Originally published April 6, 2015

As hard as it is to believe, the Fast and the Furious franchise really has kept the pedal to the medal through seven iterations, covering almost 15 years; that’s a lot of content, a lot of legs for a story that essentially started out a hairline away from a straight-to-video release.

Yet, through all of that, with the possible exception of the fairly gaudy 2 Fast 2 Furious, the movies have aged well, adding more depth to the characters, more layers to the plot, and of course, more cars. Indeed, as much as we’d like to say we watch any F & F entries for the acting talent on display, the movies would be pretty compromised if they didn’t display a new line-up of four-wheeled precious metal, every episode.

Even the car collection has matured along with the plotlines; garish, neon-vinyl reached its peak with 2006’s The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, to be replaced, for the most part, by matted black and silver wheels in 2009’s Fast and Furious, a trend that has continued, really, through three more movies up to Furious 7. Heck, certain scenes here will likely remind more of Mad Max on the car front than they do the original movie.

As of today, Furious 7 is the last film of the franchise, even if Vin Diesel was recently quoted as hinting at an eighth iteration. In the F & F universe, meanwhile, it’s also the last film of the series in the chronological sense; 2009’s Fast & Furious, 2011’s Fast Five and 2013’s Fast & Furious 6 all occur before the events of Drift.

Furious 7, meanwhile, starts right where TD and F&F6 left off (which is the same place, just from slightly different angles). Han (Sung Kang) is dead, the baddie from F&F6 is laid up in the hospital and his brother, Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham in all his cockney glory), is out for revenge, and little else. He’s described by one of the film’s characters as a former British SAS super soldier that now “lives in the shadows”, but that’s a little hard to believe, considering the evidence we see of the path of destruction he beat while trying to get to his brother’s hospital room.

Switch to our favorite crew of street-racers-cum-super-criminals; after the last film’s events, they’ve now gained their freedom, and are living fairly ordinary lives back in Los Angeles (in a cheeky reference to suburban life, Paul Walker’s Brian O’Connor even drives a Chrysler Town and Country minivan). Seeds of unrest have been planted, however; Brian’s baby-mamma, Mia (Jordana Brewster), senses it, admitting to Dom (Vin Diesel) in a quiet moment that Brian “misses the bullets.” Be careful what you wish for, Brian.

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Of course, Agent Hobbs  (Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson) returns; he’s actually the first of our crew to face Shaw, who beats him soundly in a heavy-hitting fight that you can feel in your bones. It’s Hobbs, from his hospital bed, who officially-unofficially sends Dom and his crew to sort Shaw out.

Then, as if on cue, series newcomer Kurt Russell shows up to add some government covert ops spice, just when you thought the team was gonna have to go this one alone. “Mr. Nobody”, as his character’s called, needs Dom’s help to nab terrorist Jakande (played with relish by Djimon Hounsou, to the point I would have liked to see more of him), and in exchange, he’ll provide a device that will help them get to Shaw. Because, Mr. Nobody explains, Dom’s team (yes, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges and Tyrese Gibson are back as Tej Parker and Roman Pearce) works out of the limelight, just like Shaw does.

Furious 7 actually takes its time getting to the real meaty action. Which brings me back to my original point regarding the series’ maturing: you realize that while they were just a bunch of street racin’ kids at the series outset, you’ve really, truly come to care about these characters. You hope that Letty (Michelle Rodriguez) regains her memory. You hope that Hobbs, who’s revealed to have a daughter, gets out of that bed and is back to being the skull crackin’ DEA agent you hated when he first appeared in Fast Five, but were completely endeared to by the end of F&F6. And of course, you hope that Brian makes it out of this one, because you know what happened, not two years ago, to the man that plays him.

It’s that underlying theme the permeates the whole experience; you really want to watch very closely, because whether there will be an 8th episode or not, it will never be quite the same without Walker, who made his name after starring in The Fast and the Furious. In a smart off-screen nod to the importance of family (Dom’s line on “family” from the trailers is corny, but it does well to illustrate a very important theme that has developed within this franchise over the years), Walker’s brothers—Caleb and Cody—are on-hand to finish the work Walker couldn’t do before his untimely passing.

Indeed, when he did die, there was a chance that F7 wouldn’t get finished at all. When you consider how tight and real the on-screen chemistry is, though, you really get the impression that off-camera, this group of actors is a close-knit one. It’s almost as if they had to finish the movie, if nothing else than to honour Walker.

Of course, when the action does get going, it gets going thick and fast, and we’re privy to some of the slickest stunts ever seen not just in this franchise, but in the Bourne Identity, Lethal Weapon, Die Hard and Matrix franchises combined. I’m not kidding; I mean, they drop muscle cars out of the back of a plane, on purpose. Who does that?

Director James Wan (Saw, Insidious), free of his horror-movie shackles, does just that and more. He’s attacked the subject matter with vigour, creating an action masterpiece that should be seen, whether you’re a fan of the franchise, of action movies in general, or of movies that are true to their source material, but are able to leave their comfort zone to tug on your heartstrings as well.

Top Cars of Fast and the Furious

If the movie’s tagline – “one last ride” – is, in fact, true (Vin Diesel may think otherwise, however), then Furious 7 – is the last hurrah for a franchise that has gone from being a street racing kid’s wet dream to a proper action series that can go toe-to-toe with The Matrix and Die Hard alike.

With that in mind, we take a look back at the mechanical stars of the film; the muscle cars, street racers and off-roaders that, even in this last iteration which features a host of acting talent, remain the staple of the franchise.

