My First F&F Film and I Liked It!

Rating: 8/10 (24 May 2013)

I have not seen a single installment of the "Fast and Furious" franchise, one of only a few, I am sure. I never got around to watching the first one at all, consequently I never did get to watch the second, nor any of the five. There was very big buzz about the last one "Fast Five," but unfortunately I was not able to catch it. Now, this time, since Vin Diesel and Michelle Rodriguez made the effort to come over to our country and grace this film's Premiere here last week (the first Hollywood premiere in Manila). I made it a point to watch "F&F 6", and I'm glad I did.
Now I see what the fuss was all about, and why this franchise has lasted this long and still goes strong. The car chase scenes, on which this franchise's fame lay, were amazingly planned, executed, shot and edited. There was that chase scene on the freeway with a tank, ending with a superhuman midair rescue you simply have got to see. As if that is not enough, the entire last sequence was about cars trying to get a Russian cargo plane from taking off, all the while fighting off the enemies mostly mano a mano. I commend director Justin Lin for these ace pieces of action direction.
In between these big action sequences, there are the scenes of the team led by Dom (Vin Diesel) and Brian (Paul Walker) talk about about being a family and never leaving anybody out. Among the members of the gang, Tyrese Gibson stood out as the loquacious Roman, the film's main source of comic relief. His funny one-liners also came fast and furiously hilarious.
Matching big and beefy Vin Diesel is big and beefy Dwayne Johnson. The Rock plays a cop, Agent Hobbs, who sought help from Dom's and his team in apprehending another team of mercenary drivers doing terrorist errands led by Owen Shaw (played by Luke Evans). In return for their help, they asked Hobbs to work for their amnesty so they can all go back to the States, instead of hiding in countries without extradition as they are now. The unexpected return of Letty (Michelle Rodriguez), who was apparently thought to have been killed in a previous episode but now was working with the enemy, provides dramatic focus for the characters, particularly Dom.
Overall this is one very entertaining and exhilarating film, which I understood and appreciated well even if I have not seen any of the previous films. Well, I am sure fans who have seen all the movies will love it even more than I did since they have known and loved all these characters already. The top-notch action sequences left nothing to be desired, really breath-taking. These heart-stopping stunts are all admittedly downright ridiculous and impossible, but that was why they were all so awesome to watch.