Fast & Furious 6 Review

For the record, the onscreen title of this movie is "Furious 6".  It's intended to complement the title of the previous installment "Fast 5".  Get it?  Maybe the studio didn't want to confuse moviegoers into thinking that this had anything to do with the Furious 5 from "Kung Fu Panda".  If that was the case, then the filmmakers should have probably removed the scene where Vin Diesel dresses up in a panda suit, drives really fast while eating a bowl of noodles then gets into a chopsocky fight with The Rock, who's dressed as Grandmaster Flash.

Yeah, I made that up.  That scene doesn't really exist. . . but it should.

Okey dokey, time for a quick rundown.  Here's the part of the review where I briefly touch upon past history before getting to the heart of the matter.  For those too impatient to skim forward, I will just say this - "Fast & Furious 6" is nearly as good as "Fast 5", which I consider to be the pinnacle of the series thus far.  Moviegoers looking for serious, artsy filmmaking probably shouldn't have clicked on this review in the first place, but to those looking for a great action flick, well, here it is.


The Fast and the Furious (2001)

Inspired by a nonfiction article about street racing in Vibe magazine, taking its title from a 1955 car jockey flick, and very obviously pillaging the plot of 1991's "Point Break" (supplanting surfboards with cars), this is nonetheless a solid urban action/drama from director Rob Cohen and "the one that started it all".  The races and stuntwork in this movie are downright quaint compared to the later sequels, but it had a heart and a theme which helped it rise above the usual action fare.


Better Luck Tomorrow (2002)

This isn't "officially" part of the F&F series, says the movie studio (for legal reasons).  I, however, respectfully disagree.  Directed by Justin Lin, this well-made Asian-American-centric crime drama introduces the character of Han, played by Sung Kang, who would later show up as a recurring character in the F&F series when director Lin takes over.  Most Han fans agree with me.


2 Fast 2 Furious (2003)

"Boyz N the Hood" director John Singleton takes the reins and Vin Diesel is nowhere to be found in this cheesy action sequel.  It's more colorful, more pulpy and more CGI-heavy than the original but still kind of fun.  And it's a hoot to make fun of the silly title.


The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006)

Here's where Justin Lin takes over the series and where Han makes his initial appearance in the series.  This movie is incredibly devisive.  Some fans think of it as the very worst entry, others feel that it's one of the best entries.  I'm split down the middle with this one:  it's decent, not great.  Also, the question of where the events of this movie fall into the timeline of the series has been a long-running mystery - until now (thank you F&F6).


Los Bandoleros (2009)

A short film directed by Vin Diesel which serves as a direct lead-in to the events of the next movie.  It's really quite a laid back little flick.


Fast & Furious (2009)

Justin Lin reunites the cast of the original movie for this entry, and it paid off.  At the time, this was the best of the sequels, but the series wouldn't cross the line from guilty pleasures to legitimately good action flicks until. . .


Fast Five (2011)

Not only did Justin Lin bring back the core cast of characters, but he also assembled a whole team of returning side characters from all of the previous movies for an "Avengers"-style blowout.  Then he threw in the Rock for good measure.  Featuring the most well-made action sequences in the series thus far and providing a satisfying emotional payoff for all the longtime fans, "Fast Five" is fantastic.  But it was just the tip of the iceberg - little did we know that Lin and screenwriter Chris Morgan had dreamed up a trilogy of films to close out the series.  So if "Fast Five" is "A New Hope", then the equivalent of "The Empire Strikes Back" must be. . .


Furious 6 (2013)

Alright, this is no "Empire Strikes Back", but it's still really good.  Vin Diesel's character, Dominic Toretto, turns out to be the father of Paul Walker's character, Brian O'Connor.

No.

The Rock's character (Hobbs) needs the help of Toretto and his cohorts in order to catch European criminal Owen Shaw (Luke Evans) and his crew, who are out to steal a fancy shmancy microchip, or something, which will cause the deaths of lots of innocent people.  Details are unimportant - it's a Macguffin.  The point is this: Toretto and his team are facing off against a team of people who are what they once were - dirty rotten criminals.  It's kind of fascinating to watch this series and see the progression of the main team from bad guy lawbreaking thieves to Robin Hood-style outlaws to full-on good guys.  It's just like Godzilla in the 60s and 70s, only with more hip hop.

