Review: FAST & FURIOUS 5 - More High Speed, High-Octane Action But Not Too Smart
rating: 3
What is it that makes them keep coming back even more faster and furious-er than ever for more, besides the obvious attraction of reasonable box office grosses -- the previous chapter Fast & Furious making approximately $400 million worldwide. I mean surely after two turns around the West Coast, a jaunt to Japan, and some cave driving across the Mexican border it isnt possible to come up with anything new for criminals and cops to do with their cars. Well, based on the Justin Lin helmed Fast & Furious 5 (titled Fast Five in the U.S. and Fast & Furious 5: Rio Heist in the U.K. - but we'll just stick with a vanilla title) and its Brazil based motorised mayhem that doesnt appear to be the case, with some of the most insanely impressive vehicular destruction I've ever seen on screen. The story may not spring too many surprises but youd be hard-pressed not to admire Toretto (Vin Diesel) and gangs need for speed and the unique ability to wipe out Rio de Janeiros police car pool. It adds another meaning to the term safe driving. Besides the chance to rejoin boys (and girls) with toys, the gang this time around is really the entire reason for dragging the franchise back to the multiplex. After Toretto is busted free from a prison transport bus by old comrade/adversary Brian OConnor (Paul Walker) and Torettos sister Mia (Jordana Brewster), the trio hightail it to Rio where they meet up with old Fast & The Furious alum Vince (Matt Schulze). Hes got a job stealing, yes youve guessed it, some fast cars, only these cars are on a high-speed train, and the job is for the crime overlord of the favelas (slums), the suitably shiny-suited but morally suspect Reyes (Joaquim de Almeida). Its part of a familiar pattern high speed, high-octane, high-risk, but not too smart.
After this things go predictably and spectacularly wrong and they find themselves on Reyes hit list, thoughts turn to an actual end-game, a point where they can actually stop running and disappear, particularly when Mia reveals theres going to be an addition to the famiglia. So finding out that Reyes is a criminal who believes in keeping his hard-earned cash outside the banks they figure on one last $100 million heist. For that kind of cash though theyll need some familiar faces from the FF back catalogue, from 2 Fast 2 Furious motor-mouth Tyrese Gibson to Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drifts Sung Kang, and Fast & Furious good bad girl Gal Gadot. Its an eventual ten count reunion of moving violations. So straight-up car capers turn into a good old fashioned heist as schematics are pored over, a ten ton safe is used for practice, and numerous high-end speed machines are won and/or stolen for the purposes for getting past some unbeatable cctv cameras. This isnt exactly Oceans 11 however as after coming up short the eventual plan just boils down to smashing through walls with an armoured 4x4 and dragging out the safe with a couple of cables and souped up cop cars. By the time the subsequent chase hits Rio traffic its more like the armageddon 11. But all this chicanery isnt the real trick up Fast & Furious 5s sleeve, because in the meantime and hot on the trail of Toretto and OConnor is the unearthly immense form of agent Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson). Johnson, sporting the classic combo of shaved head and goatee beard is literally monumental, his biceps now approaching the size of a Sherman tank. Driven by a code of justice that has nothing to do with money, hes an unknown quantity. All he wants is to take down the two outlaws in his sights. All we want from the moment he comes on screen is the inevitable mano-a-mano between him and Toretto. Finally heres a character who can stand toe to toe with Diesels growling behemoth, and when they finally come to blows its the fight that should have been at the end of The Incredible Hulk. 
Being Dwayne Johnson of course, Hobbs cant possibly be all bad for Toretto and OConnors health, and after he finds himself on an equally vengeful path towards Reyes he decides to give our protagonists a temporary helping hand (when Johnson rumbled Im in there was an actual cheer and round of applause). As an invitation to just sit back and enjoy yourself Fast & Furious 5 is ultimately hard to argue against, and Justin Lin, who also directed the previous two instalments, has become a master of driving annihilation; some of the action here is literally intoxicating. The attempt to wring some depth from the characters situations and humanity less so. Instead of creating layers it simply adds unwanted heft to something that should be as sleek and fast as the cars being tortured round the tarmac. Hopefully theyll remember that next time around, because based on the neat little pre-credits cliffhanger this happy ending wasnt the end. Agent Hobbs is looking for a re-match. Fast & Furious 5 is released in the U.K. from today and in the U.S. from April 29th.