★★★½
Dom Toretto’s ever-expanding family is back in Fast X, the first in a trilogy of films planned to close out the long-running franchise for good. Stepping in for Fast veteran writer/director Justin Lin (Star Trek Beyond) after his surprise departure is Louis Leterrier (The Transporter). His reworking of the original script by Lin and Dan Mazeau (Wrath of the Titans) makes for a great story, which only suffers from some occasionally questionable dialogue and acting.
Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and his tight-knit family are back, preparing for the next phase in their lives as Dom settles down with Letty Ortiz (Michelle Rodriguez) to raise his son Brian (Leo Abelo Perry). This all changes when the rest of the team goes off on a mission that turns out to be a trap. Now Dom and his crew must match wits with Dante (Jason Momoa), the revenge-bent son of Hernan Reyes (Joaquim de Almeida), who always seems to be one step ahead of everyone else. After losing his father, his fortune, and nearly his life, Dante wants more than death; he wants to cause suffering. How can Dom stand against that when the entire family he relies on are the targets of a madman?
Leterrier does an excellent job of keeping the character and the film true to its roots in a wild story full of the twists audiences have come to expect. The banter between friends is also quite good and very natural, but much of the rest of the dialogue is dry and devoid of emotion. The exception is Dante, whose lines take the story to a new level. A lot of the credit for this is Momoa’s fantastic delivery. It seems as if someone said, “You died and came back insane and hating everyone. Go!” From there, Momoa hit the ground running and never looked back while maniacally laughing all the while. He steals every scene he’s in, regardless of who else is on the screen.
Despite the many car chases and other fast-moving scenes, the audience doesn’t get lost in the action. This is a testament to the quality of the experienced cinematography team under the leadership of Stephen F. Windon. He’s been with the series since The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift in 2006 as director of photography, but this is his first turn at cinematographer. He has much to work with in the non-action scenes, as the worldwide locations are beautifully rendered and shot.
Fast X delivers exactly what it promises – fast cars, comically dangerous situations, and a sense of family entrenched in honor. Fans of the series get more of the adrenaline-pumping same they’ve come to expect. And while newcomers may be a little lost with some of the interactions, the story is solid enough to stand alone without leaving any filmgoers in the dust.