(Movie Review) Fast & Furious 6 (2013)

Fast & Furious 6 refuses to pump the brakes, and we love it for that!

It’s unheard of. Absolutely unheard of. This is a franchise that was created solely to show off aftermarket car parts, pretty women, and vehicles going fast. There was no depth. And the original movie was resting on the shoulders of two VERY new actors. So you can understand not only my amazement at the fact that this franchise is still going, but that it is better and more profitable with every single movie that is released. The general trend in Hollywood is to produce a surprise blockbuster, throw money at a sequel, and the audience watches as the producers flail around with their checkbooks open trying to figure out why people will not come watch their sequels. Yet the movies in this franchise have continued to not only “one up” each movie that came before it, but to actually make you care about characters that you have been watching on the screen for TWELVE YEARS. That’s right folks. The original movie came out in 2001. You have my permission to feel old. 

Storyline: Agent Hobbs (Johnson) has been chasing a supercar wielding criminal mastermind across 12 countries without even getting close to catching his target. When all else fails he goes to the only people that he knows of that could have the resources to take him out. Hobbs contacts Dom (Diesel) and Brian (Walker) to reassemble their team in an effort to stop this criminal threat once and for all. Their crew decides to take the job, but only if they are all given full pardons for their past crimes. 

Worth the admission? Does Roman Pearce (Tyrese Gibson) like free snacks? Of course! This movie gives a lot. It’s easy for critics to brush movies like this off as being “popcorn flicks” and not being something that true cinema lovers would waste their time on. I would recommend that those critics get a life. This movie is fun. Sometimes movies are allowed to just be FUN! It is great to see this cast back together and doing what they do so well. They have fun with each other and it shows on screen. 

Was there anything that I didn’t like about the movie? Sure. I think that the reintroduction of Letty was some pretty poor retcon (retroactive continuity), but I was really glad to see her back with the crew. I also didn’t care for one particular scene where Dom saves Letty. But with just those tiny problems the movie was still pretty awesome. 

Special note: It has always bothered me that Han (Sung Kang) was shown blowing up in Tokyo Drift yet popped back up in Fast & Furious (2009) and each movie sense then with no explanation as to where Tokyo Drift fit into the franchise timeline. But the special scene in the credits not only reveals that, but also shows who the villain for the final FF film will be, and it is AWESOME.  Check it out!