DriftLive.com was recently invited to Universal Studios for a first look at The Fast and The Furious: Tokyo Drift. The third installment of the Fast and the Furious franchise had its world premiere today; this film is going to bring a lot of attention and fresh excitement to the world of drifting in the United States.
In The Fast and the Furious:Tokyo Drift numerous professional drifters and drift personalities lent their skills and experience to the film crew to help make the actual drifting sequences as authentic as possible. Several professional drifters were on hand at the Premiere, including Rhys Millen, Rich Rutherford, Samuel Hubinette, Tanner Foust, and Daijiro Yoshihara.
Before the screening of the film the drivers were drifting a course set up in a large parking lot near Universal City Walk and taking numerous media for rides. It was a nice opportunity to see the drivers out having a good time on the track in a non-competition environment.
The Plot:
The basic Plot of the film has the audience following Sean Boswell (Lucas Black) as he is sent by his mother to live with his US Military father after a street racing accident has placed him in a tenuous legal situation. Director Justing Lin does a reasonable job of presenting Sean as a gaijin, or outsider in a foreign land, and creating a sense of disorientation and isolation. I only question whether this is entirely appropriate for a summer blockbuster style of film. Lucas quickly finds a new group of car enthusiasts to hang out with, and is quickly introduced to the “hottest underground motorsport� of drifting. At this point Sean has to learn to drift to save the day and get the girl. Pretty basic plot, but that is not why audiences flock to see this sort of film.
Ramblings about the film:
The movie overall palatable, the outright campyness that the preview portrays is not really found in the movie itself. In fact I would say that this film went the other direction and maybe got a bit too serious at times. I tend to like movies on the The Big Lebowski end of the scale as opposed to the Manchurian Candidate.
There are some really nice camera angles, and some well executed stunt-driving segments, kudos to Rhys, Samuel, Tanner, Rich, and the other stunt drivers who worked on this film. Justin Lin plays homage to several memorable car films, such as Bullit, The French Connection, and Ronin while managing to keep the Nitrous Oxide induced warp speed effects from the previous two films to a bare minimum. A car movie aficionado would be justified in putting down $10 simply to see what this film adds to the genre.
Little Bow Wow:
Don’t let this actor’s fame (or infamy) prevent you from going to see this film. He plays a small roll, and serves a comic relief, not as a prototype of what it means to be a drifter.
Bottom Line:
If you want to see a good movie about drifting go and get Pete Varley’s “BAD AS HELL,” if you want to see a stylized automotive movie with the occasional piece of ass, then take a look at The Fast and The Furious: Tokyo Drift.