We finally get good five in

Rating: 7/10 (16 October 2015)

Five films in and at first it feels like yet again we are in for the same old Fast and Furious, races galore and dumb dialogue which makes a movie that could be good, bad. Something has happened though because Fast Five is actually a good movie and I really mean that, not only is the plot exciting and full of action packed and well done sequences, it also actually builds the characters so you don't feel they are disposable cast members and sure the film gets rid of races every few minutes but that is where the good stuff lies, the fact that this has very little racing. The movie tries it's hardest to keep the cars cool but then make the story a movie full of guns and full of emotional back stories etc, it partly works and maybe can be a little shaky with those emotional parts but all in all you still feel a slight connection and that is what truly counts in the end.
The story takes us to Brazil and the crew of Brian O'Conner (Paul Walker), Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and his sister Mia (Jordana Brewster) are as always, in trouble. This time the story takes us in a direction of heists and getting in and out of places fast, sure the stakes are seemingly impossibly high and the police of Rio de Janeiro are very unbelievable but the movie still navigates it's way well and creates a sense of danger at every turn. By far the best addition to the movie is Dwayne Johnson who plays the role of tough US security service agent Luke Hobbs, he literally looks like a human bull at times in this and his character is made out to be a man of the law, but a man who doesn't let anything get in his way.
Now Justin Lin for me personally has failed to direct well at all with his previous instalments in the series, here he takes a whole new turn and makes a tip-top piece of work. The movie benefits from the fast pace because it doesn't hang about, the plot isn't maybe the most unique but the development that I feel Lin gives to the characters is good enough for this to really work. Chris Morgan's script is OK I mean at times it gets a little same old but it still manages to bang out a story and some snappy dialogue to make you feel like seeing this through, certainly tries very hard with the one liners in this one.
I felt the main cast we know from the past like Paul Walker and Vin Diesel were alright, they were not the reason this movie is good but they do their parts and get them done pretty nicely. We see some other old faces from the past movies and that really plays into the whole story well, sure it is trying a lot to make itself look cool that way but it does work and it is a welcome sight to see some of the faces of old. The setting was a nice choice I have to add, the small cramped housing provides a perfect back drop and interior settings for some of the films biggest moments, a particular part running across the roofs of those buildings is fantastically shot.
So a worthy addition to the furious franchise that seems to still be chugging a long, grossing in bucket loads of cash and breaking records at every corner. I hope that we see more of what this film is like in the future of this series, I don't mean go with the heist format again but lose the cars as racing tools and this comes off well, start to inject a little more depth and you have yourself an exciting but emotionally charged movie that not only fans of the series can enjoy, but also those who really do not like the ones that came before this one too.