Szybcy i wściekli 5

The series is transforming from a tuning exhibition for teenagers to full-blooded action blockbusters, where the roar of engines is drowned out by fusillades from machine guns and shotguns. Fast Five offers a well-coordinated team of partners in crime, the wild jungle of Rio de Janeiro and a surprisingly elaborate and ambitious script that overshadowed Bay’s Bad Boys II (which is thematically similar in many ways and met with mixed reviews). The movie’s creators hit the bull’s-eye by casting The Rock, who boosted the film to the testosterone maximum. In a single 130-minute film, there are no fewer than three bands of tough guys equipped with great cars and big guns fighting one another. What more can we wish for in this genre? (05.05.2011)

Hands down, the best episode of the series. Unfortunately, the overwrought pivotal action scene at the end, with a half demolished Rio and a massive vault behind two bulldozers, was too far beyond the edge of acceptability for my taste. And when they open their mouths in the non-action passages and the characters spout life's truths and wisdoms, even Mrs. Cliché and Stupidity run to hide behind the camera in terror, it was really hard to listen to. Thanks at least for Dwayne's character of Agent Hobbs, because you can never have enough of The Rock and his fist fight with Diesel, when the surrounding walls were collapsing like styrofoam backdrops, brought me out of my lethargy. (08.05.2011)

The first film of the franchise that I watch, attracted by the very good reviews. What I got was precisely what I expected: very well made silliness. Some of the one-liners are funny, some are ridiculous. The action is pretty brutal, you can really feel the style and the energy, even if (especially by the end) it felt a little physically fairytale-like. It’s a watchable film and one of the best in the “summer action nonsense” category. (25.08.2011)

This is the most honest bit of action in the last couple of seasons. After the demolitions of the digital Englishmen, the real stunt cars began to be destroyed at such a pace that Hollywood insurance people must have jumped out of their skin when they finally saw it. Lin manned up like few before him and fueled the tried-and-true blend of all the previous films, topping it off with the necessary octane by casting The Rock. Luke Hobbs, an overgrown, muscular beast, is brought in by an army transport special, and all hell breaks loose in a way that we would have looked for in vain in films that were originally about tuning, lots of nitro, and asses in tight shorts. Catchphrases can be heard all the time, there are some great action inserts, and then there is the fight we’ve wanted since Sylvester Stallone was rolled up by Steve Austin. The Diesel vs. Johnson fight is a physical bulldozer that breaks tables, knocks down walls, and still manages to exude that manly anger that such duels often lack. It all culminates in an action-packed ride through Rio de Janeiro that will have you running around like you did a year and a half ago in "Modern Warfare 2." An overflowing genre box. A regular aspirant for the Top 5 blockbusters of the year and a compliment to Lin. The Terminator idea suddenly looks very promising. (14.05.2011)

I sincerely doubt that the screenplay contains other words than onomatopoeias, but this just makes it more powerful the way all the “boom, crack, screech, ratatatat, splosh etc." could be reformed into such intense and easy to follow action in the movie which is a lot (really a lot!) more similar to classic heist movies with cars (the original The Italian Job) and big budget, no holds barred action movies like Bad Guys II than to earlier parts that, if you were being kind, were barely average, tuned up CGI trash for teens. And the action is unusually varied, from testosterone-charged hand to hand combat, through various mass shootouts in the favelas, to demolition derby involving half of all cars in Rio. (05.05.2011)

Who admired two years ago the old-fashioned approach combining action movies with relentless car chases will praise Justin Lin even more this time. Exactly the same thing happened to me. Although the fourth installment was a very pleasant spectacle, it simply pales in comparison to the fifth in every aspect. Another gear of speed is here and a real action gem comes, where you don't have to question yourself if you really like it or if you are making some small favor to well-known faces. Because here, you won't even have time to catch your breath properly. This is especially true for the infernal final half-hour, which is so dazzling and (in a good sense) deafening that it has rightfully elevated the franchise from being a familiar favorite to a massively visited series of blockbusters. And the biggest asset? Dwayne Johnson's beastly character and his already iconic role. 85% (27.05.2011)

Cruelty, gore, and thrills just the way we like it! Definitely the best installment and cast. I absolutely squealed with joy several times at how amazing it was. But what got me most of all was the atmosphere and music during the opening of the safe. The last time I was this fired up was with Armageddon. (25.05.2011)

A contented smile spread across my face while I was watching the safe ripping up the asphalt from the streets of Rio. The screenplay is about as clever as for the preceding F&Fs, but they are all such nice guys and, as a fan of this genre, my jaw is constantly lying in my lap. In part five, it’s not so much cars, but muscles that are important. Diesel put on weight to make his fight with Dwayne “Rock" Johnson convincing, but The Rock (otherwise his Hobbs is tougher than a piece of flint and so he’s maybe unwittingly funnier than he is meant to be) seems to have gotten so psyched up that he looks even more massive than normal (damn, another reason to start going to the gym, but I wonder how long my eagerness will last). And the fight looks all the better for it, step aside Terminators. The cars and the girls (Jordana Brewster gets hotter with every episode) are delightful as always and the preparation for the heist with the now traditional T-shirt at the end is the icing on the cake. A shame that sometimes the “snappy" lines sound awkward, although Diesel delivers them in style, so you only notice this in the supporting roles. The biggest capo who saves the movie is the director, Justin Lin, who knows exactly what he’s doing and what the audience expects from this kind of movie. The post-credits scene made me look forward to number six even more. Bring it on. That's for my team, you son of a bitch. (08.05.2011)

