Rating of
3/4
Tanks Good, Thinking Optional
Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/26/13
Here's how I imagine the script-writing for Fast 6 went: (Picture that guy in the AT&T commercials chatting with a group of Red Bull-induced teenagers): So what would you like to see in the new movie? A tank chase. Nice. A plane driving out of a cargo plane trying to take off from the world's longest runway. Sounds good. A bullet-proof car that is also super-fast and flips cars. Awesome. A mid-air rescue that would require the most perfect timing and still end in grave injury but the heroes walk away unscathed. Excellent.
In fact, the whole film seems to be trying to one-up itself in terms of how ridiculously over-the-top it can become. However, it is also supremely entertaining - provided you don't try to analyze anything about it and just sit back and enjoy the ride. In fact, I daresay it is the epitome of a summer blockbuster - lots of action, a crazy plot and even amnesia just for fun. And a villain to rival the most ambitious Bond villain to boot. This is the kind of movie you watch when you want to give the old melon a rest and just unwind.
Like the last film, Fast 6 brings together our crew of dedicated criminals who like really fast cars. After the last film, our group is spread out - having, you know, boosted $100 million in Brazil - and most are living the good life. But Agent Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) is after a deadly group of drivers who are boosting military-grade specs - apparently in order to build a device that could knock out a countries military system for 24 hours - potentially worth $1 billion dollars to the right buyer. Also, it seems Letty (Michelle Rodriguez) is alive and well and working for the mastermind, Shaw (Luck Evans).
When he presents the evidence to Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and Brian O'Conner (Paul Walker) - they decide to bring their "family" back together and rescue one of their own. Most of the gang is back - Tyrese Gibson's Roman, Ludacris' Tej, Gal Gadot's weapontastic Giselle and her potential love interest the everyman, Han Lue's Sung Kang. They are all brought together because to take down the best, Hobbs needs a crew who can match them.
The fun part of this movie is one of the throwaway jokes about Shaw's team being full of our crew's "evil twins" is actually pretty accurate. Although they are given far less screen time, it's pretty easy to match them up. Also along for the ride is Gina Carano - who is partnered with Hobbs on the mission to take Shaw down. If you 're wondering if she gets into an epic fight with Michelle Rodriguez, the answer is yes - and it is an excellent fight.
As for the rest of the movie - although there are plenty of memorable scenes (and even an actual street race reminding people of where this all started) for the most part the "big" action pieces are fun - but so unbelievable it's hard not to roll your eyes. The tank and plane scenes that make up the latter half of the film are great fun to watch, but so far from reality it takes you out of the film. I understand the Fast series isn't meant to be grounded in reality - but come on - they can at least pretend certain things could be plausible.
That being said - it's great to watch the interactions between these characters once again - and the teaser at the end (that finally explains just where Tokyo Drift winds up) promises more to come. I can say I was certainly entertained, but it's a film that doesn't require much thought - nor should you try - you'll only wind up disappointed in the effort.
