Rating:  

Starring: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Jordana Brewster, Tyrese Gibson, Chris ‘Ludacris’ Bridges, Dwayne Johnson, Matt Schulze, Sung Kang, Gal Gadot, Tego Calderon, Don Omar, Joaquim de Almeida, Elsa Pataky, Michael Irby, Fernando Chien, Alimi Ballard, Yorgo Constantine, Geoff Meed.
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Director: Justin Lin
Rating: Pg-13
Running Time: 130 Mins.
Release Date: April 29, 2011
Home Video Date: October 4, 2011
Box Office: $209.8 Million
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Dark Side Productions, Original Film, and Universal Pictures.

Written by: Chris Morgan.

On the way to the screening for “Fast Five”, it dawned on me that not only is this the fifth film in the “Fast and the Furious” franchise, but it also turns the franchise a decade old. Along the way there have been occasional moments I have enjoyed but by and large, I have rarely liked these films and have hardly, if ever, given these films a second thought after finishing one. Until now.

“Fast Five” is a surprise; albeit one which arrived with tempered expectations. Easily the finest film in the series, “Fast Five” is, at times, wildly entertaining and much better than it probably has any right to be. Sparing a rehash of the franchise, I am going to assume that if you are reading this, you have a basic understanding of the storylines presented thus far. So, with that said…

Dominic (Vin Diesel) is headed for prison to serve 25-years to life after surrendering to authorities following all of the heists and killings he has been associated with. Former FBI agent Brian O’Conner (Paul Walker) leads the charge in freeing Dominic, orchestrating an incredibly elaborate plan to overturn the prison bus and allow he, Dominic, and Dominic’s sister and his girlfriend, Mia (Jordana Brewster), the chance to relocate to Rio de Janiero to begin a new life. All goes to plan except Dominic is not in Rio as scheduled, so Brian and Mia stay with their old friend, Vince (Matt Schulze). Under the expectation that Dominic either bowed out of the plan or did not make it, Brian and Mia take a job for Vince, which requires stealing three cars from a heavily guarded train. Vince’s motives may not be the most honest and it turns out he has ties to a vicious kingpin, Reyes (Joaquim de Almedia). The cars are seized property by the U.S. Federal Government and as the heist is set to go down, Dom arrives.

Needless to say things fail to go smoothly and although Mia is able to get away, Dom and Brian become imprisoned by Reyes and his henchman. Corollary to these happenings, the theft of the cars triggers the attention of Luke Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson), a top level Federal agent who assembles a team to find those responsible for attempting to steal the seized vehicles. Hobbs arrives, surprisingly selects a local rookie officer, Elena (Elsa Pataky), and begins his investigation. Able to escape from Reyes’ henchmen, Dom and Brian find a safehouse, reconnect with Mia, and assemble their own team of thieves and talented drivers, Naturally, the team comprises familiar faces from the previous films and the crew conspire to bring down Reyes, steal $100 million from his holdings in Rio de Janiero, and then retire once and for all, going “off the grid”.

Again, the fact that “Fast Five” is as enjoyable and entertaining as it is caught me completely by surprise. I have no real dislike for the previous films but I have never really enjoyed them all that much either. I was dazzled the first time I saw the amazing stunt racing and chase sequences which have been the franchise’s trademark, but the wooden acting, contrived storylines, and uninteresting dialogue seemed to make each film a distant and immediate memory as soon as the credits appeared on screen.

When the series lost the Walkers, Brewsters, and Diesels briefly and shifted to Tokyo for an ill advised reboot of the franchise, I really believed the series had seen its end. Audiences were largely uninterested in the “Tokyo Drift” edition, but those who saw it and/or caught it on home video saw the return of Diesel’s Dominic Tarretto at the very end. This, of course, set the stage for 2009′s “Fast & Furious”, which became the largest grossing film in the franchise and greenlighted this fifth edition. And so expectedly, the band is back together with “Fast Five” and everyone seems to be having a whole lot of fun here.

As engaging as the characters are this time around, there is one notable addition to the ensemble…Dwayne Johnson. The Rock. And while I perhaps should not heap praise on one actor for saving a franchise’s credibility, his presence infuses a different style and feel to the proceedings. Johnson’s charismatic turn as Hobbs finally gives this series the something extra that I, for one, have not seen previously; a swagger, a different kind of cool maybe, which makes this a lot more interesting from start to finish.

But don’t get me wrong, the film is quite silly in parts in ways both good and bad. Chris Morgan’s dialogue at times hits with the subtlety of a brick and the film is excessively long at 130 minutes. And yet, I saw a different approach being taken this time around. The opening 20-25 minutes is rather laborious to get through but once a ridiculous and over-plotted action sequence concludes with Walker and Diesel leaping from a car and into a river, the film hits its stride and races on by. Justin Lin, now three films into the series, has cut his teeth on this films and has become quite the accomplished action director.

Largely “Fast Five”‘s success comes from Chris Morgan finally delivering some effective comedy and Justin Lin finding a way to help this the ensemble take a connective stride together. As wooden and unconvincing as the dialogue can be and scenes involving Diesel and Pataky are especially cringe-inducing, there are moments of laugh-out-loud hilarity in the interplay between Tyrese Gibson and Ludacris, Johnson’s interactions with the members of his team, and the (un)fortunate recurring circumstance that one of Reyes’ hitmen finds himself in over and over again. Later, when the film moves into its climactic final minutes, all the frayed elements tie together and “Fast Five” delivers one of the most inspired and entertaining action sequences I have seen in quite some time. Oh, it’s over the top and completely unbelievable, but a success in terms of finally providing me with a memory I can take away from the series.

“Fast Five” can be easily dismissed as another empty-headed, banal, car chase/action movie and if you have been resistant to the other 4 films in the series, I understand that rather merited point of view. However, as resistant as I was to this film, it kind of won me over by the end. Maybe it was Johnson. Maybe it was Lin finally finding his feet with this material and this cast, or maybe if you try something again and again…and again and again, you can finally get something right. “Fast Five” is a nice kick off to the summer season of big-budget studio offerings and while it is hardly a great film, it delivers a lot of popcorn-fueled entertainment.

Should I See It?

YES

If you are a fan of the previous films, then…nevermind. You’re there or have already seen it and perhaps already more than once.

“Fast Five” is officially a summer blockbuster, ushering in the 2011 summer movie season with a likable mix of comedy, loud and impressively staged action sequences, and cheesy drama.

Dwayne Johnson is terrific here and retains his status as one of the more charismatic action movie stars to come down the pike in a long time.

NO

Despite this being a good film overall, if you are not a fan of the previous films, this may still not retain any interest with you whatsoever. It will be very similar to what you have seen and disliked previously.

The film runs 130 minutes and has no reason to be that long. Once it gets rolling, the time zips right on by – however, it takes awhile to get things to that point.

Reducing the car chases and racing sequences and focusing more on gunplay and a bank heist storyline may make fans of the previous films recoil from this entry. I liked the shift but others may want something more akin to the earlier entries in the series.