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2 Fast 2 Furious – Movie Review

2 Fast 2 Furious takes us to Miami

Hey film fans, Slick Dungeon here, back to review the second installment of the Fast and Furious franchise, 2 Fast 2 Furious. Paul Walker is back for this one but there is no Vin Diesel in sight here. But there is still plenty of action, lots of fast cars, a few good stunts and plot that is, well… pretty thin. Note there will be spoilers in this review for both The Fast and the Furious and 2 Fast 2 Furious. If you want to catch up and read my review of the first movie, you can do so here.

The Fast and the Furious set up a situation with Dom Toretto and Brian O’Conner which leaves Brian in trouble with the law and Dom presumably free. One would expect the sequel to try to continue those stories but there was a major problem in doing that for this movie. Vin Diesel was filming a different action movie xXx and couldn’t come back for 2 Fast 2 Furious without leaving that project. So, instead of having the two breakout stars of the first film come back, we only get Paul Walker as Brian O’Conner.

The good news is this second film does introduce us to some of the recurring cast we’ll see in later movies, including Roman Pearce played by Tyrese Gibson, Monica Fuentes played by Eva Mendes, and Tej Parker played by Ludacris.

The first film was better than it had any right to be, although it accomplished that in large part by borrowing a plot from an older movie. The sequel needed to be more action packed with bigger stunts and to keep the interest of people who saw the first one without one of the main stars.

So, did they accomplish this goal or was this a forgettable sequel? Let’s dig in and find out.

Spoilers follow!

We’re Moving to Miami

This film starts with a street race in Miami, Florida. There are three cars ready and raring to go but the race can’t happen without even numbers so the organizer of the event, Tej Parker calls in a fourth driver. This is Brian O’Conner, the undercover cop who let a felon go at the end of the last film. Brian wins the race handily and earns himself some money. But just after that, the police show up and Brian tries to get away. He’s got a super fast car and he’s a highly skilled driver so it should be easy. However, the police have some kind of harpoon style weapon they shoot at his car. Once this hits, it seems to deliver a sort of EMP jolt to the car, cutting out the electronics and basically making the car stop. Brian is taken into custody.

This time the arrest is not a ruse, it seems Brian really is on the run from the law. Lucky for him, there are some people who can use his help. One of Brian’s former superiors, Agent Bilkins (Thom Barry) and a US Customs agent named Markham want to catch a drug lord named Carter Verone. They need someone who can gain the trust of Verone, while also not giving away the fact that there is an FBI agent named Monica Fuentes who has already been monitoring Verone. They try to give Brian a partner but after a simple question it’s clear this police officer knows nothing about cars. Brian demands to choose his own driving partner. This is Roman who we first see wearing an ankle bracelet while competing in a demolition derby.

Roman is an old friend of Brian’s who has gotten into some trouble. After a brief fight, Roman and Brian hash things out a bit and Roman agrees to help the police in exchange for his record being wiped clean. Brian will get the same deal so if they pull off the job, they won’t be going to jail.

Monica Fuentes arranges it so that Roman and Brian can audition to work for Verone. They arrive at the mansion along with a number of other street racers. Verone takes everyone’s identification and tells them his Ferrari was impounded. The job is to go retrieve something important from the car and come back with it first. There’s a chase scene where Brian and Roman both show off their fast driving skills and, of course, they get to the Ferrari first. I don’t really know how they knew how to get there since no one gave them directions but we’ll ignore that for the sake of the movie.

Anyway, just as Roman and Brian are about to take the package back, Markham shows up, hoping to arrest Verone. Roman sees the guy with a gun pulled and Roman starts firing his own gun. This was clearly not supposed to happen. Markham thought Brian and Roman were running when they were just doing what they were supposed to. Roman and Brian do get away from Markham and end up back at Verone’s place.

Verone is impressed enough to hire the two of them. But we find out the only thing they got from the car was a cigar. Also, Verone promises there will be a job for the two of them if they meet him at a club later. Monica lets Brian know Verone plans to smuggle money on his private jet from an airstrip nearby. Brian and Roman go back to police headquarters where Markham is beyond mad and Roman is furious the cops showed up at all. Turns out there were GPS units on the cars they were driving. This was back when GPS units were not all that common so it’s no surprise that Roman and Brian weren’t expecting that.

