a favorite amongst horror buffs for his low budget horror films that blend great scares with an effective atmosphere. His films have also proven to be massive commercial successes, earning millions of dollars over their small production budgets. However, it will be interesting to see Wan make the jump from low budget horror to big budget blockbuster this summer with the newest Fast and Furious installment, Furious 7. In anticipation of Wan's jump to big budget action, I thought I would tackle Wan's only other action film in his horror heavy oeuvre, 2007's Death Sentence.

I read an interview with Wan last year where he explained his attraction to Furious 7 because of its revenge plot. I won't go into spoilers for those not in the know, but Furious 7 is most definitely going to be all about revenge after the events of Fast and Furious 6. In that interview, Wan explained that he is a huge fan of gritty revenge and vigilante films from the 70s. Therefore, he hopes to deliver a gritty revenge film within the vehicular heavy soap opera that is the Fast and Furious franchise. I bring this background up because Wan had previously explored his fascination with the gritty revenge plot in Death Sentence. Unfortunately, I don't think that Wan properly understands what made those classic action and vigilante films of the 70s so great. Even though Death Sentence delivers gratuitous violence and excellent camera work, the film falters due to excessive melodrama and weak character development.

Kevin Bacon becomes a bad ass in one of his only action roles.

Death Sentence is loosely based on Brian Garfield's novel Death Sentence, which was actually a sequel to the novel that inspired Michael Winner's 1974 classic, Death Wish. The Death Wish novel and its sequel novel Death Sentence are both about what happens when an ordinary man is pushed to the brink and has everything taken away from him. In the case of both films and novels, the man in question becomes a vigilante and sets out to enact vengeance on the punks who took his life away from him. Wan loosely adapted the Death Sentence novel into a new plot that tackled the same theme of vigilantism but deviated from the original source material's plot. Elements from the Death Sentence novel were also loosely adapted in the first Death Wish sequel, Death Wish 2.

James Wan's Death Sentence tells the story of Nick Hume (Kevin Bacon), a successful businessman with the perfect family. Hume's eldest son is a star hockey player and he couldn't be more proud of him. One night, the two stop by a gas station to grab some food and gas. Unfortunately, a group of masked robbers burst into the station's store and gun down both the cashier and Hume's eldest son. As the robbers make their escape, Hume tackles one of them and tears off their mask. Hume eventually identifies the robber for the police and agrees to testify in court against him. Upon hearing his son's killer will only get 5 years in jail instead of a life sentence, Hume claims he does not recognize the robber and lets him walk. Hume than sets out to enact vengeance on the robber his own way. However, Hume quickly learns the consequences of his actions as the leader of the gang, Billy (Garrett Hedlund), and the rest of his men come after Hume's family.

Vigilante films usually make for a depressing viewing experience. There's nothing uplifting about watching a character lose their friends or family and set out to kill those who took their life from them. Even though we may get a little enjoyment out of watching the character enact their vengeance, we feel saddened and troubled inside just like the character at the end of their journey. Because in the end, all of the violence still can't make up for the loss of one's family or friends. Wan captures the essence of a vigilante drama by making the viewer determine themselves if the protagonist's actions were morally right or wrong.

Where's Mason Storm to save a liquor store when you need him?

If you think that home videos in a movie are cheesy or annoying, than stay away from this movie! You will never see more footage of a family's home videos in your life. Wan opens the movie with home videos and than continually peppers home video footage throughout the film, right up into the very last frame! The ever abundant family footage in the film is extremely cheesy and phony. Even the banter and affection between Hume and his wife and sons comes off forced. It's a shame that Wan couldn't direct his actors to act in a natural or realistic manner because it majorly hurt my viewing experience.

Wan clearly wanted Death Sentence to be reminiscent of the gritty 70s revenge and vigilante thrillers that he loves so much. This is apparent by Death Sentence's extreme violence and gritty tone. However, Wan fails to capture the subtlety, nuanced nature, and slow pace of those 70s thrillers. This is where Wan fails to understand how to recapture the genre that he loves so much. The drama and emotions in Death Sentence are so heavy handed, that the film collapses under its own phoniness. You know a film's dialog and emotions are on the nose when a character hears about the death of the robber who killed Hume's son and replies, "Wow, I guess there is justice." Wan's greatest mistake is that he depicts Lifetime television melodrama over compelling drama. Death Sentence also features a terrible soundtrack of songs that serve to underscore any sad scene in order to let the audience know that the characters are sad (you know, just in case you couldn't figure it out for yourself when you see Kevin Bacon crying in the shower or Kelly Preston sobbing on the ground).

