The first two The Fast And The Furious movies were not high art nor were the particularly smart, rather they were simply meant to entertain. This third film in the series, Justin Lin's Tokyo Drift continues that same tradition in that it's a film that very obviously emphasizes style over substance but manages to be a fun way to kill an hour and a half as long as you're not looking for anything too deep.

When the movie begins, a southern boy named Sean Boswell (Lucas Black) is racing against the token big dumb jock at his high school. The prize? The cute blonde who hangs off the dumb jock's arm. Sean beats him but not without trashing half of a construction yard and his own car in the process which lands him in some hot water with the cops. Rather than have him do hard time, his mother ships him off to Japan where he's to live with his father who has been stationed there for the last fifteen years or so. Sean's dad makes it perfectly clear – if he's going to stay under his roof he's going to live by his rules which means he won't be cutting class and he won't be going anywhere near a car.

Of course, Sean has a bit of culture shock to deal with as Japan is a very different place than the United States but on his first day at school he hooks up with a con named Twinkie (Bow Wow) who introduces him to the world of drift racing – a form of street racing where the participants are able to make hair pin turns but using the hand break. Sean's challenged to a race by D. K. (Brian Tee) and is promptly handed his ass on a platter. He looses big time and he trashes the car that was loaned to him by Han (Sung Kang). Han takes him under his wing and gives him a job all the while Neela (Nathalie Kelley), D.K.'s girlfriend, is making eyes at him. When D. K. finds out that they've been hanging out, all hell breaks loose and he makes it his mission to take Sean down no matter who gets in the way. He's even got an uncle in the Yakuza (the immortal Sonny Chiba) to help him out. When his uncle points out to D. K. that Han has been stealing from him, it really hits the fan and there will be only one way to settle things - with a race!

While there's very little in character development and the storyline is pretty much completely predictable this is never the less a fun movie. It's not a great movie or even a really good movie in the artistic sense but it's very entertaining with some genuinely exciting racing sequences and a likeable lead character. Lucas Black is actually quite good as Sean Boswell and while he isn't given a whole lot to do in terms of stretching as an actor he suits the material just fine and his on screen chemistry with Bow Wow, as hard as it is to admit this, is honestly kind of endearing. These aren't Oscar winning performances by any stretch but they certainly get the job done and Brian Tee and Sung Kang do quite well with their parts as well. Sonny Chiba nails his role as the wise and powerful Yakuza character though he's sorely underused here and having him in a larger role would have been a plus – regardless, it's nice to see him here in a major Hollywood movie.

The real reason to watch this movie, however, is the car racing scenes. There's refreshingly nice lack of CGI enhancement in this movie which makes these scenes more exciting as they feel more like the real thing and less like cartoons. It's also interesting to see the smaller and completely customized cars used for the races here as opposed to the more popular American muscle cars that we usually see. The last two major set pieces – one a race through the heart of Tokyo and the other a race down a steep and curvy mountain road – are shot really well and will keep you on the edge of your set.

In the end, the movie is completely and utterly predictable and the characters fairly one dimensional but the movie moves at a very fast pace and the good guys are likeable enough that The Fast And The Furious – Tokyo Drift is worth checking out. It's not a modern classic but it shows promise for its cast and director and as far as mainstream popcorn movies go, it makes for a good time even if you're probably not going to go back to it time and time again.

Video:

The 2.35.1 anamorphic widescreen transfer presents the movie in its original aspect ratio and for the most part, the image looks very good and the picture is quite sharp throughout. There is some edge enhancement present in a few scenes as well as some shimmering and aliasing in spots but there's very little to complain about otherwise. Black levels are strong and deep, the neon colors used throughout are nice and bright, there are no issues at all with print damage, dirt or debris on the picture and there's a very pleasing level of both foreground and background detail present throughout the picture. Skin tones look lifelike and natural. Overall, this is an excellent transfer.