After they leave police headquarters, Roman and Brian realize they have a few problems here. First, Verone’s men seem to be following them around. Second, it’s going to be tough for them to get anything done if they are constantly being tracked by the police. So, what’s the solution? I mean, it’s a Fast and Furious movie so obviously a street race! Roman and Brian have a tag team race to get two more cars. The race it set up by Tej and it’s a pretty good race sequence. Ultimately, Brian and Roman succeed and have two cars, GPS free to use when they need them.

This whole time, Brian has been making puppy dog eyes at Monica which Roman notices. When they get to the club where they are supposed to meet Verone, Monica is there and seems to flirt back with Brian a bit. Verone sees this. Verone has Roman and Brian go in the back with him where he has an police detective tortured. He wants a fifteen minute window of time where there will be no cops monitoring him so he can gather his drug money.

Monica warns Roman and Brian that Verone plans to have them killed as soon as the job is over. Roman and Brian go see Tej and make some contingency plans of their own.

On the day of the job, things start as they are supposed to. Brian, Roman and two of Verone’s guys go to get some money out of a trailer Verone owns. The cop who was supposed to keep the area free for fifteen minutes lets his conscience get to him and he tells the cops to move in. This now means Brian and Roman are caught between the police and Verone’s men. There’s a nifty car chase as Brian and Roman misdirect everyone. They pull into a warehouse with cops in hot pursuit. They think they have the men surrounded when the warehouse doors open up and a bunch of big trucks come out and basically demolish the police cars. Then there is a scramble where what seems like every high end race car in Miami comes out of the warehouses and speed off in all directions. The cops think they still have GPS on the cars so they aren’t worried and Markham is in waiting at the airstrip. When the cars Brian and Roman were driving arrive at the airstrip, it’s Tej and his partner Suki who are driving.

Roman and Brian each have one of Verone’s men in the cars they won racing the night before. Roman hits an ejector seat button to dump the thug. Before Brian can do the same, Verone tells him the plan has changed. He now has to meet Verone at the docks. When Brian gets there Verone puts a gun to Monica’s head and takes her on the boat. Verone’s thug is supposed to kill Brian but before he can do so, Roman shows up to save the day. Verone does manage to get Monica onto the boat and they are already speeding away.

How does Brian stop Verone? Well, again it’s a Fast and Furious movie so he drives real fast, launches the car off a ramp facing the water and lands on the boat. It’s the biggest stunt in the movie. And when it happens, Roman breaks his arm and Brian is banged up quite a bit as well. This was before everyone in these movies seems to take no damage from major car crashes.

In the end, Roman and Brian are cleared, Verone is arrested (although he swears revenge), and Monica is safe and sound. Roman does pocket a bit of the cash from Verone’s take though. That’s where we leave our heroes for this movie but we’ll see more of them in the future.

What About Dom and Mia?

On top of Vin Diesel missing, since this film takes place in Miami with Brian on the run, there is no Mia from the first movie. I’ll say, Brian sure moves on quickly from her and seems to have roving eyes everywhere he goes. If Brian has a weakness in this movie, it’s definitely pretty women. I feel like the relationship with Mia not even being addressed in this movie was a mistake. Like, they could have at least had a phone call or something on Brian’s end where he might tell her not to worry or something like that. But nope, we’re going to pretend that whole thing didn’t count in the first movie here I guess. It makes sense why Dom isn’t here. He’s still back at home or maybe on the run. Brian probably wouldn’t want to call him because presumably everyone is watching Dom. But Mia has nothing to do with the whole thing so she’s getting ignored for no reason.

Did This Work at All?

2 Fast 2 Furious is not a great film. It’s miles away from the quality of the first movie. The dynamic between Diesel and Walker are missing and this film feels like it could literally be called something else. It’s got a fairly caricatured villain, the plot is really thin, and while the acting is fine, no one is going above and beyond here. That’s not to say there is nothing good in the movie. The car stunts are still fun, although I would argue the ones from the first film tend to look better. And Roman and Tej are both good additions to the franchise and probably the most entertaining parts of the whole movie. Eva Mendes is also great in her role here.

