Gotta love the folks at Universal. Their motto must be "any sequel is good, regardless." The studio that gave you "The Sting 2," "Smokey and the Bandit 3" and "Jaws the Revenge" is back with this lame follow up to what was a surprise hit two summers ago, "The Fast and the Furious."

The story takes place some time after LA cop Brian O'Connor (Walker) has let the bad guys get away. Now an ex-cop, O'Connor lives in the only part of Miami where you can rope off 12 city blocks for illegal racing and no one seems to care. Enticed back to the force in an effort to clear his record, O'Connor recruits a childhood friend, Roman Pearce (Tyrese) to help him. Coincidentally, the baddest man in South Florida needs someone who can drive fast and furiously. Throw in the too-gorgeous-to-believe undercover agent who may or may not be turning to the bad side and you pretty much have the story.

I never thought I'd say this in print, but what is sadly missing from the film is Vin Diesel. Not since Keanu Reeves stayed out of "Speed 2" has an actor looked like a genius. (Note to Hollywood: If your movie is going to have the word "Speed" in the title, don't set it on a plodding cruise ship.) Diesel, along with the cars, was the main attraction of the first film and now we are left with the bland, always grinning Walker and a series of car stunts that come no where near the excitement of the original. Sadly, most of the blame must be put on director Singleton. Singleton, the youngest person to ever be nominated for a directing Oscar (for "Boyz -n- the Hood") is so far out of his element that it's almost sad. If you want drama and emotion, John Singleton is your man. If you want action, go elsewhere. It's like asking John Woo to do a love story. Without guns.

On a more positive note, both Tyrese and fellow rapper "Ludacris" do come off as genuine characters. I would rather have seen these two paired up and Walker sent to the sidelines. Perhaps Universal will hire them to replace Robin Williams when they do the "Patch Adams" sequel! Hopefully it won't be 2 Slow 2 Predictable. On a scale of zero to four stars, I give "2 Fast 2 Furious"