It seems that Justin Lin is getting the hang of his craft. After a tragic third installment and a slightly better fourth (mainly thanks to the cast), we now have a decent fifth part that works quite well on its own. Fortunately, there is a hefty dose of action, which was mostly lacking in the previous films, and instead of submachine guns and shotguns, we are treated to supposedly souped-up wrecking cars and spinning backgrounds. Values are flipped and Lin finally realised that times are changing and audiences have different demands. The setting of Rio is very attractive, the director plays with filters and music and turns an average project into a action-packed film that is narratively very simple, but ticks away pleasantly. Thanks to the stable cast and the masterful move in the form of The Rock, the film is very enjoyable to watch. The final over the top action set-piece didn't impress me that much, while the enraged fight between Diesel and Johnson was mind-blowing. (22.05.2011)

If it weren't for the fight scene and the fact that more films are still being made, this would have been a great finale to the series. The stories of the familiar characters come full circle during a big action ride that's not just about cars, but also gets into contact fights, shootouts... Justin Lin's predatory direction, Dwayne Johnson's super charismatic bad guy, Vin Diesel and Paul Walker clearly having a blast, plus Brian Tyler's stomping score that finally gets a proper airing... And that giant vault finale, which really took my breath away (and which was rather stupidly robbed by the fifth Pirates of the Caribbean, but I won't get into that here). I've been waiting for a movie this good since the first film in the series, The Fast and the Furious. (13.05.2020)

Almost as action-packed as Bad Boys 2 in its better moments, and that's a hell of a school. There are two types of big-budget film – those that try to piss off the people who paid to make it and those that try to piss off the people who pay for the result. The latter (Bay, Verbinski) puts on a correct unpretentious spectacle and tries to tell the viewer that what they're talking about is really awesome because they know how to portray it – selling the form. The other has the viewer in its pocket, but tramples on the production and the ratings committee by formally concealing an inappropriate idea. The pioneers of this are mainly the Wachowskis – followed by Snyder. Fast Five is also from this cask, though admittedly not as artful, it's a classic leftist anti-corporate anarchy that relies on film studio executives not finding their negative caricatures. The main characters are all classic working-class people, who won everything they've ever gotten through hard manual labor, at war with the ruling intelligentsia that holds capital. Sophisticated socialism. All except for the ending where instead of squandering their wealth in poor favelas, the main characters instead rumble around in mega-sized cars with trophies pouring millions into roulettes in Monaco. Incidentally, this makes for an incredibly funny scene in this context, because in it two characters are shoving practically all their capital into one variant of winnings, which is a great open door for the next episode, where they'll all be poor as church mice again – i.e. working folk pissed off at the capitalist system they've enriched with a few dozen mega. Ho ho ho. _________ I love the hypocrisy in the action scenes, when the main characters drive off with a ten-ton safe and demolish absolutely everything in their path. Here something goes flying into a house, there a car runs over something. It's cut with shots of civilians who always beat it at the last second and just barely survive, because the characters are good. They're not good guys, they're festive bastards who don't give a shit how many schoolgirls they throw against the wall, these people are just lucky. ________ Otherwise satisfying – the Diesel vs. Rock battle has exactly that destructive feeling where you just know that being gifted one of those guns is going to disintegrate you into primitives, the shootout in the favela will leave you thinking of Modern Warfare 2, there's not a single ugly girl in the movie, and they strip down to their swimsuits in slow motion as a matter of principle, the pen obviously let the screenwriter down at times, but whatever... this is what summer popcorn is supposed to look like – Thor my ass and give me back Bay in a proper rating. Addendum: Dwayne Johnson isn't a non-actor, he's the anti-actor, take that Sean Austin. The killing of the villain is pretty stylish in this movie. (30.09.2011)

A film full of action scenes, supercharged cars, speed, action, just fast and furious as it should be. Too bad it was the last in the series that at least partially stuck to the boundaries of physical reality. (13.08.2012)

To the quintet of all things good. And surprisingly, it truly was all good. "Fast and Furious" reached a metaphorical peak in its fifth installment, and the question remains whether there is any room left to climb. What is to blame for its success? The first factor is the return of all the familiar faces, including those who did not appear in the first or second installment. The second factor is the fact that Paul Walker is given a little less screen time and is more tolerable. But I still don't like him. Dwayne Johnson, who is still preferred to be called The Rock, has joined the proven group. Together, it works. The film relies on camaraderie, one-liners, and intense action. Finally, the focus on racing has been completely abandoned, at least in the sense that two guys line up at the start, race, and the first to finish wins something, no matter how nonsensical. The action is utilized for chases through the slums of Brazil (a bit reminiscent of "Misery II"), or for a high-level heist. A bit in the style of "Ocean's Eleven," but definitely not with as much emphasis on planning. Nevertheless, it all comes together perfectly. Vin and Dwayne are tough, Paul Walker settles in for us, and after trying out being a cop, an agent, and something in between, he finally ends up on the other side of the law, where he belongs anyway. It's a long movie, but it's enjoyable to watch. I never sought out the series, but when I decided to watch it, I'm glad it ended this way, for now. I'm quite curious about the sixth installment. More: http://www.filmovy-denik.cz/2012/08/warrior-x-ms-1-sibir-5x-rychle-zbesile.html (25.02.2013)

A textbook example of how to properly mine the best attributes of an entire franchise. The reincarnation of the coolest characters from the previous installments worked very well for the fifth installment, as the chemistry between everyone works great and there's some fine banter at times. It's no longer the pure boyish fun of just cars and scantily clad women, but that doesn't really matter. On the contrary, thanks to the exponentially more expansive action, this is a very cool action movie in which Vin Diesel finally has a respectable rival. And who wouldn't want to see The Rock brawling with Vin Diesel, right? (10.02.2019)