While the first movie was meant to be a B film that feels more like a quality picture, the second feels like a movie meant to be a quality picture which feels like a B film. On a pure action level, this film does work but it doesn’t obtain the greatness of the first one by any stretch of the imagination.

In Conclusion

There are still a lot of films to go in this franchise. We’re going to witness a bunch of odd twists and turns here, especially once Vin Diesel is truly back. But the second movie just needed to be a half decent action flick. And it does deliver on being about half way decent. It did well enough to garner another sequel but if this film had come out first, the whole franchise would have been forgotten. It’s still one you need to watch if you want to be completely caught up with the franchise but just remember this one is meant to be nothing more than a good time.

I will say though, compared to some of the later sequels, this one does at least seem to adhere to the laws of physics for the most part.

Overall this is still an enjoyable watch but it might be the least enjoyable of the sequels.

Speedily yours,

Slick Dungeon

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The Fabelmans – Movie Review

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Hello movie fans, it’s Slick Dungeon here. I’m back to review another Oscar nominated film. This time I watched The Fabelmans, a semi-autobiographical coming of age film by the one and only Steven Spielberg. There will be some spoilers in this review so if that sort of thing bothers you, grab yourself some popcorn, go watch the movie and come on back to read the review.

The story of The Fabelmans centers around a young Jewish boy named Sammy (Gabriel LaBelle) and his love of film. The movie starts off with a very young Sammy being taken to see his first movie. He’s a bit scared to go but his father patiently explains the technical aspects of film while his mother talks about how magical the experience will be. In the theater, Sammy watches The Greatest Show on Earth. Sammy is instantly enthralled and becomes obsessed with trying to recreate one of the scenes from the film.

It’s clear from early on that Sammy has a genuine gift for filmmaking. He’s encouraged by his mother and his father appreciates what Sammy does. Sammy’s father, however, does think it’s just a phase before Sammy moves onto doing something practical like engineering.

We see Sammy grow up into a teenager and it seems the one constant for him is film. His family has a shift in dynamic as it becomes clear his mother and father are not happily married at this point. Film seems to be a bit of a mixed blessing for Sammy for a while. The Fabelmans move to California and things get even more difficult as Sammy is one of the few Jewish kids at his high school. He finds a bit of romance and he continues making movies.

The film deals with a lot of personal struggle and turmoil. It also explores topics of art and creativity and trying to find some meaning in the world as you grow up. More than any other film I’ve watched so far for the Oscar nominees, this one understands film. Steven Spielberg knows that film is not just about spectacle. It’s about capturing small moments of personal stories to tell us a larger story. Sure, special effects are nice to have, but that’s not the only thing required to tell a good story.

Watching The Fabelmans gives any cinephile the same feeling we had the first time we walked into a theater. It’s downright magical. The difference is that most of us just continue to watch movies while Sammy realizes he needs to make movies. And while this is a fictionalized version, it’s obvious a lot of Steven Spielberg comes through in this character.

So far, out of all the movies I’ve seen for the Oscars this year, this one seems the most deserving to me. It’s able to transport the audience in a way other films haven’t. I will admit I am a little bit biased here as I am a sucker for movies about movies but I think anyone watching this will not be able to deny how skilled a storyteller Spielberg is.

If you love coming of age movies, movies about movies, or films that tell a personal story about art and creativity, this one is a must watch.

Awarding-ly yours,

Slick Dungeon

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Movie Review – Don’t Look Up

Don’t Look Up

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Hello out there internet people, it’s me Slick Dungeon. I’m back to review another movie for you. I watched Don’t Look UP on Netflix. Fair warning that there will be spoilers below so if you haven’t seen it and want to, have a look first and then come back here.

Stop me if this sounds familiar. There is an impending global crisis, almost certain to wipe out all life on the planet. There is solid, irrefutable scientific proof of this event. However, due to political considerations, a distracted public, and enormous financial interests on the part of the wealthy, the clear reversal of this problem is completely ignored. The wealthy get to come up with alternative solutions more friendly to them at the cost of everyone else. Don’t Look Up is a disaster comedy that hits way, way, too close to reality.

