Fast X, the tenth film in the Fast & Furious Saga, launches the final chapters of one of cinema’s most storied and popular global franchises, now in its third decade and still going strong with the same core cast and characters as when it began. Over many missions and against impossible odds, Dom Toretto (Vin Diesel) and his family have outsmarted, out-nerved and outdriven every foe in their path. Now, they confront the most lethal opponent they’ve ever faced: A terrifying threat emerging from the shadows of the past who’s fueled by blood revenge, and who is determined to shatter this family and destroy everything—and everyone—that Dom loves, forever. In 2011’s Fast Five, Dom and his crew took out nefarious Brazilian drug kingpin Hernan Reyes and decapitated his empire on a bridge in Rio De Janeiro. What they didn’t know was that Reyes’ son, Dante, witnessed it all and has spent the last 12 years masterminding a plan to make Dom pay the ultimate price. Dante’s plot will scatter Dom’s family from Los Angeles to the catacombs of Rome, from Brazil to London and from Portugal to Antarctica. New allies will be forged and old enemies will resurface. But everything changes when Dom discovers that his own 8-year-old son is the ultimate target of Dante’s vengeance.
What We Thought:
Fast X is better than F9, but it’s still utterly ridiculous. As new films get added to the franchise, every law of physics gets thrown out the window. Sure there’s no Pontiac Fiero in space in this tenth installment, but you’ll be laughing out loud at the over-the-top nonsense you’ll be witnessing on the big screen.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m a big fan of the series. I’ve seen each film at least twice and genuinely believe some are really good movies, but at this point you know what to expect. There will be explosions and action and someone will come back from the dead. There’s a bad guy from their past and all the damage they caused previously will come back to bite them in the butt. I’ll go over the pros and cons even though you already know if you’ll be spending time with Dom and his family at the multiplex.
Like every previous film this one has cool cars, hot women, buff dudes, an in-your-face soundtrack, one liners and lots of explosions. There is a street race in this one, but the days of this franchise actually being about illegal street racing are long gone. Heck, in the street race there are exploding cars. You either dig it or you don’t.
For new additions to the hot women/buff dude category we get Alan Ritchson, Daniela Melchior, and Brie Larson. I watched Reacher Season 1 over the past year so I’m familiar with Ritchson. The dude is the living embodiment of built like a brick sh*t house. He is a giant of a man who clearly fits in a franchise with men like Vin Diesel, The Rock, John Cena and Jason Statham. Melchior was in The Suicide Squad and plays a woman with ties to the crew’s past. Larson replaces Kurt Russell’s Mr. Nobody as their connection to the Agency. I actually liked Larson in the film and hope she does more movies like this.
Then there is the action. Along with the exploding street race there’s a bomb sequence near the Vatican, Dom’s house gets raided when they come looking for Little B and you get flashbacks to the safe theft from Fast Five. Oh, then there’s the dam, but I won’t be ruining that ridiculousness.
I guess I should have added Jason Momoa to the new addition buff guy category, but he’s a major player in this one. He’s the bad guy and the flashbacks to Fast Five explain his entire premise. I don’t know what movie he thought he was in, but it’s a much different one than the rest of the cast. In a movie of over-the-top-ness, Momoa is on a whole nother level. You’ll either completely love him and laugh along with him or cringe at everything he does. Overall I did like him and I’m curious to see where the character goes in future films.
That brings me to the biggest issue with the movie, it has no ending. It’s the Avengers: Infinity War of the Fast & Furious franchise. It’s one thing to have an ending where you know the bad guy survives and will come back, but this doesn’t even have an ending. It’s one giant cliffhanger after Dom pretty much goes over a cliff (ok dam and the trailer gives it away so not a spoiler). The movie just sort of ends and you’re left pondering what will happen to our lovable family! I was actually annoyed by the ending. I knew it wasn’t going to be the last film in the franchise, but it feels like the end of Harry Potter or The Hunger Games when they made two movies out of one book just to get more movies. Before the sudden fade to black I was overall enjoying the film even with all the preposterous action.
That being said Fast X is going to make bank. There’s enough fan service in it that will get fans back to the theater even if F9 left a bad taste in their mouths. A couple of characters who had left the franchise return, even a dead one because nobody can stay dead. The crowd at the screening I was at went absolutely crazy throughout the movie when those characters came back especially when one returned during a post-credits scene. We are 11 movies in, if you include Hobbs & Shaw, so you know if you like the franchise and will be seeing the movie or not. If you were soured a bit after F9 I do think Fast X is a return to form even though it’s complete nonsense. Besides, it’s all about family.
The Nerds Templar 