Los Bandoleros, VIN dieselthe only work as a director in fast and furious franchise, is a lightweight 20-minute short film that is often misclassified as an extra and minor part of the series. In fact, it’s a charming and refreshingly understated short film that gives some narrative backdrop to the characters and plot points taken from fast and furious forward to future films. Chronologically, this is the first canon appearance of Tego Leo (Tego Calderon) and Rico Santos (Don Omar), as well as Han Liu (Sun Kang).

Los Bandoleros unfortunately too often forgotten, and given that its official release exists exclusively on Fast and Furious With a Blu-ray release back in 2009, it’s fair to say that the film is rarely seen as a legitimate part of the franchise. fans Fast films must be watched Los Bandolerosnonetheless, as they will find something to enjoy in this meager and pure 20 minutes, which seems like a much-needed respite amidst the non-stop action of 10 feature films. Fast clicks.

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Where is Los Bandoleros Fit in the Fast and the Furious saga?

Vin Diesel and Michelle Rodriguez in the car in the short film Los Bandoleros.

Los Bandoleros designed to bridge the narrative gap between 2 Fast 2 Furious And Fast and Furious (mind you, the third film in the franchise, The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, actually takes place between the sixth and seventh films and narratively takes place only after the fourth). WITH tokyo drift taking place much later in the series, speaking in chronological order, newcomers are likely to get confused as to which order to watch in Fast and Furious films in. Los Bandoleros must absolutely get drunk, immediately after 2 Fast 2 Furious and before Fast and Furious.

When Los Bandoleros In the beginning, we see Dom (Vin Diesel) hiding from the law in the Dominican Republic, tuning cars and acting as godfather to the children of a local family. He fled to Mexico at the end 2 Fast 2 Furious and apparently continued east to the Dominican Republic, where he befriended Leo and Santos and brought them into his ever-growing family.

Making the fourth film in the series, Diesel’s short film gives context to the events that begin. Fast and Furious with a bang. This robbery of an explosive fuel truck, which led to the temporary dissolution of the family, was targeted in Los Bandoleros. As it turns out, Dom is playing the role of a modern-day Robin Hood, trying to fight the economic crisis in the Dominican Republic by stealing gasoline (and an increasingly rare commodity) to give to Aunt Rico Rubia (Adria Carrasco).

Khan’s sudden appearance is also explained here in the short: through some expositional dialogue, it is revealed that Khan met Dom back in Mexico. Apparently, they quickly became friends, and Dom considered him part of his family. His appearance in the 20 Minutes finish is short, but it also helps connect his character to the saga more effectively.

Most importantly, however, Los Bandoleros serves as a reunion between Dom and Letty (Michelle Rodriguez) after they split up at the end of the second film. Showing up out of nowhere after searching for Dom over the past few months, Letty quickly reminds Dom that she is “20% angel, 80% devil” and the two rekindle their passionate romance like it was never put off.

Vin Diesel directing Los Bandoleros is full of charm and style

Michelle Rodriguez and Vin Diesel in the short film Los Bandoleros.

look Los BandolerosIt’s hard to see why Diesel wasn’t given more opportunities behind the camera throughout the saga. It can be seen that the man has an innate sense of style. The camera work in his short film looks confident stylistically. The shots move with quick edits and fluid motions that use their really beautiful compositions to make for one of the best photos in the saga.

Shot on grainy, saturated 35mm film, it looks like a mid-budget indie drama. And in many ways, it’s also like the gigantic stunt sequence and complex street racing scenes have been replaced with something more subdued: there’s atmosphere, plot building blocks, dialogue, and romance. The Dominican landscapes serve as vibrant and beautiful backdrops for the final third of the film, and in some ways it feels like a living, touching postcard sent to fans of the franchise.

This Diesel also wrote 20 or so pages Los BandolerosThe script once again proves that it is the heart of the franchise. He clearly got a full understanding of these characters and their motives. Ten feature films have been shot so far, and he is sure that by now he too has only a better idea of ​​who they are.

critics Los Bandoleros can slander his inaction. But that’s what makes the short an important part of the series. Fast The saga is best known for going from a street racing drama to a ridiculously extravagant action franchise where rockets can be strapped to cars and launched into fucking space. Of course, at some point with films like this, the old phrase becomes true: more is better. But the bigger these films get, the more important the quiet, subtle moments become.

That’s why Los Bandoleros it’s such a treat: so much more fun than discovering beer, intrigue, and walking the beautiful Dominican beaches with the love of your life.

Los Bandoleros isn’t the only time Diesel has directed

Vin Diesel Tramps
Image via First Look International

Before becoming an established movie star, Diesel actually gained experience as a screenwriter and director in the mid-90s. He released an insightful reflection on the struggles of a multiracial actor called many-sided in ’95, which led to him being discovered Steven Spielberg and therefore abandoned Saving Private Ryan.

Diesel also wrote, directed and starred in his first feature film titled Wandering in 1997. His themes of criminals seeking meaning and the complexity and simplicity of male camaraderie coincidentally reflect themes Fast saga. Shot on 16mm on a small budget Wandering shows Diesel’s promise from the start. It may be imperfect, inconsistent drama, but it’s also really good, the type of confident independent drama whose desire is really say something helps to make it something memorable.

Los Bandoleros it feels like an opportunity for Diesel to get back to his roots by filming an aesthetically daring drama that gives him the opportunity to show off his abilities behind the camera. It’s a pity, however, that we haven’t seen more of his directorial work yet. Overall Success Wandering at the Sundance Film Festival showed that Diesel has the ability and confidence to create a film from scratch, and Los Bandoleros shows his knack for adding an interjection to an already established (and highly lucrative) franchise. So maybe one day, after Dom and his family stop their crimes, thefts and increasingly absurd car stunts, Diesel will be able to return to the director’s chair. Or, Hellomaybe he could even try his hand at Fast click sometime. If nothing else, it would certainly be intriguing.