The whole film is an obvious allegory for climate change but really it could apply to any number of impending global crises we have going on now. The film is chock full of big name stars, including Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, Meryl Streep and Jonah Hill.

While the subject matter of the film would make anyone who believes in science uncomfortable, there are laugh out loud moments that are impossible to ignore. As usual Leonardo DiCaprio puts in a fantastic performance but the lines that keep sticking in my mind in this movie come from Jonah Hill and Jennifer Lawrence. There’s also a really funny sequence involving a four star general and some snacks that cracked me up.

It’s also a very American film. The basic premise is straight forward. There is an impending comet heading toward Earth, large enough to be an extinction level event that will wipe out not only humans but a good chunk of the planet itself. The science is solid and the group of scientists who discover the comet have to go convince the president to do something about it. But, political times being what they are, the president is more focused on her poll numbers than committing to a real solution. Because of this inaction there is a wide swath of the population that simply doesn’t believe a comet exists at all. Soon people are on both sides of the issue, the media doesn’t want to cover it because there are stories that get better ratings, and the scientists are trying to get people to understand doom is actually impending.

All in all it is a brilliant film, if a bit on the nose. If you watch it, I promise there are laughs to be had but don’t go in expecting this to be a feel good movie. It’s just so close to the surface of reality it’s genuinely frightening.

Disastrously yours,

Slick Dungeon

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TV Review – Ash vs Evil Dead (Episode 2)

Ash vs Evil Dead Episode 2

Howdy evil fighters, it’s me Slick Dungeon back with another review for the Ash vx Evil Dead television series. There are some spoilers below so go have a look at the episode before reading the review. Or in other words, “Focus up and let the boomstick do the talking.”

When we last left Ash he had just finished fighting off a bunch of Deadites in his trailer. His coworkers Kelly and Pablo are still new to the fact that the dead rise and are a bit overwhelmed by the bloody gore they’ve just seen. But Kelly is convinced her missing mother has turned up at home. She takes off on Pablo’s motorcycle so of course Ash and Pablo have to follow behind, hoping to protect Kelly.

The utter gore and insane humor of the series continues in the follow up episode, especially when Ash is told to play nice at family dinner. Bruce Campbell continues to ham it up in every good way in this show and it makes it well worth watching.

In addition to Ash some of the other characters have great lines in this episode, especially Kelly who gets to start to give as good as she gets. For example, “Pablo, believe it or not, the rude, middle-aged man you brought is kind of ruinin’ my mom time.”

The plot to this series is never going to be even the slightest bit believable but the fun factor here is just too good to pass up. I could attempt to write a super lengthy analysis of this episode but I think I will let the words of Ash sum it up, “Don’t you get it? If you snag a little fish, you’re not gonna eat it. No, you use it as a bait fish, to catch the whale. I’m the whale, Pablo.”

If this series continues like this I am going to be all here for it. Until next time Deadites.

Horrifically yours,

Slick Dungeon

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Slick Dungeon’s 2021 Challenge Check-in!

Hey everyone, Slick Dungeon here, hoping March was an amazing month for you and that April will be even better.

(Note that there are affiliate links in this post. If you purchase anything through these links I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you)

In January I put out three challenges for this year, one for books, one for movies and one that combined books, movies and role playing games. I wanted to take today to see if anyone has done any of the challenges and update everyone on my own progress.

As a reminder, if you complete any of the three challenges and talk about it on your blog, I will review anything in that category that you want me to and post that review on my blog with a link to your blog.

Don’t worry if you haven’t started, each of my challenges is only 12 items long and there is still plenty of the year to go.

In case you want to participate and still need the challenges, just take a look at this post and download yourself a neat little PDF or three.

Now, the moment you have all been waiting for, how did I, Slick Dungeon do on my own challenges in March? Let’s find out.

Challenge 1: Book Challenge

For the second month in a row, I did not make my book challenge. I am going to try to make reading a bit more of a priority for April. I make no promises though because I am a pretty slow reader. That being said below are the books I intend to read this month for my challenge.

This is a book recommended to me by a friend and I am about two thirds of the way through it so hopefully I will be reviewing it soon. That was the challenge from way back in February but this month is the month I will get this done!

