New Model, Original Parts.......

Well, that title does put you off, doesn't it? Sounds like another cheesy punchline.......which does not do anything to elevate the sense of urgency in you to go and grab a ticket to watch this one. Fortuantely, the prequels to this movie have done more than enough to ensure that the production and distribution costs are recovered at least twice over.



"The Fast and The Furious 4...........New Model, Original Parts."......sounds a bit uncool when put next to say, The Fast and the Furious, 2 fast 2 furious and The fast and the furious Tokyo Drift. The biggest problem for this film is going to be living upto the fame and charm of the earlier movies. Yes it has a lot of cars. And yes, Vin Diesel is back with the uber cool Paul Walker and the uber hot Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster. The amazing muscle cars featured here ('72 Ford Gran Torino....the baddy's car and the Chevelle SS....Vin Diesels ride.... look so amazing.....) and the romance with the japanese rice rockets continues (Nissan Skyline GTR, Honda NSX, Subaru Impreza...). But will it still blow my head off with the breath taking quarter mile drags, drifts, customisations and music from the first three parts? Lets take a look.



The story begins with another robbery.....obviously carried out by Vin Diesel and Family. A cameo appearance by "Haan" from Tokyo Drift and Paul Walker is back in FBI. And how ghastly does Paul look in a cheap FBI suit!!! I almost threw up! He was the one who made that whole street racer look so cool to so many million kids all around the world. Seeing him in that half ass suit was painful. Well, then Vins' girl friend, Letty is murdered by a drug dealer and this is the same drug dealer that Paul is trying to pin down. So their paths are set for a collision course, en route to finding their marker.



But the story isn't the appeal. The cars, the races and the tongue in the cheek humor are. And thats plenty in this movie. Be it the opening robbery sequence, then the race sequence in the city , the race to cross the border with drugs and the end sequence. All keep you on the edge of the seat. Proper FnF style. The soundtrack is not all that impressive. The music keeps fading in and out randomly, no new punchy songs. That was a let down. Also the editing on this one was weak. The movie could have been much more gripping, had the editing and the direction been a little better. Make no mistake though, Justin Lin has done his best as the director, but when you compare it to its elder brothers, it comes out as a bit of a loser.

Still, i would definitely recommend this movie. Its still cool, super cool. The cars, girls, drugs, dialogues, some emotions .....everything. Something that a automobile junkie should not miss. If you enjoyed the first three parts, then with a little more patience, you will definitely like this one too. And yes, it did blow my head off. Maybe not as comprehensively as the first 3 parts, but as a movie, yes.