Ever since 2001, the ‘Fast and Furious’ franchise has been ripping up the streets with their high-octane, adrenaline-pumping, and outrageous action-packed films, which have always gone bigger and wilder with each instalment in the series. Dom Toretto, his family, and the gang are back again for the latest entry, ‘Fast X’. This time, Dom vows to show why nobody messes with his family.

The film begins by replaying the famous vault heist scene and climax of 2011’s ‘Fast Five’, which saw Dom Toretto (Vin Diesel) and Brian O’Connor (the late Paul Walker) drag a large bank vault through the streets of Rio De Janeiro, leading to the death of powerful drug lord, Hernan Reyes (Joaquim de Almeida).

Many years later, Hernan’s son, Dante (Jason Mamoa) is out for revenge for the death of his father and the loss of his family’s fortunes. Dante doesn’t simply want to hunt down and kill Dom, instead, he wants to make his life a living hell, and that means going after his family. While trying to have a normal family life, Dom is once again dragged into another mission and reunites with the gang to head across the world, but promises his son he will be back to finish his driving lesson.

Majority of the cast from 2021’s ‘Fast and Furious 9’ return for more action-packed mayhem and of course, fast cars, featuring an ensemble cast including Vin Diesel, Jason Mamoa, Michelle Rodriguez, Charlize Theron, Tyrese Gibson, Jason Statham, Ludacris, Sung Kang, John Cena, Alan Ritchson and Brie Larson just to name a few.

Mamoa is no doubt the standout performer as the main villain, Dante, with his quirky and arrogant personality with a little femininity, but establishes early on he is not to be underestimated.

In fact, Dante could very well be the biggest threat that Dom and the gang have ever faced. He is unpredictable, always several steps ahead of everyone, and even almost took out Cipher (Charlize Theron), who was the main villain of 2017’s ‘The Fate of the Furious’, before turning her own mercenaries against her.

Mamoa’s performance is surely one to remember, as it’s quite different from the usual tough guy personas he normally portrays. Audiences will never know what he’ll do next. He will stop at nothing to mess with Dom, the gang, and most importantly, his family.

Vin Diesel reprising his most iconic role has seen the development of Dom Toretto from an illegal street racer to taking on high stakes mission and now trying to live a normal family life. Of course, Dom’s life is anything but normal, but he’ll never hesitate to protect the ones he loves.

Diesel’s portrayal shows Dom as the tough guy everyone knows him for, but also a softer side when spending time his son, Brian Marcos (Leo Abelo Perry). A big part of their relationship is of course teaching Brian how to drive, despite him being around 10 years old.

When Brian’s his life is in danger during the film, he doesn’t really ever seem too scared, but more mildly concerned. Even if he’s growing up around fast cars and car enthusiasts, this still makes it a little difficult for audiences to sympathise with him, and feels like he’s there more for the sake of the plot and to give Dom something different to fight for, his family.

While the plot’s main focus is on Dom and Dante’s rivalry, the rest of the cast have their memorable moments in the spotlight too. Brie Larson’s character Tess, however, doesn’t feel really necessary, as she doesn’t really add much to the overall plot, especially when it’s already jam-packed with a large ensemble cast, and her bland personality doesn’t help either. Larson’s performance is the weakest out of the whole lot, even minor characters stood out more than her.

While the film might fall short in some aspects, it more than makes up for it with fast cars and ridiculous action scenes, that the series is best known for. Dom Toretto never fails to come up with plans and plan B’s on the spot, no matter where he is and the situation he’s in.

The way he’s able to adapt to his surroundings and almost never screw things up is pretty farfetched as always, and one scene in particular where Dom completely disregards his son’s safety while trying to save him, makes you think what was the director thinking. As wild and insane as the action is, we can’t help but admit they’re entertaining to watch and a real guilty pleasure.

The franchise started off as movies about street racing, but it feels like forever since we’ve seen a street race since the characters now use their driving skills for dangerous missions. Fast X finally brings it back, with fast cars blazing down the road, large crowds cheering, and heart-thumping hip-hop music to fuel that adrenaline. Even though the race plays a big part in the story, unfortunately, the way it was executed, it doesn’t quite live up to the hype and doesn’t compare to the street race scenes from past movies. Nevertheless, it still feels good to finally see an actual race in a Fast and Furious movie after so long.

This was expected to be the final movie in the franchise and finally put an end to the long-running series, that has gone on for more than 20 years. It has however, been confirmed that the end of the mainline series will be done in three parts, with the eleventh movie due out in 2025 and the twelfth and final movie due sometime after.

‘Fast X’ is a not so family friendly film that brings back all the adrenaline-fuelled action, fast cars, the importance of family, ties in the story from ‘Fast Five’ and sets things up for the sequel with its cliffhanger ending. It’s time for Fast and Furious fans to buckle up once again for another wild and crazy ride in ‘Fast X’.

Written by: Sammy Hanson