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Question: What did you think of Fast Five?
*****   -0 (0%)
****   -2 (40%)
***   -1 (20%)
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Author Topic: Movie Review - Fast Five (2011)  (Read 704 times)
Dave Gray
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« on: February 25, 2021, 02:16:03 pm »

Fast Five (2011)

Premise: On the run in Brazil, a group of cons find that a quick and easy train heist turns into a much bigger plunge into the mob, heat from the feds, crooked cops, and the quest for $100 million to start a new life.

Rating: A little too long, but more stars, more money on screen, and a move to a spy-heist formula make for fun.

I can't even believe this movie came from The Fast and the Furious.  It's like Mission Impossible had a baby with Ocean's 11.  This isn't a racing movie, and I think the movie is actually better when it's not trying to shoe-horn racing into the plot.

I'm a little shocked at how much these movies just don't seem to give a shit about what happened before -- the characters are like different people from film to film.  Ludacris is back and he's like a hacker now???  And there's a line of throwaway dialogue about how he had a life before Brian knew him and they just move on.  I mean...whatever, but that's basically a new character and they just re-used an actor.  I think the same can kinda be said for Han, Brian has definitely changed and come back in the series, and Gal Gadot.

There are neat little hints to seeds that were planted before that keep sprouting here and there -- small references to things that happened in other movies, but they aren't beholden to them.  Also, alive is dead, there is a timeline that doesn't seem like it's in-order, physics have no meaning anymore, intricate plans that would require millions to pull off, and intimate knowledge and planning by life-long experts are kinda thrown together by this group that were impulsive meatheads just a few films ago.

So, I don't really know how to feel about it.  If you are OK with the guy yelling at half-naked women on jet-skis with a bullhorn in a previous film now being a top-level safe-hacker and mechanical genius with one line of dialogue to justify it, you should be fine.  If you're looking for a character through-line for some of these guys, you might be lacking.

The action is now huge and it is now insane.  The budget is big, the crashes are rad, and everything looks good.  All the shitty CG what-the-fuckery is gone and this is the Hollywood big-leagues.  Justin Lin is bringing the action set-pieces, no doubt.

This movie actually feels like a re-boot of 2 Fast 2 Furious.  The basic premise is remarkably similar except they set it in Brazil, they make the villains much more believable and they have Dom take the lead instead of Tyrese.  Some slapdick cops are replaced by the Rock, who brings a new level of star-power and bad-assery.  And the stunts and budget are legit.  But it's largely the same story -- like a re-do.

This movie is better to women.  They have agency, they are involved in what's going on and interesting, they are 60% less thirsty, and there is no gratuitous lesbian make-out session.  There is still a small amount of ass-cheeks near open-hoods showing car engines, but it's way toned down.  In fact, the racing and car culture, in general, is toned way down.  No more NOS as shown from inside the engine, not much real racing at all.   This is a criminal action movie that has cars in it.

The only real negative in the evolution of the series is that this is the first film that bloats it length.  It adds about 25 minutes to what came before and you start to feel it.  The action is cool, but it's always a little bit of "ok, we get it" before it's over.  I know you don't want to put so much money exploding shit and then not put it on screen, but I feel like you could shave off a minute here or there and really keep the pace.  Even the ending feels like it adds 5 unnecessary minutes for no real value.

Lastly, I'm finally to a point in this series where it's starting to run together.  I had a tough time even remembering the plot to summarize here because so much of it could be interchangeable with all the other stuff from before.  And after the credits start, we are gifted with a scene that seems to bring back multiple characters (again in seemingly different roles than they played before) that promise to make the crazy even more batshit.
« Last Edit: February 25, 2021, 02:20:55 pm by Dave Gray » Logged

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Brian Fein
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« Reply #1 on: February 25, 2021, 02:35:18 pm »

Couple of things you touched on...

1) in your review of 2Fast, I made a comment about the evolution of Tej Parker.  100% spot on.  The dude went from street race organizer/garage owner to top level hacker, pretty much overnight.  When they were assembling the team they called him the "circuits guy" or something.

2) There's a few things in this film that, as a fan of the racing genre, annoyed me.  I wish they showed the race for the blue Porsche, but that's a 3 to 5 minute scene in a movie with no real plot evolution.  Furthermore, at the end, they show Brian and Dom heading out to a race and ignore that also.  The only time they really did the "car thing" was when they stole the 4 police cars and raced home.  MEH.  I am one that liked the races but we know they aren't necessary plot points.

3) The movies, when all is said and done, will ALL run together.  I've seen them all dozens of times, and I always have to stop and think about which movie had what scenes and plot.  They are a bunch of similar films with mildly varying plots and not much evolution.  Fate of the Furious, for me, is one that stands out in the crowd.  But I think by the time you finish movie #7, you'll think it was just one 9 hour screen explosion of big budget stunts.

4) If you think this movie was long and draggy, I recommend you split up Fast 6 into multiple sessions.  That is the "draggiest" of the series, and I can't really say much more without revealing a big spoiler.  You'll see...
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Dave Gray
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« Reply #2 on: February 25, 2021, 02:38:57 pm »

1) in your review of 2Fast, I made a comment about the evolution of Tej Parker.  100% spot on

Well, I'll just say that it didn't bother me.  I was critical of him before, because he didn't really provide value to anything.  At least he matters now.  I wouldn't really call it an evolution, either.  They just changed what he is and that's that.

Quote
I wish they showed the race for the blue Porsche

I'm glad they didn't.  The series has shown "racing for slips" already in each of the three movie, so it's earned skipping that part.
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Brian Fein
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chunkyb
« Reply #3 on: February 25, 2021, 02:47:10 pm »

I'm glad they didn't.  The series has shown "racing for slips" already in each of the three movie, so it's earned skipping that part.
I don't disagree, entirely, but the racing is all that differentiates these movies from Die Hards, John Wicks, Avengers, or any other action films.  I think its a unique wrinkle that is a lot of what I personally like about it.
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Fau Teixeira
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« Reply #4 on: February 25, 2021, 08:15:28 pm »

you remember Tokyo drift tho .. that one doesn't mesh into others .. still 5 star!
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Spider-Dan
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« Reply #5 on: February 25, 2021, 11:01:38 pm »

This movie is the really the start of a second franchise that happens to share the same actors as the first one.  The characters are totally different; you mentioned Tej, but Dom goes from a street racer who hijacks 18 wheelers in his spare time in the first movie, to basically a retired xXx in the later movies, with no real explanation for how he got from point A to point B.  (Or maybe xXx is the explanation...?)
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