Fan Fest Favorites: Furious Franchise

It’s hard to believe that sixteen years ago The Fast and the Furious came out.  A movie that started a franchise, that would cause a group of people to become family.  A franchise that would make many of us miss a main character.  A franchise that makes us want more! All thanks to one screenwriter (Chris Morgan) and a steady, amazing cast of actors who love what they do.  With an amazing cast that Vin Diesel has pulled together, the franchise has become a favorite of mine.  Every April that a Furious movie is released, my boyfriend and I are there to see it.  We have made it a yearly tradition on my birthday.  I have pulled together votes from my fellow Fan Fest writers on their favorite Furious movies.

8.) Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006)

I have to say, not one of my favorite Furious movies.  It really threw everyone off when Brian was no longer the main character.  Bringing in Sean (Lucas Black) changed things up.  Not to mention it was taking place in Tokyo.  With Dom making an appearance in the end, you knew you were in a Furious movie.  Sure there were cars and racing involved, but it wasn’t the same.  The only way thing that really grabbed my attention was the death of Han at the end.  Not realizing there was a bigger picture behind it.

7.) 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003)

The second movie of the installment.  Here we got to meet Tej and Roman for the first time.  This is where their gut-busting humor all started.  We still have car races going on, but this is where the movies start to change.  They start to take on the roll of getting the guys in some trouble.

 

6.) The Fast and The Furious (2001)

The movie that got this franchise started.  Who can forget the drag racing, the cars, the girls, the of course where the family started.  It was one of my top Furious movies, but my fellow writers didn’t agree.  You have to admit, if you played Midnight Club or Need for Speed this movie was right up your alley.  Cars that had under glow, bright colors and nitrous made us wish we had their cars.  However, watching it now, it was a tad tacky for the 2000’s.  The message that comes with the movie, ‘family comes first’ would not be addressed for eight years!

5.) Fast & Furious (2009)

After Tokyo Drift we find the movies making a more mature turn.  Instead of just having car races and fun cars, we have taken on more of a plot.  Brian is now with the FBI and the group matured.

4.) Fast Five (2011)

Here is where the perfect balance came into play, mixing humor and heart and character to create something special. Adding in Dwayne Johnson, you get a dynamic crew.  We meet Han and Gisele, and Brian brings in Tej and Roman.

 

3.) Fast & Furious 6 (2013)

With Dom and crew still being fugitives at this point, the action is more of a focus rather than the cars.  Yes we still have some pretty sweet cars, but it’s not so much about the racing for pinks anymore.  Hobbs recruits Dom and the crew to stop a former British intelligence agent.  But there is a surprise, Letty’s alive! The stakes are high this time around and the thrills and stunts are at their best! Definitely one of the best Furious movies!

2.) The Fate of the Furious (2017)

I very much enjoyed F8.  I was surprised in how they were able to pull it off without Brian being in the mix.  It was perfect!  It’s hard to not give anything away about this movie, so with it being so new, I wont give any spoilers.  They amped up the humor in this one, made family number one, and added some pretty sick cars.  Why wouldn’t you take a Lamborghini on the snow?!  With this being one of the final movies, they left just enough open to finish the franchise.

1.) Furious 7 (2015)

By far my favorite Furious movie!  I say that mainly because it had me in tears at the end.  Besides it being the movie that said goodbye to Brian, it was the movie that helped put a cap of the middle trilogy.

 

All in all, the franchise continues to grow.  As of right now, they are only signed up for one last movie.  I’m not ready to take that last ride.

 

Out of all of the Furious movies, which one was your favorite? Leave us your opinion in the comments below.