At the start of Fast X, the latest instalment of the Fast & Furious series, we get a replay of Fast Five’s vault-dragging climax, just to shoehorn in Jason Momoa’s villainous Dante. While it is fun seeing how this franchise continues to be a convoluted genius when it comes to retconning, the opening sequence reminds you that Fast Five remains the peak that none of the subsequent sequels, including Fast X, have reached.
Having directed one half of the series, Justin Lin went through the highs and lows, but ultimately found that balance of cartoonish car-driven spectacle and the goofy sincerity that is anchored by Vin Diesel’s Dominic Toretto, who keeps saying “family”. However, due to creative differences, Justin Lin left during the middle of production and Louis Leterrier came on a last-minute replacement.
When you look at Leterrier’s credentials, his films have ranged from the first two Transporter films, The Incredible Hulk to Now You See Me, showing that he seems to be an ideal fit for the world of Fast & Furious. However, his introduction to the franchise has him tackling the first half of a two-part finale that is perhaps too ambitious than what we usually expect from a series that has already gone to space.
Seeking revenge against Dom and his crew for the death of his father and the loss of his family’s fortune during the events of Fast Five, Momoa’s Dante Heyes is so cartoonishly evil that in a meta sense, he probably watched all the previous Fast & Furious movies and has methodically planned out how he is going to take down Dom and his family. If there was ever a reason to watch Fast X, it’s for Momoa, who cranks up his charisma to campy eleven and delivers a comically villainous turn that could rival Cesar Romero’s Joker from the 1960s Batman show.
If Dante is this franchise’s idea of Thanos, that is the only successful element of Fast X being Infinity War as this is part one of a crossover event where you must cram in as many characters as you can for your big finale, even if you never believe in the stakes that Dom’s family goes through. With a wide range of characters split off onto their own mini-adventure, the tone can go through awkward comic relief (where Sung Kang’s Han is sadly thrown in) to espionage shenanigans (with the Agency becoming more and more pointless in every subsequent instalment).
Due to having every character, old and new, being a presence over a running time of 141 minutes, everyone gets their own action sequence, to the point that you wish the movie would push the brakes. No doubt there is some fun to be had with some of the set-pieces with the Rome car chase being the standout sequences, though it is an early sign that the action is lacking the practical stunt work that the best instalments embraced and thus becoming CGI-heavy. Circling back to its opening sequence which is literally Fast Five, Fast X overall feels a repeat of the series’ past glories.
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