Director: David Leitch
Genre: Action
Runtime: 137 Minutes
Main Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Jason Statham, Idris Elba, Vanessa Kirby, Helen Mirren, Eiza González, Eddie Marsan, Cliff Curtis, Lori Pelenise Tuisano, Rob Delaney, Ryan Reynolds, Kevin Hart
Plot: I wanted to try and explain the plot in my own words as I usually do, but the plot on IMDB is just so darn perfect I couldn’t even try and do it better: ‘Lawman Luke Hobbs and outcast Deckard Shaw form an unlikely alliance when a cyber-genetically enhanced villain threatens the future of humanity’.
My Thoughts: Never did I ever think my most anticipated movie of the summer would be a Fast & Furious movie. Nothing against them, but I’ve only seen the first and fifth ones so far. I enjoyed both, but it feels like there are so many of them now it would take ages to catch up! That said, the trailers that got thrown at me for months never got old and I was SO excited to see Hobbs & Shaw on the weekend. If nothing else, it was worth it to see Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham bicker for over 2 hours.
The move just does exactly what it says on the tin. Okay – the first 10 minutes pretty much tell you exactly how the movie is going to end but you don’t go into movies like this expecting surprises (apart from one huge one I’ll come to shortly). My bestie and cinema date last night should be grateful I wasn’t driving home because there’s something about crazy car chase scenes in busy cities that make me want to drive away like I was driving something 10-times more powerful than my go-kart of a car!
Loads of movies can do action well but what seals the deal for Hobbs & Shaw is the cast. I’ve raved enough about Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham but Idris Elba rocks it as the bad guy (is there anything the man can’t do?!) and Vanessa Kirby? Yaaaaas! She can kick your ass, pour you the biggest drink you’ve ever seen and then insult you so quickly you won’t even know what happened. What a badass.
Best Bit: You guys, I’ve been raving about this movie for months and NOONE mentioned Ryan Reynolds was in it?! How did I not even know myself? It was so blatantly clear he wasn’t even given a script and I couldn’t be happier. Who cares if he’s typecast when he does his thing so well? Our whole cinema was on the verge of tears from crying so much at his lines.
Also – please don’t tell me I’m the only one who didn’t realise the joke until the airport security guy read out “Mike Oxmaul”??
Worst Bit: It’s my age-old complaint, it dragged towards the end. I’ve nothing against the runtime but that third act seemed to go on forever, and the weirdest part was it ended so abruptly, only to continue the actual story whilst the credits were rolling. What was up with that? We almost left the room just when Ryan Reynolds turned up to spoil the Game of Thrones ending for anyone who hasn’t faced watching that last episode yet!
Fun Trivia: Idris Elba refused to say a scripted line for his character, calling himself “the black James Bond”. He instead used the phrase “black Superman”. Elba has been rumoured to be in consideration for the role of James Bond, and would be the first black actor to portray Bond.
Good on him to be honest…it would be an odd line to say anyway considering he was playing a bad guy?!
My Rating: 4 best friends necklaces…I’ll give you half, Ryan!
Nice review, I don’t think anybody knew Ryan was in the film, it was a surprise for everyone and one they actually kept secret for once
LikeLike
I wish more movies would do that – it was such a pleasant surprise!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yep, these movies never try to be something they aren’t and they never take themselves too seriously. Those have been consistent strengths of this series since Fast Five.
LikeLike
I think I need to make an effort to go back and watch the others in the franchise!
LikeLiked by 1 person
This movie surprisingly met my expectations! The actions and the comedy are just perfectly timed. I’ve watched every single one installment of this franchise and I really wonder how they came up with new idea each time ‘cause they tend to be so much different but also similar at the same time.
LikeLike
Oh that’s good to know! I really do want to go back and watch the other Fast & Furious movies at some point but I did wonder if they all seemed a bit samey.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, the third act dragged so much! I think it’s because it had so little humour comparing to the rest of the movie which was so funny. I was dying when they were arguing on that plane. And you should totally watch the eight movie, it has bickering between them and an amazing scene with Jason and a baby on the plane
LikeLike
Definitely, I laughed so much through the rest of the movie! Okay and I’m sold, I need to see #8 like right now.
LikeLike
LOL your best friend necklaces. I love that. I’m with you, I never would’ve expected to be looking forward to a F&F movie but here I am.
LikeLike
There’s a pun to be made here, something about “Stranger Things have happened” but I can’t quite put the words together!
LikeLike
I was so surprised at Ryan Reynold’s cameo too! I loved his character… but could have done without the GOT spoiler which is probably going to seem like a dated reference by next year.
I would say to watch 6-8 since you’ve already seen the 5th one. There are some tie-in’s to 1-4 in them (especially to Tokyo Drift oddly enough) but you could get by without seeing 1-4. It almost feels like two separate series.
LikeLike
Yeah, the GoT spoiler was a real crowd pleaser in the screening I went to, but in a few years it’s not going to be a funny joke anymore.
Thank you for the advice for the rest of the franchise, too! It feels a bit daunting thinking about watching them all but if I can start from where I left off that’s much better 🙂
LikeLike