For the next two hours we get to watch as Shaw and Toretto's teams clash in metal-crunching fury, dramatic plot twists hit with the subtle hammer of a daytime soap opera, one-liners fly with reckless abandon, and the series theme of family is clearly underlined in red crayon.  It's not Tolstoy, but Justin Lin knows how to get the job done, directorially speaking.  There's not one, but two crazy climactic action sequences.  Not one, but two knock-down dragout fights between returnee Michelle Rodriguez and newcomer/MMA champ Gina Carano.  There's a bone crushing tag team fight with Diesel and the Rock fighting side-by-side against Shaw and his giant tattooed henchman.  There's a bruiser of a battle with Joe Taslim (from "The Raid: Redemption) versus Han (Kang) and Roman (Tyrese Gibson) which is just hilarious.  And there is DEATH.

The only real flaw in this movie is that there are too many characters.  You have Diesel and his team, Shaw and his team, Hobbs and his team, plus a couple more newly returning characters from previous installments.  Thankfully, Diesel and Hobbs and the good guys all have ample character progression and get to have their shining moments in the sun.  Like the previous movies, however, it's the villains who don't get much to work with.  Evans' Shaw is probably the best F&F villain so far, but he's still woefully underdeveloped compared to those in other franchises.  Nonetheless, he fits the bill nicely.

The movie also gets quite ridiculous now and then, even moreso than previous entries.  Vin Diesel flying through the air like Superman is more hilarious than harrowing, and the end action sequence with the plane that's taking off - damn.  It goes on for a long time, meaning that the runway must be about 35 miles long.  But here's a little peek into my movie mental justification process, using the F&F6 plane sequence and the scene in "Star Trek: Into Darkness" where the Enterprise is orbiting the Klingon homeworld woefully undetected, as contrasting examples:

In the Earth portrayed in the "Fast and Furious" movies there exists a military airbase in Spain which has a runway that's 35 miles long.  That's my justification.  Why in the world would it be necessary to have a runway that lengthy?  Do they have super giant planes?  I don't know, but the fact is, according to what I've seen in "Fast & Furious 6", one exists in that world.  End of story.

In "Star Trek: Into Darkness", it's apparent that there are no perimeter sensors, no defense grids, and no telescopes on the Klingon homeworld.  In the "Star Trek" world, this is just preposterous and unjustifiable by me.  You're telling me that the greatest, most aggressive warrior race in the galaxy has no defenses around their home planet?  Maybe, I once thought, there was some kind of planetary catastrophe which downed all of their systems and grounded their ships, but this is false because, in the movie, Kirk and Spock's tiny stealth ship is easily discovered in the vast Klingon wasteland by a random patrol.  I just can't justify this oversight so, therefore, it bugs the hell out of me.

Meanwhile, in the F&F movies, runways are super long and cars are far more durable than they are in the real world.  This has all been clearly established, end of bitching.

In summary, "Fast & Furious 6" is another damn good time at the movies and another treat for fans of the franchise.  So what's next for Diesel and company?  "Fast & Furious 7: Slow & Mellow" is due in theaters summer of 2014 (that's not the actual title) to close out the series, and the Rock's character, Hobbs, is getting his own spinoff movie.  I can't wait.

Be sure to stick around after the end of the movie.  There's another one of those post-credits stingers which you are going to need to watch.  It introduces the main villain of the next installment and the cool actor who's playing him.  There was much gasping and many flying expletives at the screening I attended.

Star Trek: Into Darkness Review

Star trekkin'
Across the universe.

Always going forward,
Still can't find Reverse.

                   - The Firm


I've seen "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" and you, "Star Trek: Into Darkness", are no "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan".  It's a fun movie, though.  Wait, let me back up a bit. . .

There are all sorts of tie-in products (but mostly comic books from IDW) which are considered canon nowadays, and they're mostly worth delving into.  Here's a quick wrap-up review of the first movie and its satellite stories (these are the ones I've looked up - it is by no means a comprehensive list).


Spock: Reflections

Taking place shortly after Kirk's death in "Star Trek: Generations", this comic follows Spock as he escorts his old friend's body back to Iowa for a proper burial.  During the journey he reflects on his time in the universe and we get to witness various events and turning points in his life which we never got to see in any of the movies or T.V. shows.  It's a great story, simple and moving, enriching the already rich life of one of Trek's best loved characters.  I recommend.


