FAST AND FURIOUS 6

When the girlfriend Toretto (Diesel) thought was dead resurfaces in London with a group of mercenaries, he is forced out of hiding to rescue his one true love. Hobbs (Johnson) has been tracking this lethal group across twelve countries but they’ve always been one step ahead. Now Hobbs must join forces with Toretto and his crew. The mission; to capture these criminal drivers, the twofold payoff; rescuing Letty (Toretto’s girlfriend) as well as receiving full pardons for the crimes they’ve committed in the past.

This is the sixth installment in the “Fast and Furious” franchise but unlike a fine wine this series does not get better with age. In fact the series has gone from cool and fun to outright ridiculous and unbelievable. The screenplay was probably written by a monkey working in a dungeon at Universal Studios under sweat-shop conditions. The narrative is not only underdeveloped it’s malnourished. Here are just a few of the overused plot points, a team-up between two former adversaries, bringing a deceased character back to life, a double-cross, a kidnapping and lastly a severe case of amnesia. It’s as if the screenwriter picked these plot points out of a hat and somehow applied it to the story regardless of whether it made sense or not. The plot is just another retread of a severely worn out tire. 

For most of the actors in this film, this series is the only paying job they get. Paul Walker, Tyrese Gibson, Ludacris, Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster are hardly seen in any other films. Vin Diesel’s ‘bread and butter’ is this and the ‘Riddick’ string of films but no other filmmakers are rushing to hire Diesel these days. Compared to villains from the past movies, this villain played by Luke Evans is the least flamboyant. Evans brings a sense of realism to what is essentially a fantasy film. Ironically the main supporting actor in this film gets more acting jobs than everyone combined. That’s because he’s Dwayne Johnson; probably the only true Hollywood Action Star working today. Johnson makes the most of what he has been given which is a script full of dim-witted clichés. There are far too many characters and this can be harmful to the overall story because the audience tends to disconnect.

It’s obvious that the filmmakers blew their budget on stunts and special effects and allocated nothing for story development. If this was ‘The Matrix Part 6’ then every action scene would be believable because the audience is told that reality can be altered within the Matrix. But this is an action film based in reality yet disregards the basic laws of physics. The filmmakers were really stretching believability in the last movie but with this one, they’ve ripped believability in half. Flying from one side of the freeway to the other and jumping from a moving cargo plane into a moving vehicle is a couple of reality altered stunts.

“You've got the best crew in the world standing right in front of you, give them a reason to stay.” is a prime example of how corny this film is. When I heard this line I felt like shouting aloud “the reason you are all staying is to get pardons for all the crimes you’ve committed.” The pitiful script is only the tip of the iceberg; add to that the unrealistic action scenes and the trite melodrama and you’ve got a two-hour long reason to roll your eyes in disbelief. This is one of those movies where a disclaimer should be displayed saying “please switch off your cell phones and your brains before the film starts.” Lately the Action Movie genre has been overridden with films of this caliber. Mindless story incorporated with improbable action scenes is becoming the hallmark of this movie franchise. This is the fourth Fast and Furious film directed by Justin Lin so needless to say he has a shorthand with the actors, producers and crew. Not much blame can be plunked on the shoulders of Lin because he is merely a director for hire doing what he is paid to do. The alarming fact is that there doesn’t seem to be any end in sight for this series. Actually it’s only a matter of time until we see a trailer for Part 7 and hear that trademark phrase “ride or die!” I sadly foresee Toretto boosting electric wheelchairs and wreaking havoc at the old people’s home even in his seventies. Be sure to preorder your tickets now for Fast and Furious Part 35 Coming Soon in Summer 2042!

Rating: 3/10

S. V. Fernando