Summary
This is the part of the review where we tend to summarise our star rating. At this point the Fast and Furious franchise is critically bulletproof, so just strap in for the ride and buckle up for lots of car-related dialogue. Oh, and something about family!
Sometimes we need a reminder that these films used to be about boosting DVD players in Los Angeles. In FAST X, the eleventh series outing since the 2001 kick-off, director Louis Leterrier, along with screenwriters Dan Mazeau and Justin Lin, take pains to reiterate this for the audience. Or just let us know they are in on the insanity of it all.
Indeed, after a cold open that takes us back to the glorious vault chase sequence of Fast Five in Rio de Janeiro, it’s LA where we set our scene. Dom (Vin Diesel) and his family are settling into suburban bliss, but no quicker than you can say “and introducing Rita Moreno as abuelita” then they are off on another adventure for the Agency.
Yet all are deceived. Dante Reyes (Jason Momoa) seeks revenge for the death of his father in Rio, and is manipulating the family to cause maximum damage. Separated and disgraced, it’s a fight for survival, with a fair bit of driving thrown in for good measure.
Let’s be honest: at this point you’re either all in or it’s not your cup of tea. With our critical radars set to off, what we really want to see is some fast-driving action, some stuff blowing up, and impossible stunts. Given that nobody seems to be able to die in these movies, the stakes are never terribly high, meaning we can happily watch the destruction of a city safe in the knowledge it’s all in the name of our immediate gratification.
Pinging from location to location, the film clocks up its frequent flyer points via splashy title cards for Naples, London, Rio de Janeiro, Portugal, and even Antarctica – sometimes all in the space of ten minutes. The centrepiece sequence is a massive chase across the streets of Rome, with the McGuffin of a large rolling bomb causing chaos and thrills in equal measure. Acting as a microcosm for the series as a whole, and consciously referencing previous films, it’s big and dumb but unquestionably fun.
Yes, it’s very much sturm und drang, but it’s held together by one of the best villains to date. Momoa, dressed to the nines in lavender, laughs maniacally as he takes repeated punches to the face. As an agent of chaos, he’s every bit a comic book arch-nemesis, and precisely the antidote to the stone-faced seriousness of Diesel. (A friend described him as The Joker to Diesel’s Batman, and it’s hard to unsee that – even if they’ll always be Aquaman and Groot). That said, essays could be written on the whether this queer coded character is problematic as a villain.
He’s not the only recognisable face, of course. There are cameos from just about everyone who ever set foot on Universal’s backlot, and it scarcely seems to matter whether they are canonically dead in the series. Helen Mirren, Brie Larson, Jason Statham, and Charlize Theron are all in the mix. Hell, even Australian news reporter There’s so many people, in fact, that it sometimes feels like they’re all operating in separate films. So, you know we’re all waiting for Diesel to yell ‘Family! Assemble’ at some point.
That said, if you’re expecting any kind of resolution, or family-focused barbeque time, to round out this entry then you can forget it. It’s probably no spoiler at this stage in the release cycle to say that this is Part 1 of a bigger story. Which is just fine and dandy with us. Even if we ultimately get diminishing returns on this series, it’s still a hell of a ride every time.
2023 | USA | DIRECTOR: Louis Leterrier | WRITERS: Dan Mazeau and Justin Lin | CAST: Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, John Cena, Nathalie Emmanuel, Jordana Brewster, Sung Kang, Scott Eastwood, Daniela Melchior, Alan Ritchson, Helen Mirren, Brie Larson, Rita Moreno, Jason Statham, Jason Momoa, Charlize Theron | DISTRIBUTOR: Universal Pictures | RUNNING TIME: 141 minutes | RELEASE DATE: 19 May 2023 (AUS), 5 May 2023 (USA)
