Hobbs and Shaw

One's a current lawman, and the other's a former hitman. Together, they fight crime with cars. Luke Hobbs and Deckard Shaw, two of the most memorable characters in The Fast and The Furious movies, have a movie for themselves. It's called Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw.

This time, Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) and Shaw (Jason Statham) have to deal with the cyborg card carrying villain Brixton Lore (Idris Elba). Brixton wants the Snowflake super virus for his evil organization, Eteon. But MI6 agent Hattie Shaw (Vanessa Kirby), Deckard's sister, injects the virus capsules into herself. She now has seventy-two hours to extract them from herself. Otherwise, the virus activates, kills her, goes airborne and kills half the world. 

Hobbs and Shaw are called to save the day together. But they hate each others' guts. Hattie has no patience for their bickering. They have to work together to stop Brixton and his shadowy leader from getting the virus. Hobbs will have to reconcile with his estranged family in Samoa to save the world.

Everybody got that?

At 133 minutes, this film runs somewhat shorter than the last film. But even that felt too much. Its numerous story elements move along at a bit of a slow pace. A few story elements, like Brixton's origin, are overwhelmed by the numerous car chases. Others, like Brixton framing Shaw for massacring her team and absconding with the virus for evil, stretch credibility. I know the past few movies stretched credibility too, but some of the stuff here is a giant leap. As of now, I'm only mildly curious as to who the mysterious Eteon leader is.

There's quite a bit to enjoy here. Hobbs and Shaw's bickering is still entertaining. The opening sequence, as edited by Christopher Rouse, nicely compares the two as they go about their days. Another scene compares their skills fighting henchmen in a hallway. They do their best to get through the plot. It's also refreshing to see Brixton honestly introduce himself as the "bad guy." I'd like to see him take on the main cast of the franchise, but given how the film ends, it's unlikely.

There's plenty of new faces here. The best one is Hobbs' CIA handler Mr. Locke, primarily because he's played by Ryan Reynolds. I almost didn't believe it was him. But it was and he got the film's best lines. Kevin Hart also has a surprise cameo as an air marshal who helps our heroes get to Samoa. He needed a little more screentime than two scenes. The members of Hobbs' Samoan family, including Cliff Curtis as brother Jonah and Lori Pelenise Tuisano, were a good bunch. They all play a surprisingly effective role in the final battle against Eteon.

The Fast and the Furious movies are looking less like gritty street racing movies and more like GI Joe with fast cars. Look to Hobbs and Shaw for proof of that. It's stupid, cliched and a bit dull, but a few concepts are entertaining. It's not a loss. It's OK for a matinee. Let's see how Dominic Toretto and his crew handle things when the next movie opens ... whenever that is.