The Fast & The Furious: Ranking Every Movie From Worst To Best

6. The Fast & The Furious (2001)

Point Break is a good film. It's not quite worthy of the nostalgia-fuelled cultism that has hardened as a shell around it, but it works because it introduces an irresistible undercover cop/criminal dudebros against the breathy backstory of an underground culture that is as alien as it is hot.

It was so good that The Fast & The Furious ripped it off completely, replacing surf-boards for muscle cars, but still fantasising about criminal celebrities and the intoxicating pull of the underworld's strict moral codes - even to those who commit to protect and serve. It works because of the same reasons Point Break did: chemistry between characters, a cast having a ball of a time and action set-pieces.

And it was inevitable that the injection of NOS would give it even more muscle. Even though it's thoroughly unrepresentative of what the franchise became, the series kickstarter is still an enjoyable movie in its own right. It also feels curiously like an indie action film when you watch it back now (the acting can be sloppy, the action is nowhere near as glossy), which makes the juggernaut it inspired even more impressive.