Paul Walker's last ride takes pro-family turn

When actor Paul Walker died in a speed-related car accident in 2013, it made front page news – not only because the popular actor was killed, but also because he was killed in an event so similar to the films he starred in, the "Fast and Furious" series, featuring hot women cheering on hot guys driving hot cars at insane speeds in the hot California sun (or Japanese streets, or South American jungles, or wherever the latest "Furious" movie took audiences).

Furthermore, Walker was actually in the middle of filming yet another of the street-racing films, making "Fast and Furious 7," in theaters now at last, his last film.

This latest installment of the series takes the "Furious" franchise to a whole new level of spectacle, while at the same time wrapping up with a heartfelt and touching tribute to Walker.

"Furious 7" is a non-stop, roller-roster ride of pure adrenaline. More action, more violence, more special effects, more bikinis, more explosions, more stars in the cast – this isn't just the Mountain Dew version of moviemaking, it's Mountain Dew with a 5-Hour-Energy chaser.

To truly enjoy the ride, however, you have to understand the film is completely unbelievable and preposterous. I mean it's way, way out there. Something dreamed up by 12-year-olds hyped up on the previously mentioned caffeinated beverages. Cars parachuting out of airplanes, hot rods jumping up to knock helicopters out of the sky and men who can throw themselves off cliffs and buildings, tumble to the ground, then hop up without a scratch to glare at the camera and utter a witty one-liner while the world burns in the background. The film doesn't just require viewers to suspend disbelief, but expel it from school altogether.

Plot holes? Who cares! Nonsensical death-defying peril? Duh! This is 100 percent entertainment, plain and simple. And at that level, it succeeds.

But to be fair to the "Furious" franchise, one of the reasons it has been so popular is that it has also built a cast of characters that audiences can truly care about. Unlike the "Expendables" films, where the humans are irrelevant to the action, "Furious" builds upon a solid foundation of human drama, then covers it in high-speed action like frosting. Lots and lots of frosting.

And for that reason, there were some genuine tears in my sold-out theater, as well as a standing ovation at the end, as the filmmakers crafted a truly touching tribute to Walker that actually fit into the storyline.

Kudos to the filmmakers as well, for building this episode of "Furious" – so fittingly – about Walker's character's transition from the life of adrenaline rush to the life of family man.

For make no mistake about it – violence, language and bikinis aside – the message of this movie is solidly pro-family.

"I've seen you dive from trains and fall from planes," the lead character tells Walker's character, "but the bravest thing I ever saw you do? Be a good man [to your wife and child]. … Everyone's looking for the thrill. Do you know what's real? Family. Hold on to that."

Not just a throwaway line or cute moral of the story, this sentiment is the primary artery running through the heart of this film.

I'll let you read the content advisory to decide whether this film is right for you and your family, but when it comes to what "Fast and Furious 7" has to say about families, I couldn't give it higher marks.

Content advisory:

• "Fast and Furious 7," rated PG-13, contains roughly 50 obscenities and profanities.
• The movie contains a couple of kisses, shirtless guys and some lewd dialogue. And while it has no romantic or sex scenes, the movie is bursting to the seams with scantily clad women at races and parties and beaches, lingering, seductive camera shots and more bikini babes than spring break.
• The only thing the movie has more of than bikinis is violence, but of course, this is the epitome of an action movie. There's dozens of car chases, fist fights, explosions and more. Gunfire is rampant, and characters who should have died a dozen times over just pop up to fight again. There's very little blood and gore, making the whole thing more than a little cartoonish and preposterous, but that's the name of the game in this kind of film.
• The film has a handful of religious references, including characters crossing themselves at tense moments, an important piece of jewelry in the shape of a cross, some mention of "sins following us home," prayer, a wedding ceremony in a church and a funeral where the minister can be vaguely heard in the background. There is a hypothetical piece of technology nicknamed the "God's eye" for its ability to surveil the entire globe. There is some Arabic writing of unknown meaning. There is no overtly occult material.