Star Trek: Countdown

This is the direct lead-in to the 2009 movie.  It's set sometime after "Star Trek: Nemesis" and concerns the Hobus star, which has gone super-supernova and is threatening to wipe out most of the galaxy.  Enter Ambassador Spock and a Romulan mining ship captain named Nero, who must team up and slog their way through intergalactic politics in order to force cooperation between the empires and save the galaxy.  Naturally, things go wrong.  Nero is the one who benefits most from this story.  We follow him as he transforms from hard working, patriotic family man into hate-filled, facial-tattooed, vengeful fanatic, and we can kind of sympathize.  If you thought his character was underdeveloped in the '09 movie, well, here's where all the development is.  This comic is also a better farewell for the Next Generation than Nemesis was, even though only about half of the cast shows up in the story and Worf gets his ass kicked.  Again.


Star Trek (2009)

I've already said enough about this movie so I'll be brief.  It's a fun, perfectly cast alternate universe reboot of the Original Series.  Director J.J. Abrams applied the "Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope" template to a Trek story and came up with something that felt fresh and invigorating.  Despite some really dumb shit (why, if exploding red matter creates a black hole, do the Romulans bother to drill a hole to planet's core when detonating the stuff right next to the planet would produce the same result?), it's great summer entertainment, light on ideas but full of heart and good times.


Star Trek: Nero

Were you wondering what the hell Nero and his crew were doing for 25 years while waiting for Spock to pop out of that black hole?  Here's your answer in comic book form.  They were chilling on Rura Penthe.  Based on and expanded from scenes shot and deleted from the movie, witness as Nero and company weather incarceration on a Klingon prison planet, until their daring escape in which they destroy 47 Klingon ships (remember that from the movie).  They also make a little side trip to say hello to V'Ger from "Star Trek: The Motion Picture".  This is an uneven story, but it fills in the blanks nicely for those who are curious.


Star Trek: Volumes 1-5

These are the voyages of the rebooted starship Enterprise.  After the Trek '09, NuKirk and crew boldly went where the Original Series has gone before and rediscovered new life and new civilizations.  Most of these comic book tales are NuTrek versions of Original Series episodes like "The Galileo Seven", "Where No Man Has Gone Before", "Return of the Archons" and others, but they all play out differently from the original episodes.  There are a few original stories, like one concerning a Vulcan revenge plot against the Romulans (which references TOS episode "Balance of Terror") a Mirror Universe tale (taking place in a parallel universe of the parallel universe) and some nice back story issues focusing on characters not named Kirk or Spock (i.e. everyone else).  Two of my favorites are the back stories centering on Hendorf ("cupcake" from the movies) and Keenser (Scotty's scaly little helper).  I found the Keenser story to be particularly touching and very Trek-esque.  He should get his own movie.  There are also lots of interesting trivia bits sprinkled throughout the volumes, such as a journey to the home planet of the tribbles, the fact that Sulu was offered a job with Section 31, and ADMIRAL ARCHER'S PRIZE BEAGLE!  It's a mix, but there's good stuff to be found here.


Star Trek: The Video Game

Glitchy as hell.  That's the consensus, and it's apt.  Overall I found it okay, with a couple of very positive aspects, but the buggy AI, sloggy controls and derivative nature of the gameplay make this the worst of the tie-ins.  The post-credits coda would have you believe that this is a direct lead-in to "Into Darkness", but I disagree.  It messes up continuity, so I mute that final scene and pretend that the events of the game take place sometime during the previously mentioned Volumes 1-5.  Vulcan scientists (led by Vulcan legend Surak and his hot daughter T'Mar) are using something called the Helios device to help with the terraforming of New Vulcan.  Unfortunately it malfunctions and tears a rip through space into a galaxy conquered by the reptilian Gorn, who see our galaxy as prime real estate.  Now it's up to the crew of the Enterprise to keep the Helios out of Gorn hands and plug that cosmic bunghole for good.  The graphics fluctuate from excellent to crappy and the gameplay is an unbalanced retread of elements from other, better games, but it does feature the entire voice cast of the movies (who do a good job), an excellent score from Michael Giacchino (composer for the movies) and allows you to explore areas of the Enterprise and interact with them.  There are also a variety of styles among the levels which provides some freshness, from ship-to-ship battles (only one level, too short) to space diving, to climbing around "Uncharted"-style, to one level which echoes "Arena", the Original Series episode which introduced the Gorn.  If you can take a lot of bad with your good, check out the game.  Otherwise skip it.


Star Trek: Countdown to Darkness

Okay, here's the direct lead-in to the new movie.  In this comic book prequel, the Enterprise gets caught up in an alien ground war when it's discovered that former Enterprise captain Robert April (seen only once before, in the "Star Trek: The Animated Series" episode "The Counter-Clock Incident") is assisting one faction of a pre-warp society defend themselves against another faction.  Lots of Prime Directive discussions abound, doublecrosses happen, Harcourt Fenton Mudd's half-Bajoran daughter makes an appearance, Klingons show up, Spock and Kirk butt heads, and Admiral Marcus (a major character in "Into Darkness") is given some enlightening back story.  All-in-all it's a heady story and an appropriate setup for the sequel.


