The Fast and the Furious (2001)

Los Angeles police officer Brian O'Conner must decide where his loyalty really lies when he becomes enamored with the street racing world he has been sent undercover to destroy.

Director:

Rob Cohen

Writers:

Ken Li (magazine article "Racer X"), Gary Scott Thompson (screen story)

Stars:

Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Michelle Rodriguez

11 wins & 18 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Paul Walker	...	Brian O'Conner
Vin Diesel	...	Dominic Toretto
Michelle Rodriguez	...	Letty
Jordana Brewster	...	Mia Toretto
Rick Yune	...	Johnny Tran
Chad Lindberg	...	Jesse
Johnny Strong	...	Leon
Matt Schulze	...	Vince
Ted Levine	...	Sgt. Tanner
Ja Rule	...	Edwin
Vyto Ruginis	...	Harry
Thom Barry	...	Agent Bilkins
Stanton Rutledge	...	Muse
Noel Gugliemi	...	Hector (as Noel Guglielmi)
R.J. de Vera	...	Danny Yamato (as R.J. De Vera)

Storyline

Los Angeles street racer Dominic Toretto falls under the suspicion of the LAPD as a string of high-speed electronics truck robberies rocks the area. Brian O'Connor, an officer of the LAPD, joins the ranks of Toretto's highly skilled racing crew undercover to convict Toretto. However, O'Connor finds himself both enamored with this new world and in love with Toretto's sister, Mia. As a rival racing crew gains strength, O'Connor must decide where his loyalty really lies.

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Plot Keywords:

illegal street racing | undercover cop | derelict vehicle | woman with a bare midriff | pig | 

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Taglines:

When the sun goes down, Another world comes to life

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for violence, sexual content and language

Did You Know?

Trivia

The role of Mia was written for Eliza Dushku, but she turned it down.

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Goofs

Towards the end of the film, when Brian and Mia are trying to stop Dom and co from robbing the armed trucker, Mia gives the Nextel operator Dom's cell number over Brian's cell phone. Since both Brian and Dom have active cell phones, why didn't they use one of them to call one of their friends when the Tran brothers blew up Brian's car after the first race?

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Quotes

Vince: What is this guy sandwich crazy or something?
Leon: Nah. He ain't here for the food, V.

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Crazy Credits

In the end credits, the main players have their names listed next to a sketch of their cars. Both the sketches and names are the same colors as the cars.

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Alternate Versions

As shown on the DVD, director Rob Cohen and editor Peter Honess had to trim down the scene where Dom character is hijacking the truck towards the end of the film to secure a PG-13 rating. The trims made to avoid an R rating were the shots of Vince's arm being ripped by the wiring on the truck and the agony he expressed.

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Connections

Edited into Smallville: Velocity (2004)

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Soundtracks

Evil Ways
Written by Clarence 'Frogman' Henry (as Clarence Henry)
Performed by Santana
Courtesy of Columbia Records
By Arrangement with Sony Music Licensing

User Reviews

An action movie with a some-what plot, hot babes, fast cars, great action and a meet-expectations.

The Fast and the Furious is probably the first movie to get me into cars while at the same time enjoying myself without having to worry about a plot.

Paul Walker plays Brian O'Conner, a hot shot police officer, who goes undercover as a car junkie Brian Spilner to see if a local street racer/mechanic by the name of Dominic Toretto (Vin Diseal) has anything to do with hijacking a bunch of cargo from DVD's, TV's, entertainment sets, and so forth while at the same time falling head over heels for Dominic's sister Mia (Jordana Brewster). Brian comes so close while at the same time gaining trust to the target (Dominic) itself where it's only a matter of time before the truth comes out.

The film itself has the best action sequences involving street racing and high octane action where despite a so-so plot to follow, or one that's been seen before (such as Point Break), you don't have to worry about a thing. It's just pure fun.

The film also stars Michelle Rodriguez (S.W.A.T.) as Dominic's girlfriend, Letty; Ted Levine (The Silence of the Lambs) as Sgt. Tanner, and singer Ja Rule in a small cameo as a contestant against Dominic.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA Germany

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

22 June 2001 (USA)

Also Known As:

Racer X

Filming Locations:

2629 W 8th St, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$38,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$40,089,015, 24 June 2001

Gross USA:

$144,533,925

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$207,301,667

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures, Original Film, Mediastream Film GmbH & Co. Productions KG

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS DTS (DTS: X)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1