Dom’s 1970 Dodge Charger R/T (The Fast and the Furious, Fast & Furious, Fast Five, Fast & Furious 6, Furious7)

Yes, it’s the most prominent automotive feature in the series – all menacing black with a massive air scoop – but it’s the version from Fast & Furious that we’ll have; by adding bigger wheels and lowering both the ride height and the height of the BDS intake, it looks that much more menacing, and that much more able to actually out manoeuvre the baddies, as opposed to just overpowering them. Not to mention, it’s in the presence of this car that Dom utters those now unforgettable words: “I live my life one quarter-mile at a time.”

Of course, special mention has to go to Dom’s “Charger” off-roader (it’s really just a Charger body on a stadium buggy chassis) from F7; car builder/guru Dennis McCarthy was quoted by theAFICIONAUTO as saying that this car, in particular, was his outright favorite from all the films.

Brian’s Nissan R34 GT-R (2 Fast 2 Furious)

This is an interesting one because not only did it look fantastic an oh-so-street-racer in its silver/blue paintjob (with matching blue neon underneath, of course), but it was the first time many North Americans this side of the Gran Turismo video game crowd really learned what the Nissan GT-R was. Now, it’s a staple in the performance car world, both here and abroad. Give Brian and the rest of the 2F2F crew credit for being ahead of their time!

Dom’s (sort of) 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport (Fast Five)

“Sort of” because it’s a replica and “sort of” because Dom only really has it in his possession for a limited time, the ‘Vette GS looks awesome, has been tuned (in real life) to handle off-road Thunderdome-style pursuits, and is privy to one of the most extreme set-piece escapes the series (and perhaps the action genre in general) has ever seen. Who can forget the slo-mo shot from the rear of the car as it catapults of a storeys-high cliff, Dom and Brian slowly emerging through the open roof like two extreme parcourists?

Letty’s Dodge Challenger SRT8 (Furious7)

Like the Corvette above, it’s this car’s involvement in such derring-do that merits its placement on this list. It also presents a juicy tidbit of irony, too; if it weren’t for that import-tuner rear wing – the kind of thing muscle car people are often not too fond of – how would Brian have ever made it? Hmm? Bonus points for its being part of the fantastic let’s-drop-some-cars-from-a-military-transport-plane sequence, and managing to look cool even without the sky-high ride heights and burly off-road tires of the rest of the cars involved.


Sean’s 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX GSR (The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift)

This is cool because it’s used to actually teach LA boy and former muscle-car driver Sean Boswell how to properly drift a car. TD itself features some of the most actual driving from any one film in the series, and riding along with Sean as he learns to pop the clutch, yank the e-brake and power out is actually quite immersive. Plus, it looks cool and juuuust below over-the-top in its black and red, APR Performance livery.

Roman’s 1970 Chevrolet Monte Carlo (2 Fast 2 Furious)

It’s got fangs for a front-end! Classic NASCAR wheels painted red! It’s got no glass on the side windows, and eventually none on the windshield either (because, well, it was in Roman’s way)! It’s got no doors like the General Lee! It’s a freaking demolition derby car that wins the heat by turning itself into a de facto ramp, and sending a station wagon cartwheeling to its eventual demise! It makes me finish every sentence with an exclamation mark!

(SPOILER ALERT: The first car we see Roman driving is the Monte in 2F2F; the last? A Caprice of similar vintage in F7. Interesting, that)

Fenix’s 1972 Ford Gran Torino Sport (Fast & Furious)

Partly because we need to feature some bad guy cars here, and partly because it’s actually a pretty important plot device, Fenix’s Ford makes this list. It looks fantastic in its emerald metalflake paint, but it’s the tires that give it away; upon returning to the site of Letty’s infamous crash, It’s the Torino’s tire marks that lead Dom to Fenix, vengeance and on to the crew’s enemy #1 in the finale.

Tego’s Chevrolet R-3500 (Fast & Furious)

Well, for starters, it is involved in one of the franchise’s more deft stunts, as it does a one-eighty at speed, gets slammed into reverse, hooks up to a presumably full tanker trailer, and continues on its merry way. That’s cool, but what’s really cool is the actual truck used in the movie has basically an ultra-heavy duty rear end that can drive all four rear wheels. Oh, and of course, it’s got NOS. Two bottles full.

The Dodge Charger SRT-8s (Fast Five)

Yeah, they’re finished in a matted black paint. Yes, they have the abilities to hook up to – and remove, right through the wall – a massive safe. Yes, they have special e-brake handles that recall those seen on Formula Drift series cars. But forget all that. The bottom line is, these babies are involved it what might be the most outrageous car chase we’ve ever seen on the silver screen, as they drag the anchor-like safe – and anything it happens to latch on to – through the crowded streets of Rio de Janiero, yanking on e-brakes and pulling skids as if they hadn’t a care in the world. Or, a safe and about thirty pieces of various city paraphernalia dragging behind them.

SPOILER ALERT: Next Page Contains a Spoiler

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Brian’s Toyota Supra (Furious 7)

We included this one as opposed to the orange car from the original because it does such a smartly subtle stroke in a series that is, shall we say, a little light on the subtlety. It’s finished in white, and it’s the last car we’ll ever see Paul Walker drive, even if it isn’t actually Paul Walker, but one of his brothers – Caleb and Cody – that were hired to finish the stuff he hadn’t. In the film, we see Dom driving one way in his (now silver) 1970 Charger, and Brian driving the other way into a golden sunset. You may or may not tear up a little, but you’re bound to feel touched by this excellent tribute.

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