Certificate – 12A
Directed By – David Leitch
Starring – Dwayne Johnson, Justin Statham, Idris Elba, Vanessa Kirby, Eiza González, Helen Mirren
Running Time – 136 Minutes (2 Hours 16 Minutes)
Once he joined Fast 5 Dwayne Johnson changed the face of the franchise (to the annoyance of Vin Diesel) from a bunch of forgettable car films into an action blockbuster. Then they added Jason Statham in Furious 7 as a decent villain.
Now The Rock, joined by Statham, is doing it again turning Luke Hobbs into a superhero in this balds-to-the-wall action spin-off and is joined by a decent cast.
What Is Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw About?
Hobbs (Johnson) and Shaw (Statham) have to team-up, with the help of rogue MI6 agent Hattie (Kirby) – who happens to be Shaw’s sister – to battle cyber-genetically enhanced anarchist Brixton (Elba) before he gains control of an insidious bio-threat that could alter humanity forever.
Is It Any Good?
Before going into seeing the film, I was worried as the embargo wasn’t lifting just before the UK screening but I was worried about nothing as this film is the first summer blockbuster that delivered.
Hobbs and Shaw is a great, joyful, funny, fantastically action-packed film that will bring the biggest smile to your face.
The main reason is because of our two leads. It’s crazy two think how fantastic Johnson’s and Statham’s chemistry is and they bring strengths out of each other in both the action side and comic timing.
Staying with our leads, we learn more about them and their backstory and the stuff in Samoa was my favourite part of the movie.
Meanwhile, Elba is a terrific villain and someone you want to see get his face kicked in. Hopefully, we see more from ETEON, a hi-tech criminal empire run by a mysterious disembodied voice, for in the upcoming Fast movies or stay as a spin-off villain organisation.
I could easily see Hobbs and Shaw becoming Universal’s own James Bond meets superhero franchise and I hope we get more of these films.
Elsewhere, Kirby is fantastic she blends with both Johnson and Statham brilliantly and Hattie is a badass in her own right will still keeping her femininity. I truly hope this is the start of her becoming a major Hollywood player and joining major franchises because she could easily lead her own action franchise.
Finally, getting Leitch was the smart choice as he continues to prove how good he is in the action world. Hopefully, the success of this movie will give Universal the chance to let him bring us an Atomic Blonde 2 (maybe Kirby leading or as the villain?).
Also, you’re not ready for the surprises this film has and stay throughout the credits.
Anything Bad About This Film?
It did feel a little too long and this would go to my second point as I would’ve loved to see more from González but her character is so small that it could’ve been cut out altogether or gave her a bigger role.
The script isn’t the strongest, but are we seeing this for the script?
Verdict
An action-packed, funny, highly entertaining summer blockbuster with great performances from Johnson, Statham, Elba and Kirby.
The Bear Cave 