All Roads Lead to This: Fast & Furious 6 Review

Director: Justin Lin

Writer: Chris Morgan

Starring: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Dwayne Johnson, Michelle Rodriguez, Sung Kang

"Do you believe in ghosts?" This question could just as easily apply to the Fast and Furious franchise. 2001's "The Fast and the Furious" didn't exactly take home any Oscars. It wasn't nominated for any nor was it even a part of awards season conversation. The film, however, did have a good share of cultural impact especially with the way the street racing culture was blowing up at the time. I was just young enough at the time that I had a blast with the film. It was exciting and had these tough guys driving these extravagant cars really fast. After that the series languished and by 2009's "Fast and Furious", it seemed that the series had nothing left in the tank and was effectively dead. The series' third entry, "The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift", was the lone bright spot and I mainly enjoyed the original for the sheer nostalgia factor. Then "Fast Five" came along and breathed life back into this franchise. It proved that director Justin Lin and writer Chris Morgan knew exactly where to take this franchise to make it not only relevant again but also quite enjoyable. "Fast & Furious 6" promises bigger action and that "All roads lead to this." Does it live up to the hype?



The answer is a car smashing and giant exploding fireball of a YES. I had a blast watching this film. Director Justin Lin and writer Chris Morgan, who have been with the series since its third entry, bring most of the cast back together for the latest film. DSS Agent Luke Hobbs (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson) tracks down our favorite vehicular virtuosos to help him take down international menace Owen Shaw (Luke Evans) and his crew of drivers/criminals. But after their success in Brazil, why would Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and Brian O'Conner (Paul Walker) even want to help? It turns out that one of Shaw's drivers is Letty Ortiz (Michelle Rodriguez), Dom's former flame. Soon enough, Dom and Brian are joined by Tej Parker (Chris "Ludacris" Bridges), Roman Pearce (Tyrese Gibson), Han Seoul-Oh (Sung Kang), Gisele Harabo (Gal Gadot), and new comer agent Riley Hicks (Gina Carano). Also in the film but sitting out the action this time are Mia Toretto (Jordanna Brewster), and Elena Neves (Elsa Pataky). Once the gang is back together, they set out to take on Owen Shaw and bring Letty back into the family.

The Fast and Furious franchise has revitalized itself for two main reasons. By shifting the franchise's focus away from street racing and onto character, the cars can be used for increasingly spectacular set-pieces. "Fast Five" took the franchise into the heist genre and here it's made the transition into a full-on action blockbuster. So, let's talk about the action. It's magnificent. There are three main action set-pieces and each is bigger, more impressive, and more ridiculous than the last. This series has never exactly traded on plausibility and if you take a step back and think about what you're seeing on screen, it quickly falls apart. Real world physics and a fair amount of logic go out the window, but the film is so full of energy that, in the end, it doesn't matter. "Fast & Furious" (the fourth entry if you're having trouble keeping up) had problems with moments of egregiously obvious cgi and the series has turned that around. The use of practical effects gives the action set-pieces weight and makes them feel real. On top of that, when you see a tank rampaging across a highway smashing everything in its way you can't help but wonder how the hell they pulled it all off. With my background in engineering, I could sit back and deconstruct each set-piece, breaking them down piece by piece and seeing why they wouldn't work in "real life." To the credit of all involved, the inventiveness of each sequence and the way they inform the character work keeps me invested.

With a cast this big it would be easy to lose people in the shuffle, but everybody has a part to play. This is a holdover from the last film, which felt very Ocean's 11 in it's plotting, and we see more of the same here. Johnson's Hobbs is less in the forefront here, but he remains a strong presence nonetheless. Ludacris and Tyrese provide good laughs to balance out the dramatic moments. The strongest character work comes in exploring the relationships between the characters. Paul Walker gets a chance to dig into some dramatic material and comes away relatively successful. Then there's the romance. There are two major romantic couples that the film focuses on: Dom and Letty, and Han and Gisele. Dom works throughout the film to rekindle his romance with Letty and, despite some cheesy dialogue, it's all very compelling given the ten plus year history between these characters. The fact that we can have a street racing sequence that simultaneously pays homage to the series' roots and explores the relationship between both characters is amazing. Han (arguably Justin Lin's greatest contribution to the franchise) and Gisele begin the film thinking of settling down only to be pulled back in for one last job. Every set-piece that involves the two showcases their relationship and the way it evolves as the film moves along.

One last thing I want to emphasize is the reverence this entry shows for the franchise as a whole. The opening credits are particularly enjoyable if you've been with the franchise from the beginning and really gives you a sense for how far this series has moved forward. I have to give Justin Lin and Chris Morgan so much credit again for  building to this film so well. Lin has spoken about having a vision for this franchise and I think he was more than successful bringing that vision to life. The way this film ties into the franchise and closes off the somewhat complicated time line is quite ingenious. This is especially noticeable coming off the recent debuts of "Star Trek: Into Darkness" and "The Hangover Part III", two films who incorporate previous films in their respective franchises in a much clunkier way. Without getting into spoilers, this movie really informs and enhances the previous films in a satisfying way, particularly Tokyo Drift and the Han character. I urge you to go back and watch that film if you haven't (or if it's been a while). You will not be disappointed.

I make no apologies for my attachment to these characters and this franchise and freely admit that a large part of why this film works so well for me is that attachment. I do believe that even without that attachment there is still a lot to love here. The film moves quickly from one action sequence to another and you will never be bored. These set pieces are punctuated by small character beats that give the film time to breathe and allow hardcore fans moments to just hang out with their favorite characters. Long time fans will get more of everything they love, more more humor, more action, more heart, and of course, more cars. Newcomers to the series won't be disappointed either as they get the latest chapter in what's arguably become the best action franchise on the big screen today.