I continue to be amazed by the Fast & Furious franchise (Universe?), and that a movie about catching thieves who stole DVD players (remember those?) would spawn 7 direct sequels (with two more on the way) and its first spin-off in Hobbs & Shaw. If you go back to the first few films, they definitely had a straight to DVD vibe about them. They were nothing special and the producers could have easily ended the franchise after the forgettable Tokyo Drift. However, I'm glad they didn't, because we never would have been introduced to The Rock's best on-screen character, Luke Hobbs. He was the Viagra that the F&F franchise needed and transformed the series from run-of-the-mill racing movies to James Bond in cars. Sadly, like most great bands, these actors couldn't quite last. The Rock and Vin Diesel essentially refused to be on set together in the 8th installment, and it doesn't look likely that they'll ever collaborate in a F&F film again. Hey, if Axl & Slash can play in Guns N' Roses again, anything is possible. Until that day, we'll probably get a slew of spin-offs to keep the characters active... and I'm OK with that.
Hobbs & Shaw is a movie that feels like an action film from a forgotten era. It's a 90s-style thrill ride from start to finish, and a definite escape from real world madness. To describe the plot of this film would probably be an insult to the word, "plot." It essentially boils down to the following: Bad guy does bad guys stuff, and two former foes team up to stop him.
I've long been a fan of The Rock, the wrestler, and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, the actor. He has a natural charisma that not many people have. He's a larger than life screen presence, both in the ring and on the silver screen. My one quibble with him is that he needs to learn to say "no" to every role thrown at him. For every Fast & Furious success, there's a Rampage or Skyscraper (legitimately one of the worst movies I've ever seen) that tanks. Just because someone offers you something, doesn't mean you have to take it. I think he needs to be more selective with the roles he chooses going forward.
On the other hand, Jason Statham has more misses than hits. He works best when he has someone to play off of, and Hobbs is the perfect Yin to Shaw's Yang. They spend the entire movie trading insults and somehow it never got old.
Another bright spot to come out of this is that Idris Elba gets to shine as the villain. He's a genetically modified human (you read that correctly) hellbent on taking over the world. Elba is delightfully devious and gets plenty of room to shine here.
The final act is bat shit crazy (in the best way possible) and you have to see it to believe it. There's a fight with cars, helicopters and tribal Samoan weapons. I can't really describe the madness since it makes my brain hurt, but you can kind of get my point.
Hobbs & Shaw is an insanely good time at the movies. Stay tuned for a couple surprise cameos and, I believe, five post-credit scenes.
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