one last ride

I wanted to love “Furious 7,” the seventh installment in the Fast & Furious franchise which was directed by James Wan, the same person behind the horror blockbusters “Insidious” [2010] and “The Conjuring” [2013], but the guy just couldn’t miss a chance to stick his camera on a butt, hip or cleavage for a couple of seconds as if he’s possessed by Michael Bay. Instead of moving the visual motif of this series forward to go along with the times, he goes back to the very first installment which is basically a sexist, testosterone-fueled film. Despite this observation, the franchise has transformed into a mixed breed of sorts from a simple automobile bonanza. This seventh iteration now feels like a spy, comedy, sci-fi slash martial arts B-movie, and it still works as popcorn fare wherein you really don’t have to think while watching it. Like staring at static and white noise on television. This still couldn’t top Justin Lin’s “Fast & Furious 5” in terms of story and plot development which propel everything to a logical and solid ending. “Furious 7” though is sadly full of self-aware one-liners and insane set pieces; it is easy to say Jason Statham is waste of character. It looks like his villainous Deckard Shaw is written as someone in the league of Hans Gruber in “Die Hard” or even Darth Vader in “Star Wars,” but he didn’t really translate well. Kurt Russell’s Mr. Nobody, on the other hand, is an interesting character. I am very sure he is to Dom’s crew what Q or M is to James Bond when the eighth installment happens. The filmmaker did something remarkable though (the only saving grace in the film) to Paul Walker’s character that many, if not all, didn’t expect at all, especially with the knowledge that the actor died in a freak accident prior to the filming’s wrap-up. I’ll have to end this here now. You’ll just have to watch it and endure the whole ride yourself. Spoiler bomb: In this movie Iggy Azalea appears in a blink-and-you-miss moment.

[image lifted from this site]