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

2. Furious 7 (2015)

On reflection, it would be pretty easy to dismiss Furious 7's success as an emotion-led anomaly, inspired by the tragic death of star Paul Walker and the film's promise to give him a fitting send-off. But that would be reductive and a dismissal of how good the film works on its own terms.

The plot is pure revenge, as Jason Statham's excellent Deckard Shaw (nobody has called their child Deckard ever) announces himself with a bang, cutting a swathe through Dom's team (and for some reason on a hospital where his brother is just about staying alive). He's a real villainous high-point for the franchise, and introducing him and Kurt Russell's Mr Nobody was inspired.

There are the usual satisfyingly silly moments you'd expect from the franchise now - dialled up from the film before - and some of the car action sequences - including skydiving and skyscraper hopping (because nothing can be done without cars in this universe) - are pure gold.

Without all of that, it wouldn't have worked, but the injection of heart and pathos from Walker's death elevates the action, adding depth and a genuine emotional truth to a franchise defined by its own obsession with brotherhood.