Business as usual

Rating: 6/10 (20 July 2017)

Another year, another FAST & FURIOUS movie, this one standing out as being the last to feature Paul Walker due to his untimely death in a car accident (what else?). As such the film plays out as a tribute to the actor of sorts, particularly at the climax, and it's occasionally distracting to see his role completed by old clips, stand-ins, and CGI. The rest is business as usual.
Having hospitalised Luke Evans in the last movie, this new film sees Jason Statham on the rampage and seeking revenge on our team. He begins the film by putting The Rock in traction before crossing wits with the normal crew in a variety of exotic locations including the UAE. This film is overlong and features a variety of drawn-out sequences which are completely unbelievable for anyone with a basic understanding of the laws of physics; the writer seems obsessed with having cars flying through the sky, a theme which pops up time and again.
Fans of the series will know what to expect by now and this is very much in the spirit of the previous instalment. There's a stand-out multi-vehicle car chase which is a real highlight along with some tough fight scenes and a lot of CGI heavy explosive action. Statham is on great form even as villain and he does show Vin Diesel up when he appears. Newcomers include Nathalie Emmanuel and Kurt Russell, who are both welcome presences. Best of the lot is my personal favourite Tony Jaa, who has more to do than in the recent XXX: RETURN OF XANDER CAGE.