For March the challenge I wanted to take on was a book you swore you would never read. I haven’t quite finished it but I am close. I am reading none other than Twilight by Stephenie Meyer. I definitely have some thoughts about it and I’ll be sure to let you know what those are so stay tuned.

Challenge 2: Movie Challenge

My challenge this month was to watch a movie that scares me. I remembered being terrified by the film Phantasm when I was a kid and wanted to revisit it. If you want to check out my review of it, take a look at this post.

Challenge 3: Read-Watch-Play Challenge

This month for the Read-Watch-Play challenge, I did one of the play challenges. I had a little trouble getting a group together so I went with a solo campaign called The Executioner’s Daughter. Check out my review for it here.

Well, that’s it for March. Let’s hope I will be able to complete all the challenges in April. Here’s what I am going to be attempting.

  1. A book recommended by a friend (left over from February)
  2. A book you swore you would never read (left over from March)
  3. A book that has a BIPOC author or protagonist
  4. A movie with an ambiguous ending
  5. Read a book with a quest

Good luck to the rest of you out there and if you have decided to participate, feel free to let me know how it is going in the comments!

If you would like to download any of the challenges you can do that on the original post or right below.

Challengingly yours,

Slick Dungeon

Book Challenge
Movie Challenge
Read-Watch-Play Challenge
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Slick Dungeon’s 2021 Challenge Check-in!

Hey everyone, Slick Dungeon here, hoping February was an amazing month for you and that March will be even better.

(Note that there are affiliate links in this post. If you purchase anything through these links I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you)

In January I put out three challenges for this year, one for books, one for movies and one that combined books, movies and role playing games. I wanted to take today to see if anyone has done any of the challenges and update everyone on my own progress.

As a reminder, if you complete any of the three challenges and talk about it on your blog, I will review anything in that category that you want me to and post that review on my blog with a link to your blog.

Don’t worry if you haven’t started, each of my challenges is only 12 items long and there is still plenty of the year to go.

In case you want to participate and still need the challenges, just take a look at this post and download yourself a neat little PDF or three.

Now, the moment you have all been waiting for, how did I, Slick Dungeon do on my own challenges in February? Let’s find out.

Challenge 1: Book Challenge

Ack, this one is the one I failed at this month. I did get a book recommended to me and I have started reading it. It’s by one of my favorite authors Isaac Asimov and is called The Gods Themselves. I’m about half way done so there should be a review for it in the next week or two here. In case you want to get it for yourself, check it out below.

The Gods Themselves by Isaac Assimov

Challenge 2: Movie Challenge

My challenge this month was to watch three films by the same director. I went with 3 early Alfred Hitchcock films. Challenge completed on this one woohoo! If you want to know what I thought about the movies check out the posts for them below.

  1. The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog
  2. Rich and Strange
  3. The Secret Agent

Challenge 3: Read-Watch-Play Challenge

This month for the Read-Watch-Play challenge, I did one of the watch challenges. I chose to watch (well re-watch) The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. While I love the book and I enjoy the film well enough, I think there is considerable room for improvement in the film. Check out my review for it here.

Well, that’s two out of three for February. Let’s hope I will be able to complete all the challenges in March. Here’s what I am going to be attempting.

  1. A book recommended by a friend (left over from February)
  2. A book you swore you would never read
  3. A movie that scares you
  4. Play a Dungeons & Dragons one shot adventure

Good luck to the rest of you out there and if you have decided to participate, feel free to let me know how it is going in the comments.

Challengingly yours,

Slick Dungeon

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Damage Report – #BookReview

Note: this review was first posted on Reedsy Discovery, an awesome website that pairs independent authors and readers. To see the post there click here.

If you are a book reviewer and want to contribute reviews on Reedsy Discovery, click here.

SUMMARY

This is a book about mistakes and possibilities- some that change the lives of a few, and some that change the lives of many. In The Old Man, Bob is two hundred fifty years old, a survivor of the global warming that nearly destroyed humanity. Things have gotten boring lately and his best friend is thinking about ending it all. Their extended lifespans also have a small liability that makes them both wonder if it’s worth it to stick around. In Long Shot, most of the Northern Hemisphere has been destroyed in a global nuclear war. A team of American aviators is assigned to assassinate the Russian marshal who gave the order for a nuclear attack. Only the U.S. Navy has resources remaining that can reach across the globe to complete the mission. In the title story Damage Report, a colony ship of a starfaring people goes into orbit around a planet bearing the remains of an extinct civilization. The ruins are only a thousand years old and are the best chance of the star people to understand why only their species has survived out of hundreds of predecessors within hundreds of light years of their home world.

