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March 27, 2017

F&F 2: 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003) --- "An Ex-Cop Helps An Attractive Agent Bring Down A Miami Drug Lord."

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Plot Summary
EX-LAPD cop Brian O'Conner (Paul Walker) teams up with his ex-con friend Roman Pearce (Tyrese Gibson) and works with undercover U.S. Customs Service agent Monica Fuentes (Eva Mendes) to bring Miami-based drug lord Carter Verone (Cole Hauser) down. (1)









Review
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Hello, Movie Buffs!
     The first installment, The Fast and the Furious (2001), became an instant hit with fans due to the intense racing scenes and the great chemistry between Paul Walker and Vin Diesel. And like with most franchises the sequel, 2 Fast 2 Furious was released two years later but it is difficult to say whether or not it pleased fans as much as the first film. In 2 Fast 2 Furious it is nice that the writers kept the connection together by having the characters reference material from the first film which demonstrated the loyalty of continuing the story without diverting completely from the first film. There is one aspect that, questionably, carried over from the first film; the concept of getting caught having a love interest in the business.

     In the first film it blew Brian O’Conner’s (Paul Walker) cover and while he is an ex-cop now, you would think that he would learn from past mistakes; especially ones that repeat in a similar fashion. The slight romance between Monica Fuentes (Eva Mendes) and O'Connor is more of a game of flirtation rather than a full-fledged relationship. He still has strong feelings for Mia (Jordana Brewster) and hates that fact that he hurt her, so this new romance is predictable and short. Eva Mendes’ character is pretty interesting because for a little bit I started to question if her character really is the damsel in distress or actually the mastermind behind everything. Another interesting character is Carter Verone who played by Cole Hauser. Hauser gives his character a very smooth deep voice - resembling a very young Tom Berenger (Inception, Platoon, Training Day) – and makes him seem to be more dangerous than he looks. A nice change to all the lies and drama of the characters is O'Conner’s new, rather reluctant, partner Roman Pearce (Tyrese Gibson). Roman is an old con-artist friend who has been holding a few grudges against O’Conner for some personal issues. However, despite the bad past, the partnership between Roman and O’Conner works well and is amusing to watch as they do next to impossible driving stunts with each other. Their friendship only ever continues to grow throughout the franchise and Gibson’s character offers great comic relief for much of the film.
     The action scenes were great. The racing is still fast paced and contains much of the same depth that the first film had; carrying the same feeling. The Miami backdrop adds to the "upgrade" feel of the second movie but unlike the first, 2 Fast 2 Furious still boasts a tame plot. The story follows ex-cop Brian O'Conner to Miami from L.A where he's been enjoying his time racing street cars. Heading the authorities is Agent Bilkins (Thom Barry) from the first installment and he wants O'Conner back one more time to take down a drug lord. Of course, he cannot refuse because if the drug lord is turned in, then all of O’Conner’s criminal charges will disappear. Now that I think about it, this plot sounds a lot like Vin Diesel xXx (2002) movie, minus evil drug lord. Nevertheless, while it is inferior to the first movie, it is still a great "dude" movie for both guys and girls.



 “He did the stare and drive on you, didn't he? He got that from me.”
- Roman

Final Vote
Worth Seeing:  3.8 of 5 stars
Worth Buying:  3.8 of 5 stars



I hope you liked this post, subscribe to my blog via email HERE, send in your comments, and watch 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003).


Movies Similar 
F&F 1: Fast and the Furious (2001)
F&F 3: Tokyo Drift (2006)
F&F 4: Fast & the Furious (2009)
F&F 5: Fast Five (2011)
F&F 6: Fast & Furious 6 (2013)
F&F 7: Furious 7 (2015)
F&F 8: The Fate of the Furious (2017)
Gone in 60 Seconds (2000)
Italian Job (2003)
Mission Impossible (1996)
Mission Impossible 2 (2000)
Mission Impossible 3 (2006)
Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol (2011)
Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation (2016)
Need for Speed (2014)
Ocean's Eleven (2001)
Ocean's Twelve (2004)
Ocean's Thirteen (2007)
xXx (2002)
xXx: State of the Union (2005)
xXx: Return of Xander Cage (2017)



Cast & Crew

Directed by: John Singleton

 

Writing Credits:

   (Characters by) Gary Scott Thompson.
   (Screenplay) Michael Brandt and Derek Haas

 

Produced by 

   Michael Fottrell     ---     executive producer
   Heather Lieberman ---   co-producer
   Lee R. Mayes           ---     executive producer
   Neal H. Moritz        ---     producer

 

Cast: 

Paul Walker --- Brian O'Conner
Tyrese Gibson --- Roman Pearce (as Tyrese)
Eva Mendes --- Monica Fuentes
Cole Hauser --- Carter Verone
Ludacris --- Tej
Thom Barry --- Agent Bilkins
James Remar --- Agent Markham
Devon Aoki --- Suki
Amaury Nolasco --- Orange Julius
Michael Ealy --- Slap Jack
Jin Au-Yeung --- Jimmy 
Edward Finlay --- Agent Dunn
Mark Boone Junior --- Detective Whitworth
Mo Gallini --- Enrique 
Eric Etebari --- Darden
John Cenatiempo --- Korpi 
Troy Brown --- Paul Hackett
Corey Michael Eubanks --- Max Campisi
Sammy Maloof --- Joe Osborne 
Troy Robinson --- Feliz Vispone
Jose Perez --- Jose


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