Erik Jimenez/Staff Writer
With the release of the first “Fast & Furious” spinoff: “Hobbs & Shaw”, I was able to appreciate the evolution of the franchise from it’s earlier entries, which focused more on the underground racing scene and how natural it felt for it to transition to more heists and spy tactics; all with cars and motor vehicles of course.
“Hobbs & Shaw” might just be the most fun entry yet.
DSS agent Luke Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson, first introduced into the franchise in “Fast Five”) teams up with mercenary rival Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham, first introduced in “Furious 7”) to stop Brixton Lore (Idris Elba) a rogue MI6 field agent equipped with cyber-genetic technology. Lore is looking for a virus that can be programmed to kill millions of people, if it gets into the hands of the terrorist organization Eteon. That virus is in the LITERAL hands of Shaw’s MI6 agent sister Hattie (Vanessa Kirby). It’s up to Hobbs and Shaw to protect Hattie from Lore and save the world; If they can only get out of each other’s way.
In the end, what this franchise is about is having extravagant stunts and action sequences with charming yet badass characters; the action sequences in “Hobbs & Shaw” continues that tradition.
From an exciting car chase in the streets of London, to an electrifying escape from a power plant in Ukraine, all the action featured in the 90-minute mark can leave you feeling a bit overwhelmed. Even with that, you still would not have seen the best sequence in the film: a climax with Hobbs’s family in Samoa that not only give audiences a glimpse into Samoan culture but also exemplifies the film’s idea of natural (people, vehicles, bonds, etc.) being morally superior to modern enhancements.
The acting is also solid from all our main players. Whether that’s due to the script or just the natural charisma of the actors, Johnson and Statham are great comic foils to one another. Elba is an intimidating presence in his scenes and is able to convince any audience member that he is a worthy rival for our heroes; he even gets to have a few good lines of his own. Kirby is also good in her role, being suitably kickass in her role as Statham’s sister.
“Hobbs & Shaw” may not convert newcomers to the franchise, but for fans, like myself, this is a must see. It’s a solid, entertaining thrill ride, and more than succeeds in it’s goal of holding us “Fast” fans over until the 9th main entry in the franchise next summer.
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