Rápidos y furiosos 6

Part 6 does not disappoint. More action then ever. If you added Bruce Willis this could have been Die Hard 6

Bigger, faster, crazier — that's the motto of the "Fast & Furious" franchise six films in. If you thought the action, scale and stunts were off the charts in "Fast Five," prepare to have your mind blown by "Fast & Furious 6."

The previous films were an acceleration, and the series hit full throttle with "Fast Five." The road was open and endless for Universal, and returning writer Chris Morgan and director Justin Lin. What they opt to do in "F&F6" is bend the limits of reality to their will. From the initial London chase to a highway tank sequence to the grand finale, which involves a massive cargo plane, this is an action movie jacked up on steroids. In fact, there are a couple references to Marvel "Avengers" characters — a not-so-subliminal suggestion that Universal would like you to think of Dominic Toretto's crew/family as a team of superheroes.

The trouble is for every "wow!" moment there are twice the number of "what?" moments. The action is so ludicrous that you lose all sense of what's happening. They're like little blackout moments as you drink more and more of the movie's high-octane Kool-Aid.

Morgan pulls together a perfectly viable plot. Dom's (Vin Diesel) presumed deceased former lover, Letty (Michelle Rodriguez) has been spotted in association with a criminal mastermind named Owen Shaw (Luke Evans) whose ex-military crew is essentially the shadow image of our heroes. Dobbs (Dwayne Johnson) presents this info to Dom in hopes that it'll persuade Dom into doing him favor in taking Shaw down. It naturally works, and the crew must put a hiatus on their quiet life spending all the cash they stole in the last film; when the patriarch of the family calls, you answer.

The movie doubles down on the notion of the crew as family. Shaw is supposed to be the antithesis. He doesn't care about allegiances but about precision and planning. He's cold and calculated, whereas the "family" is warm and spontaneous. It's cliché, but at least time is spent on the characters. There is only one newbie in former MMA fighter Gina Carano as Hobbs' new right hand, meaning the character time is invested in the existing characters, which is good, though the script doesn't pierce beyond the surface traits we're already familiar with.

It also bears mentioning that at one point the script reveals a twist that's solely for the purpose of a twist. This "surprise" makes no sense and has no actual bearing on what happens in the film. Morgan wanted a surprise moment to keep things interesting and it's a nice moment — but then you realize it's actually meaningless and changes nothing. Another example of how flash without substance is the M.O. of this series. You have to like flash for the sake of flash to be a big fan.

Of course any scene in which an engine of any kind is not running only matters so much in these films, but "Fast & Furious 6" will start to really separate out the pure action junkies who've been hooked on this series from those who prefer some plausibility and gravity —literally and figuratively — in their blockbusters. Lin's sensibilities would probably be of more use in a sci-fi or fantasy movie where he could break all laws of common sense and completely get away with it. In this movie, depending on your taste, it will either get you stoked or spoil the moment.

One could argue that this franchise has found a niche in larger-than-life action movies — that there's a viable space for films that maintain the trappings of the real world but play by the rules of a superhero movie. That's fair, but in many ways by blowing the ceiling off what's possible, they've created another ceiling. If anything is possible, at some point we will no longer be surprised by the impossible. The films would be better served by maintaining some thread of connection to the laws of physics, then when they broke them a little, it would have a bigger impact. "Fast Five" did this well and it's a shame this movie takes such a tremendous leap in believability.

Nevertheless, there's an undeniable adrenaline rush that comes with Lin's style of direction and the size and stature of the stunts and action sequences. It's three-fold true in this entry. That's the kind of thrill that maintains a sufficient baseline for enjoying these moves.

~Steven C

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Well, this was unexpected! Going into this film I found myself with no hype at all. I expected a good, fun and cheesy movie time and I came out of the theater happy and surprised. While this isn't a masterpiece of filmmaking it does achieve what it sets out to do. To entertain you. And it does this quite good and sometimes it goes further than this by showing us some amazing set pieces and action sequences. For example one car, tank chase sequence! This is achieved by the gigantic production value of the film. You can literally smell the money that comes out of these guys. The whole movie you have this sense of scale, and I mean BIG scale! The amazing sound mixing and design including the music pumps you up and puts you in the mood! While the acting isn't Oscar worthy it is very fluid and it doesn't always feel forced. The chemistry between the cast is very solid and credible. Diesel and "The Rock" where pretty solid along with the secondary characters, and the villain was surprisingly tolerable. Another thing that solidifies the movie are the effects. These are outstanding along with the camera-work! The things that brought the movie down for me a little bit where some of the stunts, and weirdly some of these I found pretty amazing but although I understand this movie isn't supposed to be taken seriously there were some stunts that were just plain unbelievable, specially in the third act of the movie. And finally, the plot. While not groundbreaking it did have its interesting points but it doesn't drift away from the cheese factors. Overall I was quite surprised by what this movie did and how the director and producers exploited and used their huge production value. This is an example of a good quality action flick.

Another awesome installment to the franchise! Fast & Furious 6 is actually better than its predecessor! It has great characters, humor, action and of course sexy cars/women!

The Fast and Furious franchise has undergone a radical transformation since launching 12 years ago, with the changes following Justin Lin taking hold of directorial duties from Tokyo Drift (film three) onwards.

The series has made the transition from street races to include drugs, heists, and now terrorism, while lead characters Dom Toretto (Diesel) and Brian O'Conner (Walker) have gone from petty thug and law enforcer to wanted fugitives.

With an opening sequence reminiscent of Quantum of Solace, Toretto and Brian screech around mountaintops as the latter readies himself to become a father, demonstrating how adult and family-minded they've become. Meanwhile, what follows is a nice refresher for those acquainted with the series and for newcomers alike, acting as a highlights reel to bring everyone up to speed of the events experienced in the previous five films.

The antagonist for Fast 6 is Mr Owen Shaw (Evans), a former special ops military man that uses his knowledge, contacts and fast cars to make robberies for the highest bidder. In this instance, it just so happens he has his eyes on a chip that would incite terrorism in the wrong hands, which prompts baby oil-loving federal agent Hobbs (Johnson) to round up Toretto and his crew for back-up, offering them full pardons in exchange for their services.

London is the main backdrop for the film, which, naturally, features a very corny cameo, though the the bright lights, black taxis and double-decker buses dotted around the city are infinitely more welcome.

For me, five was the best of all of the films, but six gives it a run for its money, taking the stunts to ridiculous new heights (literally). You could, of course, reprimand the film for its use of impossible feats, but that's the whole point of these films, right? To get bigger and more extreme, as demonstrated with the big and extreme – and always affable – introduction of Johnson in Fast Five.

For me, Johnson changed the game and breathed new life into a franchise that was beginning to get stale, and seeing Hobbs join forces with Toretto and co makes for brilliant viewing. The action is insane and the banter is electric, with the camaraderie between the cast obvious.

The only criticism of the film is its length. There was a particular moment that seemed as though the film had wrapped, though it continued for another half hour, and while what followed was laced with adrenaline and big bangs, the film could have done with a 20 minute tightening.

Shaw isn't an intimidating or imposing character, particularly when facing off against Hobbs and Toretto, but he is devious, ruthless and sharp, presenting an entirely new threat to the series.

Those in the know will be aware Tokyo Drift threw the timeline entirely out of sequence, but the game comes full circle at the end of the film, and you won't want to miss the credits sequence that follows…

Originally posted at www.zentertainmentweekly.com

7/10