‘Fast X’ Review Chaotic Head-Spinning Fun From Start To Finish

First things first ever since Fast Five the narrative has always been nonsensical, physics defying and down right insane but that’s what has turned it into a multi billion dollar franchise, so don’t expect anything different.

So fasten your seatbelt and go along for the ride. Fast X the penultimate film in the franchise, brings together so many cast members old and new, they could run a small country. As a consequence this is the films biggest issue.

It causes so many sub plots with the cast scattered all over, very rarely are they all together at once. Causing limited screen time for the likes of Jason Statham, Charlize Theron, and rather disappointingly a very much sidelined Michelle Rodriguez.

Even long serving characters, the forever bickering Roman (Tyrese Gibson) & Tej (Ludacris) feel disjointed and Han (Sung Kang) well he seems just along for a ride, while eating snacks of course.

Vin Diesel mentioned in an interview the studio asked for this to be a trilogy ending. With them trying to pack so much into this film, maybe that’s a good idea.

Where the film is strong is the battle between Dom and Dante Reyes (Jason Momoa). Momoa is brilliant as the slightly camp, silk shirt wearing, flamboyant sociopath Dante who is the son of drug kingpin Hernan Reyes who Dom and the team dispatched in Fast Five.

Fast X starts with another look at Fast Fives bank vault heist. As the vault is ripped out of the bank and dragged along the streets of Rio de Janeiro, it turns out Dante was there all along, in pursuit of Dom and Brian as they steal his fathers cash. He is one of the many taken out on the bridge, helpless as his father meets his fate.

Why he takes 10 years to take his revenge on Dom is anyone’s guess but it’s entertaining nonetheless. In his pursuit of Dom he vows not to kill him but to punish him instead regularly quoting “Never accept death when suffering is owed.”

Fast X continues its theme of over the top action and death-defying stunts we see a huge bomb rolling down the streets of the Vatican causing mayhem. Two helicopters used as artillery, as they’re launched at Dante.

If you thought Dom and Ramsey (Nathalie Emmanuel) surviving being launched off and crashing down a sheer cliff face in Fast and Furious 7 was insane, wait until you see Dom launch a car off a dam and drive down it with his young son Little Brian (Leo Abelo Perry) in tow.

Brie Larson puts in a short but sweet performance as Tess, Mr Nobody’s daughter. A sympathetic but no-nonsense intelligence operative who arrives on the scene in a bar fight, shotgun in hand.

Unfortunately Jakob (John Cena) is relegated to baby sitting duties, he spends all of his time with Little Brian but there is enough comic value in Cena’s performance that makes it worthwhile.

As you would expect all the main players are immune to the laws of physics. Vin Diesel is indestructible, he’s been in more car wrecks than sleeveless shirt scenes.

The action is so much fun and the 141 minute run time flew by. The utter chaos will make your head spin. But without a doubt it’s a great experience and well worth seeing in a theater.

It feels like there is so much more to cover with so many characters in play at the end, one more just doesn’t feel enough. Maybe we need that trilogy ending after all.

And make sure you stick around after the credits.

Fast X is now playing in Cinemas Worldwide.