Star Trek: Into Darkness

I will try to remain spoiler-free.

Since the appearance of the Narada and the destruction of Vulcan, the United Federation of Planets has stepped up its A-game and gone aggressively militaristic.  Understandable.  But when a Starfleet agent turns terrorist, the Enterprise is enlisted to hunt him down only to become embroiled in a plot which may result in interplanetary war.

The Good:

The new cast is still spot-on perfect.  Their characters are still rather unformed, compared to the more seasoned veterans of the Original Series, but that's the point.  They're evolving.  Peter Weller is awesome and should be in everything.  Benedict Cumberbatch is slimy and dangerous, yet a bit sympathetic as a villain.  And Alice Eve, while not given much screen time, does a fine job reestablishing an old character for new times.

Heart.  The movie wears its guts on its polyester sleeve and is not afraid to show it.  This new crew is becoming a family and everyone is invited to dinner, including the viewers.  Trek has rarely been subtle.  It's a giant series of metaphors wrapped in sci-fi skin and brimming over with optimism and humanistic spirit.  And that's why it's lasted 50 years.

The action sequences are bold and exciting, like a good summer movie should be.  There are a nice variety of them, too, from ship chases on planets and at warp, to space diving in thruster suits, to running up the walls of a tumbling ship, to good old-fashioned fist fights on top of hovering garbage trucks.  Woo hoo!

The special effects are awe inspiring.  Probably the best in the entire series of "Star Trek" movies, complemented by some nicely utilized 3-D effects (lots of depth in the outer space sequences).

Another great score by Michael Giacchino.  I love the NuTrek theme.  The villain themes are always a bit more obvious and "black hat", but still good.

Humor.  From the title, most people think that this new movie will be all gloom and doom, but nothing could be further from the truth.  It's almost as funny as the original, and most of humor comes from Spock, of all people.

Meaning.  Unlike the last movie, there's more on this movie's mind than just breezy entertainment.  There's a post-9/11 discussion about militarization and revenge going on underneath the surface.  It's not terribly deep, but it's there if you want to see it and it adds a bit more meat this time around.

Surprises.  Everyone and their mother has heard who the identity of the main villain is by now, but there are a few other surprises for both Trekkers and non-Trekkers alike.  I will say that some of the alternate universe twists on old Trek stories are kind of cool and different.  For fans of the tie-in comics and game, there are also many references to those as well.

The Bad:

I kind of miss classic Trek.  Slam-bang action is entertaining and all but, to me, the best Trek stories are the "talky" ones.  "Measure of a Man", "Who Watches the Watchers", "City on the Edge of Forever", "Duet", "The Visitor", "The Inner Light", I could go on and on.  Action has been a part of Trek's DNA since the beginning, but it isn't the primary ingredient.  Maybe if another T.V. series comes along. . .

Rehashing old plots and characters.  While I enjoy seeing alternate versions of the classic Trek stories I grew up with, I'm really jonesing for more original content.  Unless there is a new television show, however, I just don't think that's going to happen.  I guarantee you that we will be seeing a NuBorg movie in the next few years.  Or possibly a time travel story where the crew travels back in time to modern day America.  Just you watch.

Plot holes and stuff.  Every movie and T.V. show has plot holes.  If you're enjoying yourself enough, you rarely notice.  Sometimes, however, the holes are too damn glaring.  Like when a Federation starship is hanging around the Klingon homeworld in plain sight for hours on end and they don't take notice, even when said starship gets in a space battle with another, even bigger Federation starship!  Or the fact that you can warp from the Klingon homeworld directly to Earth (in a straight line, no less) in about two minutes at high warp.  Or. . . okay, I'm stopping for now.  My evil twin, Nitpicky Nerd, is beginning to surface.  Focus on the positive -

The Big Emotional Climax.  It just doesn't work for me.  While I get what the filmmakers were attempting to convey with that scene, I think they shot themselves in the foot with far too much undercutting.  If you don't know to what scene I am referencing, it's a remake of a very powerful and emotional scene from "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan".  While I understand that the filmmakers were trying to solidify a friendship in their version (in the TWOK, it was the end of a friendship), it is, due to the very fact that it's a rather young relationship, less powerful by nature.  The emotional outburst by a certain character at the end of that scene which, while it would have been cool if placed in a different moment, elicited laughs of joy from many audiences members thereby undoing much of the drama which came before it.  Add to that the "super blood" plot line.  Any sci-fi fan worth their salt will quickly realize that the outcome of the Big Emotional Climax will shortly be undone, further sucking all remaining drama from the big sad moment.  Lazy filmmaking, people.

