REVIEW: Fast Five

MOVIE
Fast Five

CAST
Vin Diesel, Paul Walker

RATING
PG-13

RELEASE
April 29, 2011

DIRECTOR
Justin Lin

STUDIO
Universal Pictures

RUNNING TIME
2 hours 10 minutes







STARS
***1/2











REVIEW:

In a year so far where every idea put out there, like for example hot babes in a fantasy realm with machine guns has been a mediocre turnout, it seemed as if that this year would only have very few good movies and barely enough time to see them. But alas, here comes Vin Diesel and Paul Walker revved up with an all star cast in what I think will be one of the summer's biggest hits. You may only think from first impression that Fast Five is mearly a street racing movie with awesome cars, great action scenes, and hot women shaking their bootys. Well that is only half true, since this movie includes much more, like extensive and unbelievable action scenes and some good acting from all actors. This movie is 100% male testosterone, with everything that guys like. It satisfies the male mind from the movie's first action scene, and never stops there. Fast Five will satisfy many this year and it is possibly the single best theater experience I'll have this year.

After he escaped from prison again, Dom Toretto has one final mission in his plans. With what was once an attempt to steal cars from a train, this mission soon becomes something even more. Dom has hatched a plan to steal money from a corrupt Brazillian buisinessman, Herman Reyes. Just how much money may you ask? Try 100 million dollars. And if the plan succeeds, Dom and his gang will get new lives and disapper forever. Meanwhile, DDS federal agent Luke Hobbs has been assigned to find Dom and the group, and send them back to America with handcuffs around their wrists. Hobbs is the best at what he does and will stop at nothing to find Toretto.

This is a movie where it's not about thinking, like Inception, it's about letting loose and just going with the flow. The action scenes in this movie almost never stop, which adds to the fun presented. Some of the stunts in this movie are also just unbelievable. My accompanist pointed out that during a scene in which Dom and Brian are using their cars to pull a safe through the streets of Brazil, there were no sparks coming out from then bottom of the safe, therefore wouldn't possibly be real. I simply told him that I didn't notice, since I was just watching this movie as an audience member, not a critic. If I was in critic mode, I would've pointed out every flaw presented in this movie. (And there are some flaws) But being a critic with the mind of the average audience member, I just sat their for two hours straight and just had a fun time. Isn't that what action movies are all about, to just go with whatever is going on during that scene? If you like insane, over the top action in your movies, then put this on your things to see during the summer.

As most probably know, this movie brings back many familiar characters from previous movies. As someone who only saw the first and fourth installments before seeing this, I must say that getting to know these characters was a little bit hard. You heard characters make remarks about incidents in previous installments of the series, but that's all you need to be worried about. Even if this was the first Fast & The Furious that you're seeing, you may still understand it. It would just add more if you knew who the characters were. As for the characters themselves, I liked how you had your characters resemble the genres of action, romance, and comedy. The best characters were possibly Tyrese Gibson and Ludacris, because they were what you would call "the comic relief" of the movie. The comic relief is presented so if things were getting too action packed, then these guys help you cool down with chunks of comedy in between action sequences. The acting was what it was, with Paul Walker always doing a mediocre job. But after seeing previous installments, most pretty much have learned to deal with it, just letting the movie do it's thing. And this adds a lot to this movie, letting the movie be just as action-packed as it is corny to most people. This will be one of the aspects that makes this movie so enjoyable.

Now I did say that there were flaws in this movie, and I stand on my word for that. Along with Paul Walker's acting, there were some pretty dumb elements in the story. For example, (and this may be a SPOILER to some, so look out) they did not need to have Mia Toretto, Dom's sister and Brian's love intrest pregnant throughout the entire movie. It's just one of the many plotlines that are so over used in moives these days, that you don't even care about it's outcome. Can't directors and studios learn that it's not necessary to make women pregnant in action movies? Soon, this idea will be lowered down and barely anyone will use it anymore. Also, I wanted to learn a bit more about Dwayne Johnson's character, Luke Hobbs. The guy seemed to have more of a back story that made him the way he is in this movie. He seemed to be chasing Dom and the crew for more than just being assigned to his case. Other than those problems, I thought the movie pitch perfect. If this movie didn't have those mid-sized flaws, it would've been awarded the perfect four star rating.

Director Justin Lin knew what audiences wanted, as well as what critics needed. This movie manages to be cheesey and over the top, but one hell of a time at the movies. This movie has everything someone could want in a Fast & The Furious movie, plus add something that the other installments didn't have: story and character development. In the previous movies, you barely got to know the story or the characters, and your only focus was on the racing, action, and/or gorgeous women flaunting what they had. It's amazing that it took 5 movies and 10 years to make a super awesome racing crime thriller. Hey, at least we didn't have to have to wait 20 movies before they were great. So as we Americans say, fifth times the charm, and Fast Five proves that greatly. Yes, I enjoyed this fifth installment than the ones in the Harry Potter and Star Wars series. So if you want to see a kick ass, awesome summer movie, then get into your cars, drain youre brain for two hours, and let yourself enjoy Fast Five. On a last note, if you stay after the credits, a little treat hinting at a Fast Six is shown. If there is a Fast Six, count me in!