2 Fast 2 Furious (2003) DVD Review – UK

Street racer Brian O'Connor agrees to go undercover for the DEA in order to smash a Miami drugs ring and clear his criminal record.

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Street racer Brian O'Connor agrees to go undercover for the DEA in order to smash a Miami drugs ring and clear his criminal record.

Runtime

1 Hour 43 Minutes

BBFC rating

Region

Region 2

Sound

Dolby Digital 5.1

Aspect

2.35:1

Release year

2003

Details

Ex-cop and street racer Brian O'Connor returns, this time burning rubber on the streets of Miami. Disgraced and out of the force, he now spends his nights racing for cash. That is, until one late-night meet is shut down by the police, the cars are impounded and prison time is dangled as a very real possibility. Apparently Miami frowns upon high-speed street racing. Who knew?

But the bust is no coincidence. The Miami police and the DEA need someone they can trust to go undercover. Brian is offered a clean slate if he'll pose as a driver for local drug baron Carter Verone. Agent Monica Fuentes is already embedded, and with Verone preparing to move a fortune in dirty money, they need Brian behind the wheel - fast.

Brian won't do it alone. He recruits his old friend Roman, an ex-con still nursing a grudge over Brian's former badge. The promise of a wiped criminal record - and access to some of the finest machinery in Miami's impound yard - soon changes his mind. It's time to engage first gear and apply maximum throttle.

Picture & Sound

The picture is bright and colourful with a huge amount of detail and some wonderfully rich, vibrant colours. The locations in and around Miami are reproduced with near-perfect pixel precision. Only the night-time street racing scenes were a little disappointing, as the contrast levels were slightly too high, causing the black levels to be compromised somewhat. Nevertheless, the bit rate remains high throughout and there are no signs of artefacting or outlining. Director John Singleton also manages to pull off some amazing camera work with a number of incomprehensible sweeps around the speeding cars. I'm sure it was impossible to do on the open road and was done in a film studio with the help of a green screen. Either way, it is impressive stuff.

The thumping bass of the techno soundtrack ensures that 2 Fast 2 Furious will give your sound system one of the most serious workouts it will ever receive. As soon as the film starts your subwoofer angrily announces its presence with some superb, room-shaking bass from the near-continuously present musical score and engine roar. However, it is not only the score that ensures a rollicking time is enjoyed by all. I've lost count of the number of times Hollywood has failed to deliver a soundtrack that really complements the on-screen action. Fortunately, 2 Fast 2 Furious breaks that mould with a rip-roaring soundtrack that exercises every single inch of your surround system to the max.

Even though there's no DTS soundtrack - and if there were I'm sure it would be awesome - the dynamics of the Dolby Digital track ensure that it shoots to the top of the pile for sound system show-offs. The separation in the front channels is perfect whilst the dialogue remains firmly fixed in the centre channel throughout. I've already highlighted the extremely active LFE channel, but the most active channels of all are the surrounds. Once the cars are on one of their many high-speed duels the rear channels are bursting with activity. There's the swoosh of passing traffic, the growl of car engines, the clatter of police helicopters and, let's not forget, the musical score. It's got it all.

Menu & Extras

The menu system is animated and scored, with a novel method of accessing the extras. Upon inserting the disc you are required to select one of the three main characters' cars, with each one giving you access to a differently designed menu, extras and profiles related to that character. You can then see Paul Walker, Tyrese and Devon Aoki getting to grips with the cars as they are put through their paces at a driving school. It's not only the money that makes the life of a Hollywood actor so pleasant - not only are they driving some fancy cars, but they're also learning some valuable driving skills too. Nice work if you can get it, eh?

With the film being car-related there's also a number of features on the cars used in the film, along with how you'd go about modifying a standard production-line sports car into something a little more special. The usual supply of deleted scenes and outtakes are also included and, just like the film, they are not particularly interesting. Or funny. Director John Singleton also provides an audio commentary track. Unfortunately, it is not that interesting and you'll soon become bored with it.

Overall

After the surprisingly successful and hugely profitable release of The Fast and the Furious, a sequel was inevitable. While the first film at least attempted something resembling a plot, this one barely bothers. You could lift the framework, drop it into a console racer and nobody would notice. Yes, there are fast cars and glamorous distractions, but unless modified engines and neon underglow are your idea of drama, there's not much under the bonnet.

To be fair, the Americans do know how to upgrade a car. There are genuine supercars on display here - alongside enough under-chassis neon to power a small seaside town. Meanwhile, back in Britain, the average boy racer is still trying to make a 1.0-litre Corsa sound like a Ferrari with an exhaust the size of a drainpipe.

Technically, the DVD package is impressive. The picture shines, the extras are plentiful and the soundtrack is thunderous enough to register on the Richter scale. But as entertainment, it's fuelled by fumes rather than substance. The wider audience will likely steer clear - though that phenomenal soundtrack may just tempt you back into the driver's seat, even if the script wouldn't challenge a particularly slow Fiat Panda on the M25. In rush hour.