Fast X

FAST X
2023 | Dir. Louis Leterrier | 141 Minutes

"Never accept death when suffering is owed."

A decade after the theft of his family fortune and the death of his father, the psychotic son of Brazilian drug lord Hernan Reyes emerges from the shadows to tear apart Dominic Toretto's family.

The alleged end of the mainline Fast & Furious series begins with the introduction of a fun and unpredictable villain while delivering what is essentially the equivalent of The Empire Strikes Back for this franchise. While Fast X carries all of the negative baggage of the series' late-stage flaws (overly convoluted heavily retconned storytelling, nonsensical set pieces abandoning any attempt to ground the action in reality), this chapter features an adversary that seems to understand the assignment better than the heroes, with an infectious giddy attitude and sadistic methods. The picture quickly separates the protagonists, placing them in the crosshairs of the mysterious agency formerly overseen by Mr. Nobody as well as Cipher's hired guns blackmailed into working for Dante Reyes, and it surprisingly leaves them this way without any semblance of resolution. Dom and his family have never been so thoroughly defeated, and it's absolutely thrilling to watch particularly because their enemy this time is so amusing. It's far from high art, and it never quite achieves the lofty heights the best Fast & Furious entries, but it's a solid opening salvo for what is potentially an epic NOS-fueled multi-picture explosive conclusion.

The vehicular action sequences in Fast X are all memorable masterpieces of destruction, from a flaming neutron bomb rolling down the street of Rome until it explodes just outside of the Vatican sending shockwaves that Dom somehow outruns in his car, to Dom taking out two helicopters tethered to his vehicle by somehow smashing them into each other, to Dom's car flying off the top of a dam in Portugal as he narrowly avoids getting sandwiched between two oil tankers. Every single moment is delightfully absurd. Even the obligatory drag race at the halfway point of the story features a nasty combustible twist to keep Dom and the audience on their toes. There are even a handful serviceable (if pointless) fight scenes between Jakob and a squad of agency goons, Letty and Cipher, and Han and Shaw.

Jason Momoa absolutely owns this movie as Dante Reyes, leaning into the character's eccentricities, hilarious and convincingly threatening, clearly having the time of his life. Vin Diesel shows a bit more vulnerability as Dom in this outing but his limitations as an actor are apparent. Michelle Rodriguez and Charlize Theron make for a fun odd couple as Letty and Cipher, the picture could have used more of them. Sung Kang's Han feels out-of-place inserted into to the bumbling trio of Tyrese Gibson, Chris "Ludacris" Bridges, and Nathalie Emmanuel's Roman, Tej, and Ramsey but the group has its fun moments. John Cena returns as Jakob, thankfully leaning more into his comedic strengths, very funny as the brawny babysitter for young Leo Abelo Perry playing Dom's precarious son Little B. Brie Larson is an excellent addition to the cast as Mr. Nobody's capable daughter Tess, Alan Ritchson is believably irritating and formidable as new agency leader Aimes, and Daniela Melchior is compelling in her brief appearance as the street racer Isabel. Hollywood legend Rita Moreno shines in her featured scene as Dom and Mia's abuelita. Returning supporting cast members include Jordana Brewster as Mia, Scott Eastwood as Little Nobody, Jason Statham as Deckard Shaw, and Helen Mirren as Shaw matriarch Queenie.

Adding an entertainingly eccentric antagonist to the mix, giving the franchise a much-needed boost of energy, the increasingly absurd melodrama of the Fast & Furious series goes down much easier in Fast X. For the first time, Dom and his family don't seem so undefeatable as they are being hunted by a viable threat who plays by his own rules, only adding to the excitement of the excessive high-octane action. While more plot threads are left dangling than in any other previous installment by the time the credits roll, it is the series' most engaging ride since Furious 7.

MID-CREDITS STINGER
A special-ops team sweeps into an abandoned mansion. One of the masked operatives receives a call from Dante Reyes directly threatening to his father's killer. The operative removes his mask, revealed to be Luke Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson).


FRAGMENTS
- The series' tradition of assigning unconventional titles to its sequels continues; entitled Fast X, according to official sources the X is mean to be the Roman numeral for ten, and not the letter "X" which would have been much cooler

- In Japan, the title for this film is Wild Speed: Fire Boost

- The absence of Paul Walker's Brian throughout this movie is more noticeable than ever

- Pete Davidson is in this for some reason

- While this film expands upon the mid-credits stinger from F9 that teased Han and Shaw's inevitable confrontation, the complete disregard for continuity for the length of Han's hair is so funny

- I'm honestly not thrilled that Jakob sacrificed himself so quickly after appearing in just two installments

- Gisele's return is unexpected, wonderful, and total nonsense

- Hobbs' return is also a bit of a shock, though more due to the widely-publicized behind-the-scenes beef between Dwayne Johnson and Vin Diesel


MCU CONENCTIONS
- Vin Diesel (Groot in Guardians of the Galaxy, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame, Thor: Love and Thunder, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3)

- Brie Larson (Carol Danvers in Captain Marvel, Avengers: Endgame, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, and The Marvels)

- Charlize Theron (Clea in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness)

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3
2023 | Dir. James Gunn | 150 Minutes

"My beloved raccoon, the story's been yours all along. You just didn't know it."

When Rocket is seriously injured in a surprise attack, his found family embarks on an urgent mission to save his life, a journey that reveals Rocket's tragic secret origin.

