i didn't even wanna see it really, i hadn't even seen part 2 (not i'd need to), but i was pleasantly surprised. all those problems/cliches aside, i thought the chase sequences were great, and the drifting itself was top notch.

as for those two old onlookers, my friend kept telling me one of the dudes is an oldskool Japanese drifter/race car driver, which is why they had him saying those couple of lines (very subtle filmmaking here hehe).

i HATED the main character. i hated his fucking accent, aw man it grated on me sooo fuckn bad! n like u said, first thing i laughed at was his age (he looks like late 20s/early 30s) and the fucking older brother from Home Improvement making an acting turn as a jackass, much like how Anthony Michael Hall went from playing nerds to a pig-headed jock in "Edward Scissorhands" lol. i swear if that first race were true to life, all 3 of those fools woulda died in the first scene of the film lol.

n ye, pretty much co-sign everything else u said.

i DID like that ending though, and i already could tell who would be racing the main dude in that last scene. was a nice touch.

and one line i can't stop saying:

"ready!.....setto!....GO!"

lol.

V.