Furious 7is basically a live action version of Grand Theft Auto; with a touching tribute to its fallen star, Paul Walker. The story picks up shortly after the events of the last film in London. We’re introduced to Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham), an extremely dangerous ex-spook who’s the older brother of Owen Shaw (Luke Evans). As Owen is pretty much a vegetable after his defeat by the Toretto crew, Deckard embarks on a bloodthirsty rampage for revenge. He takes out Han (Sung Kang) in Tokyo, then sends a care package to Dom’s (Vin Diesel) house that nearly kills the entire family. Faced with such a diabolical and capable enemy, Dom and the crew make a deal with a shady government agent (Kurt Russell). They help him rescue a kidnapped hacker, and he will give them the capability to track Deckard Shaw.
Furious 7is a frame to frame action film with over the top stunts, gunplay, fisticuffs, and scantily clad women. The script by Chris Morgan can be criticized for being a mere set up for action scenes, but I think it deserves a lot more credit. First, there are quite a few characters in this story, who each play unique and vital roles. Beyond the primary story arc of Deckard Shaw, there is the relationship between Dom and Letty (Michelle Rodriguez), who’s still recovering from amnesia, further tying in events from previous films, and most importantly, the handling of Paul Walker’s tragic demise. This is tricky territory. Walker’s character, Brian, has been the co-lead to this franchise, beloved by the fan base, and the actor himself was very well regarded by audiences. Director James Wan and the writers do an admirable job tying everything together without it being hokey or contrived. I believe audiences will have a strong emotional reaction to how Walker’s death is handled.
Paul Walker was killed in a car accident in November of 2013. Wan had most of the film completed, but there were critical scenes to shoot and the conclusion had to be updated to deal with Walker’s passing. The filmmakers used Walker’s brothers and CGI compositing to finish the film. They deserve a mountain of credit for pulling this off. I watchedFurious 7with a keen eye to see if I could spot where Walker’s face had been digitally added. It’s never obvious, although you can tell, in some parts, where this was done. It never detracts from the film. Audiences will not be taken out of the experience by obvious effects work.
Furious 7is a popcorn film that knows its audience. The bangs and whistles seem cartoonish to me, but I totally understand this is what fans want to see. The fact that it delivers the goods with a lot of heart and respect for Paul Walker is admirable. Although it has been marketed as “the last ride”. I’d be very surprised if we don’t see further films in this universe with these characters.Furious 7will absolutely run over the box office. I’d bet Paul Walker would have wanted the story continued for as long as people wanted to see them. He leaves the silver screen gracefully and with reverence.
