The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift

Above, Shibuya Crossing.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The only installment of The Fast and the Furious car racing movies I've seen (or have in my movie collection) is The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006). Although not what one would call "high art," it is a fun little movie with many scenes of modern Tokyo that kaiju fans are familiar with.

While some of the movie was filmed in the Little Tokyo section of downtown Los Angeles, much of it was filmed in Tokyo. Familiar places like Shibuya Crossing and the Tokyu Department Store at Shibuya Station (who'd ever suspect there's a soccer field on the roof?) are prominently shown.

Japan Visitor has a review of the movie and a little bit of history of "drifting."

The article reads, in part:

The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, released in 2006, was directed by Justin Lin, and stars Lucas Black. 

The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift depicts the adventures of young, troubled Sean Boswell, about to face jail for street-racing-related incidents committed in LA, so sent by his mother to live with his hard-bitten US military dad stationed in Tokyo. Once in Tokyo he discovers street racing with a Japanese twist, i.e. drifting. 

His escapades lead him into the murky underworld of the yakuza, where, through drifting, he gets himself in debt to a gangster, earns the wrath of another gangster by winning over his Japanese girlfriend, then finally, and climactically, proves himself through his drifting prowess.

Read more: http://www.japanvisitor.com/japanese-culture/film/tokyo-drift#ixzz2f0YrHZbi