Fast and Furious 6

I was super-psyched to see Fast and Furious 6 after seeing it's predecessor on DVD. The clip which encouraged me to see Fast 5 in the first place was that of Paul Walker and Vin Diesel surfing a car off a ravine - WOW!

The original Fast and the Furious had ripped off a favourite of mine. Replacing extreme sports with fast cars, the film was almost a scene for scene remake of Point Break. After passing on three of it's sequels, Fast 5 pulled me back in. Director Justin Lin (who has been with the series since Tokyo Drift) pulled out all the stops with this entry - improving upon what had come before, while successfully hitting upon a formula for the series which worked beyond mere plagiarism.

The car-surfing sequence stood out because it looked like the actors were doing the stunt themselves. Many believe anything can be accomplished in this age of digital effects, but this learned eye can still tell. If I have to ask myself, "how did they do that?" (as I did in Fast 5), then the film-makers have successfully done their job!

Fast 5 also utilised the full series cast - bringing in players form the original and each subsequent sequel. Added to the mix for the fifth entry was Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, as the FBI agent assigned to hunt down Toretto and his gang.

The intention with most sequels is to go bigger and better. Lin and his crew lean towards this but wisely stick to the formula created with their fifth entry. Fast 6 comes very close to it's predecessor (in terms of greatness), but requires it's audience to suspend their disbelief that little bit further.

Fast and Furious 6 is hugely entertaining! In fact seeing this feature at the cinema made it even more enjoyable. This series plays like the adolescent nephew to "Bond". A crowd-pleaser that ticks all the right boxes - and fully engages it's audience just short of rapturous applause!

The influx of characters has certainly helped this series, however there's no one who really pops in Fast 6. Vin Diesel and Dwayne Johnson have charisma to spare, but rarely do they punch above their stoic shells. Tyrese Gibson and Chris "Ludicris" Bridges provide the laughs and show some growth as a humorous double-act.

Fast 6 places Johnsons FBI team and Torettos gang in bed together, rather than at logger-heads. It's a fun conceit which we all saw coming - but it works!

Both teams face military-trained Shaw (Luke Evans) and his gang. A comedic highlight sees Gibsons, Roman compare the heros to the villains. The two teams show an uncanny resemblance to one another!

The action takes place in London this time (save for a brief return trip to LA for Paul Walkers, Brian). Just as it works for the Bond series, the changing locals keep things fresh and visually exciting. They make a concerted effort here to utilise the more popular land marks - it's not everyday you see a couple of souped-up cars race through Piccadilly Circus!

With it's chief ensemble in place, this series can run and run. Players can come and go, as new heros and villains are inducted. The Fast and Furious audience will eat it up, so long as there's a considerable amount of spectacle on display! No doubt they'll continue to tick those boxes - here's hoping they keep the ridiculousness of the series on the right side of WOW!

3/5

Poster image courtesy: www.empireonline.com

Star Trek: Into Darkness

Well we knew this was going to be good didn't we!

Despite the televised saturation of trailers and clips (months in advance, I might add). Star Trek: Into Darkness managed to maintain a level of secrecy unlike most other marquee releases (Iron Man 3 did a pretty good job incidentally).

With four features to his name, J.J. Abrams has risen to the lofty echelons of top-tier directors. Hence forth he will no longer need an established franchise to pull in an audience. Comparisons to Spielberg are not unjustified (see Super 8 for an obvious homage to the man). There I was thinking M. Night Shyamalan had inherited the throne - but then The Happening, happened (finish your Unbreakable trilogy already)! With Abrams being offered episode VII of the new Star Wars trilogy (a no-brainer), it would appear he's followed the likes of Spielberg and co in to both critical and commercial success - the Hollywood holy grail!

With the first Star Trek, Abrams achieved the neat trick of starting over without truly doing so. Using time travel devices, he set the crew of the Enterprise on a different path - by way of the villainous Romulans.

His young cast pulled off the unthinkable (how do you recast Kirk and Spock?) - and the success of the film meant that fans old and new had embraced Abrams exciting new take on the franchise.

This new entry begins half way through a new adventure, as Kirk and co intervene in the life-cycle of a primitive alien species. Doing their up-most to remain unseen, the crew of the Enterprise eventually have to expose themselves in order to rescue one of their own. By potentially altering yet another timeline, Kirk has favoured the good of the few over the good of the many - or more appropriately, the good of the mission.

This conundrum is something Kirk faces time and again throughout Into Darkness. As a result of his unwillingness to subscribe to Starfleet values, Kirk is severely reprimanded. That is until all hell breaks loose!

Back on Earth (a fabulously conceived London of the future) the archival centre for Starfleet is bombed, in an apparent terrorist attack. The perpetrator is caught on camera (Benedict Cumberbatch) and an effort is made by the superiors of Starfleet to bring the man to justice. This plan is somewhat scuppered by the villains intimate knowledge of Starfleet. More attacks occur, leaving many dead. Kirk is personally affected and volunteers to capture the man responsible.

Cumberbatch plays a terrific foe. All steely eyed and clinical - in both physicality and intellect. Like any fanatic, he has his reasons. His only concerns are that of himself and his people - much like Kirk (the good of the few once again coming in to play)!

Kirk and his crew come to learn more about Cumberbatchs' vindictive villain, and consequently his motivations. Cumberbatch sees Starfleet as a threat to his and his own - and plays on Kirks anti-establishment stance.

Throughout Into Darkness J.J. and his crew offer up some compelling motivations and moralistic conundrums for Kirk and company. As with every Abrams feature thus far, there is more for the audience to chew over than mere visuals, stunning as they are!

Into Darkness is a fantastic follow-up to Abrams first Trek feature. There is a thrilling sense of nostalgia to Into Darkness - more so that the first. As the Enterprise continues on it's new trajectory, there's not just new adventures to engage in, but strangely familiar ones too!

Hats off to J.J. and his crew for once again displaying deep affection for what's come before, without boring audiences with a sense of deja vu!

4/5

Poster image courtesy: http://paulshipperstudio.com/
Many of you will know the works of Drew Struzan - the incredibly popular poster artist, who's since retired. Paul shipper and Mike Butkus share a similar talent and approach their works in much the same way. It may be an old-school approach to (film) poster design but damn, if it doesn't draw you in!!
See also: review of Django Unchained (poster by Mike Butkus) http://alexsmith365.blogspot.com.au/2013/04/django-unchained.html