Fast and Furious 6

I was super-psyched to see Fast and Furious 6 after seeing it's predecessor on DVD. The clip which encouraged me to see Fast 5 in the first place was that of Paul Walker and Vin Diesel surfing a car off a ravine - WOW!

The original Fast and the Furious had ripped off a favourite of mine. Replacing extreme sports with fast cars, the film was almost a scene for scene remake of Point Break. After passing on three of it's sequels, Fast 5 pulled me back in. Director Justin Lin (who has been with the series since Tokyo Drift) pulled out all the stops with this entry - improving upon what had come before, while successfully hitting upon a formula for the series which worked beyond mere plagiarism.

The car-surfing sequence stood out because it looked like the actors were doing the stunt themselves. Many believe anything can be accomplished in this age of digital effects, but this learned eye can still tell. If I have to ask myself, "how did they do that?" (as I did in Fast 5), then the film-makers have successfully done their job!

Fast 5 also utilised the full series cast - bringing in players form the original and each subsequent sequel. Added to the mix for the fifth entry was Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, as the FBI agent assigned to hunt down Toretto and his gang.

The intention with most sequels is to go bigger and better. Lin and his crew lean towards this but wisely stick to the formula created with their fifth entry. Fast 6 comes very close to it's predecessor (in terms of greatness), but requires it's audience to suspend their disbelief that little bit further.

Fast and Furious 6 is hugely entertaining! In fact seeing this feature at the cinema made it even more enjoyable. This series plays like the adolescent nephew to "Bond". A crowd-pleaser that ticks all the right boxes - and fully engages it's audience just short of rapturous applause!

The influx of characters has certainly helped this series, however there's no one who really pops in Fast 6. Vin Diesel and Dwayne Johnson have charisma to spare, but rarely do they punch above their stoic shells. Tyrese Gibson and Chris "Ludicris" Bridges provide the laughs and show some growth as a humorous double-act.

Fast 6 places Johnsons FBI team and Torettos gang in bed together, rather than at logger-heads. It's a fun conceit which we all saw coming - but it works!

Both teams face military-trained Shaw (Luke Evans) and his gang. A comedic highlight sees Gibsons, Roman compare the heros to the villains. The two teams show an uncanny resemblance to one another!

The action takes place in London this time (save for a brief return trip to LA for Paul Walkers, Brian). Just as it works for the Bond series, the changing locals keep things fresh and visually exciting. They make a concerted effort here to utilise the more popular land marks - it's not everyday you see a couple of souped-up cars race through Piccadilly Circus!

With it's chief ensemble in place, this series can run and run. Players can come and go, as new heros and villains are inducted. The Fast and Furious audience will eat it up, so long as there's a considerable amount of spectacle on display! No doubt they'll continue to tick those boxes - here's hoping they keep the ridiculousness of the series on the right side of WOW!

3/5

Poster image courtesy: www.empireonline.com