REVIEW 3/5 STARS

Damage Report is a collection of short stories that involve life and death in some way. The first story, The Old Man, deals with a man who appears old in a civilization that has defeated disease and aging. There are a few others like him but when almost everyone alive is young and beautiful and you have lived far beyond what your expected life span, is there still any purpose to life itself? The second story Long Shot deals with the immediate aftermath of a nuclear war on earth. The Navy has found the man responsible for starting the war and they decide to do something about it even with the limited resources they have. The third and final story, Damage Report is about a colony of space travelers who come upon a planet that has recently destroyed itself through nuclear war. The colony must decide if they should live on the planet but their findings also leave them questioning why their species seems to be the only one who has thrived long enough to conquer other worlds.

While all three stories have their strong points, the best of them is The Old Man. Bob is faced with a quiet existential dilemma. He has few friends left and barring an unexpected violent accident he might live nearly forever. Should he continue on or do as some of his friends have and choose to end his own life. The story confronts the reader with the question of how much life is necessary.

Long Shot is interesting due to the use of drone warfare and the realistic aspect of what would be likely military actions post nuclear war. At times it may give a bit too much information about the weapons and hardware used but if the reader loves to know about those things there is plenty here to stay satisfied.

Damage Report does a fine job of telling what it would be like to be a civilization that has not only survived but thrived because instead of repeating mistakes they learn from them.

All three stories make the reader think about the possibilities for this world and what might or might not bring about the end for us all. It’s a solid meditation on life under the threat of global disasters.

If you enjoy short fiction and like hard science fiction, realistic military fiction and stories that make you think about life, Damage Report is certainly worth a read.

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Lovecraft Country (Jig-a-Bobo) Episode 8 Spoiler-free Review

The Horror of Reality Collides with the Horror of the Cosmos as the Family Drama Intensifies

Hey Everyone, Slick Dungeon, here back to give a spoiler free review of the eighth episode of the HBO series Lovecraft Country.

After seven episodes one would think that you could not get much more intense than the previous episodes. Yet this episode delivers everything you could want from this show.

The episode is electric with drama and it has loads of horrors. It proves that our hero Atticus is far from perfect and that things could go critically wrong. None of the characters are safe, from the world, from nightmares, or from themselves.

A lot of the episode reminded me of some of the best of Stephen King stories. If you love horror, and have not started watching this series, you need to get on this one right now. It’s terrifying in both the way it portrays the impossible and in how it portrays reality. Added to that is deep character development with nuanced heroes and villains.

This episode does propel the story forward and feels like it is building toward an epic conclusion of the season. There are only a couple more episodes to go but I can’t wait to see where it goes from here.

Horrifically yours,

Slick Dungeon

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Lovecraft Country (Strange Case) Episode 5 Spoiler-free Review

The Horror and Family Drama is Back on Track

Hey Everyone, Slick Dungeon, here back to give a spoiler free review of the fifth episode of the HBO series Lovecraft Country.

The previous episode was a throwback to Indiana Jones for some reason and it felt kind of out of place with the rest of the show. The most recent episode is much more on track. We are back to following the family drama and this episode has tons of interesting things to say on race and class. At the same time, it is full of body horror so if you are squeamish prepare to shut your eyes through a lot of the episode.

There are twists and turns that are surprising and unpredictable and as usual the very end will leave you just wanting to see the next episode as soon as possible. The show is able to be intellectual and visceral all at once which is an interesting mixture.

If you do watch this episode, I can promise that this is one of the episodes that will be in your mind months from now.

I feel like the show will need to have more episodes like this where the audience is both unable to turn away from the screen and wanting to turn away the whole time. There is still a deeper mystery going on here and I look forward to seeing how that plays out through the rest of the show.

Horrifically yours,

Slick Dungeon