In all honesty, I was surprised to see Kevin Bacon come off as such a bad ass here. I mean, this is the same guy who has appeared in fun films like Footloose and Animal House. And yet, here he is with a shaved head a-la Taxi Driver's Travis Bickle blasting the hell out of goons left and right. Bacon does a good job portraying an ordinary man who makes an extreme decision only to regret it immediately after. His turn from a kind businessman into a hardened vigilante is mostly believable because the turn doesn't come until the final 30 minutes of the film. Like I said, Hume's transformation would have been more affective if it were more subtle and not as heavy handed as Wan directs it to be. Still, action fans will find a side of Bacon previously unexplored before once they see him pick up a double barreled shotgun and blow a man's leg clean off.

Hedlund plays a captivating and fearsome gang leader.

Garrett Hedlund (Troy, Tron: Legacy) turns in the film's best performance as Billy, the main antagonist and leader of the gang who is responsible for the death of Hume's son. Billy and his fellow gang members feel like they were picked out of any sleezy Death Wish film from the 70s or 80s with their exaggerated emotions and irrational actions. Hedlund is so vile and malicious in this film that you will forget that he is the same actor who played the boy scout-like Sam Flynn in Tron: Legacy. Hedlund's dedication to play the slimiest of scumbags in recent memory makes his performance all the more memorable. John Goodman also shows up for three scenes as Billy's father, a large gun dealer with an odd sense of honor and morality. Still, I'll take three scenes of John Goodman spouting expletives over no John Goodman.

Even though it is clear that Wan failed to convey the film's drama in an affective and believable manner, I can whole heartedly say that the man did a fantastic job in the action department. The few action scenes in the film are incredibly well shot, edited, framed, and choreographed. Director of photography John R. Leonetti incorporates a lengthy tracking shot during a chase scene in a parking garage that makes for one of the film's most thrilling sequences. When Billy and his gang attack Hume in public, Hume runs for his life through an alley, a restaurant, and eventually into a parking garage. With no weapon in hand, Hume has to use his wits and knowledge in order to outrun the gang members and their guns. It's a fantastic sequence made all the better by Leonetti's impressive tracking shot that gives the viewer a perfect sense of the scene's setting.

There is no denying that Death Sentence's best piece of action is its final gory gun battle in Billy's hideout. After loosing everything, Hume buzzes his hair off, straps on a leather jacket, and buys a bag full of guns. Hume goes full vigilante in the film's final 15 minutes as he rams his car into Billy's hideout and engages in an extremely bloody shootout with Billy's men. The sound editing is especially excellent in this sequence. Every gun shot and shot gun blast carries a weight to it that the viewer can feel. It is clear that Wan is a horror filmmaker because all of the film's kills are exceptionally bloody. Gory highlights include Hume blasting a goon's leg clean off and Hume blowing a character's fingers clean off. I haven't seen a shotgun to the leg scene that gory since 91's Out for Justice, it is that bloody. Even though I did a fair amount of bashing on Wan in this review, I can say nothing but great things about the man's attention to detail in the action department. His action scenes are nothing but fluid, bloody, and exciting.

That shotgun really ties the outfit together dude.

It's a shame that Wan's direction of Death Sentence's emotional moments and heavy handed drama hurts it so bad. If Wan had gone the nuanced route and allowed his film to be subtle, than it may have been far better. At least the action scenes and Garrett Hedlund's villain are first rate. Horror fans might actually enjoy this film for its extreme gore and simply because it is directed by James Wan, a director so beloved and revered in the horror community. I recommend this film as a rental though to any die hard vigilante action fan. Even though the drama is hard to get through, the few action scenes that are there are enough to wet any action fan's palette. If you are looking for a more compelling, realistic, and contemporary vigilante drama, than check out the British film, Harry Brown, starring Michael Caine. If gore and excess are more your thing though, than Death Sentence is for you.

Rating: 5/10 - Stupendous action scenes and first rate camera work can't save this dull and heavy handed vigilante drama.