James Gunn's swan song to the once-obscure Marvel Comics space heroes he turned into household names, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is uncompromisingly brutal and undeniably weird, but also delightfully hilarious and incredibly touching. The sudden tonal shifts of the picture can feel abrupt, one minute exploring the cruelty of the central villain's methods torturing and violently discarding his animal test subjects through Rocket's flashbacks as the hero's life hangs by a thread, the next minute lingering on the humor of Quill's failure in connecting with the living Gamora variant after pouring his heart out to the annoyance of his closest friends as they bicker about the counter-intuitive color-coded buttons on their spacesuits. However, the argument can be made that it all works, the heartfelt story of these unlikely heroes ultimately culminating to complete a uniquely bizarre and genuinely uplifting epic about a collection of outcasts who had become a family, coming to terms with their individual misfortunes (some of which are far more extreme than others) and forging ahead into their respective futures.

The set pieces featured in Vol. 3 are conceptually some of Marvel Studios' most imaginative yet, some of the most successful blending of physical production design and meticulously crafted CGI. The entire visual construct of Orgocorp's Orgoscope headquarters made of living tissue is fascinatingly disgusting. While perhaps not the most exciting, the 1980s American suburb facsimile of Counter-Earth naturally lends itself to comedy down to the tiniest details. Most of the action scenes simply serve their purpose, though the extended battle in a corridor featuring the full team is an all-timer. The needle-drops are inspired, memorable, and some selections are honestly surprising, with Rocket singing along to the acoustic version of Radiohead's "Creep" over the opening credits and the feature wrapping up with the denizens of Knowhere new and old dancing to Florence + The Machine's "Dog Days Are Over" among other stand-out choices.

Much more so than in the previous films, Vol. 3 hinges on Bradley Cooper's vocal performance as Rocket and he is phenomenal as the beating heart of the picture, convincingly leaning further into the pitiable creature's vulnerability than ever before. Chris Pratt's Peter Quill is also more sympathetic than the role had ever been, with Pratt effectively demonstrating Quill's growth into a slightly more mature hero who has endured more than his share of heartbreak. The comedic duo of Pom Klementieff and Dave Bautista as Mantis and Drax only gets better with each appearance, and both turn in solid dramatic work as well, particularly Klementieff's Mantis who is afforded moments to truly flesh out her character in this sequel. As Nebula, Karen Gillan plays the role with more noticeably more subtlety, still filled with rage but generally more mellow making her reactions to the antics of her team even funnier. Zoe Saldaña's portrayal of the new Gamora is impressive in how much she truly comes off as a different, markedly more antagonistic version of the fierce warrior, perhaps more noticeable than in Avengers: Endgame due Saldaña having more scenes to play in. Vin Diesel is still very funny as the voice of Groot, sounding more like himself now that the current Groot is closer to adulthood. Sean Gunn's Kraglin capitalizes on having more screen time, afforded a hysterical character arc that involves learning to control Yondu's arrow and a love/hate relationship with Cosmo the Spacedog voiced by the hilarious Maria Bakalova. Chukwudi Iwuji chews scenery like nobody's business but he also gives the narcissistic and sadistic High Evolutionary just enough depth to make him slightly more than just a forgettable one note villain. Will Poulter is fun as Adam Warlock, though the cosmic superbeing serves more as a destructive plot device than a fully-realized character. Linda Cardellini provides an emotionally devastating performance as the genetically enhanced otter Lylla, affectively adding extra layers of depth to Rocket's story. The cast also features Elizabeth Debicki as Sovereign High Priestess Ayesha, Sylvester Stallone reprising the role of the seasoned Ravager Stakar, and Nico Santos and Miriam Shor as the High Evolutionary's android Recorders Theel and Vim.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is an appropriately loving and occasionally off-kilter send-off for the Marvel Cinematic Universe's original band of spacefaring weirdo misfits. Frequently taking on a darker tone than most MCU stories while losing none of the irreverent humor of previous installments, the disturbing elements of the plot may not blend well with the comedy for some audiences, but it is never out of place and only serves to strengthen the truly uplifting moments. The film is a sincerely moving finale that gives each member of the team a satisfying conclusion to their character arcs.

MID-CREDITS STINGER

The new Guardians of the Galaxy listen to a familiar tune as they take on their latest mission.

POST-CREDITS STINGER

At the breakfast table, Quill and his grandfather discuss mowing the lawn.

FRAGMENTS

- The Marvel Studios logo that opens the film exclusively features images and clips of the team from all of their previous appearances

- Glad to see Nico Santos bring the same energy to Recorder Theel as he brought to Mateo on Superstore

- Never thought I'd see the Cousin Eustace from The Chronicles of Narnia play one of the most powerful characters from Marvel Comics

- The team's new ship, the Bowie, is named after iconic recording artist David Bowie

- Regular James Gunn collaborators Jennifer Holland, Nathan Fillion, and Daniela Melchior respectively play Orgocorp employees Administrator Kwol, Master Orgosentry Karja, and Ura the receptionist

- The awesome Judy Greer, who played Maggie Lang in the Ant-Man and Ant-Man and the Wasp, provides the voice for War Pig

- Lloyd Kaufman, co-founder of Troma Entertainment where James Gunn began his filmmaking career, makes a cameo appearance reprising his Guardians of the Galaxy role as former Kiln inmate Gridlemop playing cards with Kraglin and a few familiar faces from past installments

007 CONNECTIONS

- Dave Bautista (Mr. Hinx in Spectre)