Then there's a decent action sequence and a denouement which ends the movie on a great note.  Frankly, I can't wait for the next one.  It would be nice if Abrams and company gave up the helm to a new collection of filmmakers, but I don't think that's going to happen (for one more film, at least).

Overall, it's a great movie.  It doesn't have the replay value of the first one, but I liked it slightly more than "Iron Man 3" and far more than "The Great Gatsby".  Some plot elements just felt too wonky for me.  For all you hardcore Trekkers out there, it's about equal, quality-wise, to "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock".  It's a good time at the movies, with reservations.

Iron Man 3 Review

Marvel Universe's Phase II has begun.  For those of you who are unfamiliar with Phase I, here's a list of the movies in that series:

-

Iron Man

The Incredible Hulk

Iron Man 2

Marvel One-Shot: The Consultant

Thor

Marvel One-Shot: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Thor's Hammer

Captain America: The First Avenger

The Avengers

Marvel One-Shot: Item 47

-

Now, under the direct guidance of "Avengers" director Joss Whedon, Phase II is set to unfold as follows - with a couple of yet-to-be-revealed Marvel One-Shots to be inserted hither and thither:

-

Iron Man 3 (Now)

Thor: The Dark World (November 2013)

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (T.V. series, airdate currently unknown)

Captain America: The Winter Soldier (May 2014)

Guardians of the Galaxy (August 2014)

The Avengers 2 (May 2015)

-

So how is "Iron Man 3"?  Is it a promising start for Phase II?  Sure.  It's really solid.  Quality-wise, I think it's an improvement over Part 2 yet not as good as Part 1.  It definitely breaks Marvel's "Curse of the Part Threes".  Before this one, the third entries in previous Marvel movie series have all sucked ("Blade: Trinity", "X-Men: The Last Stand", "Spider-Man 3").  I take this as a good sign for the future.

Honestly, I'm going to need another viewing to formulate a final opinion.  There's a lot of stuff packed into this film that it's borderline overstuffed with ideas, characters and plot lines.  I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about the villain's machinations, Stark's sketchy tech, or exactly what the rules are for those wacky Extremis soldiers.  I might have missed some bits in the midst of all the sturm and drang (easy to do).

At its heart it's about Tony Stark coming to terms with his life after the Earth-shaking events of "The Avengers".  Robert Downey, Jr. is in top form, as always, and is the primary highlight of this film (and this series, frankly).  The other returning cast members (specifically Don Cheadle and Gwyneth Paltrow) are a little short-shrifted, but get to bask in their own little shining moments of coolness (especially Paltrow's climactic whomp).  Guy Pearce is good as Killian.  He's kind of one-dimensional, but Pearce seems to be having fun playing a bad guy (the fire breathing moment was dumb, though).  Then there's Ben Kingsley as the Mandarin.  He practically steals the show from Downey, though I won't reveal why (spoiler territory - go elsewhere to ruin the twists).

Speaking of that twist, what happens later on in the movie regarding this character is really pissing off hardcore Marvel fans.  Not being much of a comic book geek myself, I thought it was a rather fun turn of events.

All-in-all Shane Black did a fine job with this, his first big budget movie.  Best known for writing classic action/buddy movies of the 1980s ("Lethal Weapon 1 & 2", "The Last Boy Scout", etc), "Iron Man 3" is only his second directorial effort after 2005's "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang", the movie which not only reintroduced Robert Downey, Jr. to the world but is one of my favorite comedies of the last decade, period.  His directing style is more irreverent, nonlinear and wizenheimer than previous "Iron Man" director Jon Favreau, but he has a more assured grasp on choreographing action sequences.  Hopefully he'll be back for Part 4.

Let's see, what else is there.  Brian Tyler provides another fantastic, sure to be overlooked score.  Unlike most other film composers these days, Tyler is not afraid to produce a memorable, hummable musical theme.  And he's good at it, too.  The 3-D was high quality, but varying in its effectiveness.  Good, in other words, but not as fantastic as the 3-D for "The Avengers".

I recommend "Iron Man 3" for a good time at the movies.  The End.

Oh yeah, there's an extra scene after the credits (as per Marvel movie tradition).  It's funny.

The End.  For real.