Thanksgiving break is here and students have a good amount of time to sit and relax with family or by themselves. Why not relax to a movie franchise that is also known for family? The Fast & Furious franchise is a great example of that. There have been 11 installments of the movie franchise, including the “Hobbs and Shaw” spinoff. They are all about the fun action packed street racing and Dom’s family of street racers. Although there are two more movies set to come out later down the line, ranking these movies now will give you a good idea on what to relax to over break.
- “F9”: ★☆☆☆☆
The ninth movie of the “Fast & Furious” franchise was very hyped because its predecessor gave a sort of rebirth to the franchise. However, skepticism of the movie’s quality slowly crept in as it was advertised as the movie that brought a car into space. No movie brought us down to earth and showed everyone that it is in fact not a good idea to push the bounds of reality as much as this movie did. None of the stunts and action scenes felt realistic. The villain Jakob Terreto (John Cena) had little to no personality or anything that would make the viewer attached to the villain. Overall it was a huge disappointment to the franchise. I gave it one star because I legitimately couldn’t get through the movie without hating it so much.
- “Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw”: ★★☆☆☆
Although this movie is a spin off, I still think it’s worth mentioning as it takes two beloved characters — Luke Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) and Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) — and puts them into one movie. The movie takes place between the eighth and ninth movie. The action and stunts are great but the problem is, it has so many action scenes that the plot is small. Nevertheless, it’s still fun to watch but is only receiving two stars because this movie doesn’t quite capture the street racing aspect that the franchise is known for.
- “Furious 7”: ★★☆☆☆
“Furious 7”, the seventh movie of the franchise, was not that great either. It was shaped up to be a good movie with a lot of buildup. The villain Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) was really good and the stunts were impeccable, but its huge downfall was Paul Walker’s tragic death mid-production. Due to his death, the crew had to cut out vital scenes in the movie, making the plot a jumbled mess. This wasn’t a great Fast & Furious movie however, I have to put it at number nine as it did amass 1.51 billion in the box office, and the tribute to Paul Walker at the end of the movie was really touching to everyone watching.
- “Fast and Furious”: ★★★☆☆
The fourth movie in the franchise made fans ecstatic because it brought back characters from “The Fast and The Furious,” including Dominic Torreto (Vin Diesel), Mia Torreto (Jordana Brewster) and added a new and memorable character, Gisele Yashar (Gal Gadot). The movie had great stunts and was a perfect team up between characters. I feel like the plot was a little too simplistic for my taste so three stars feels right to me.
- “The Fast and The Furious”: ★★★☆☆
The very first movie of the franchise, “The Fast and The Furious,” captures the essence of street racing. You get to see Dominic Terreto (Vin Diesel) and Brian O’Connor (Paul Walker) have their first team up. It’s fun to watch and a must see for those who want to understand the franchise. The only reason this isn’t ranked higher is because it was a low budget movie and the acting wasn’t that great.
- “The Fast and The Furious: Tokyo Drift”: ★★★☆☆
The third movie of the franchise caught everyone by surprise as it was a complete 180 from what viewers were used to. Tokyo Drift featured a whole new cast of characters based around Han Lue (Sung Kang) and the protagonist Sean Boswell (Lucas Black), a trouble-making high schooler that moved to Tokyo. The cast didn’t stop the movie from being a riveting success. This was the first installment that had higher quality. It was overall a more flashy film and for that three stars seems fitting.
- “2 Fast 2 Furious”: ★★★★☆
The second movie in the franchise is an absolute doozy. It has better stunts than its predecessor. This film is very slept-on and is way ahead of its time. A big reason why this movie is so great is because it introduces one of the most loveable characters in the franchise, Roman Pierce (Tyrese Gibson), Brian O’Connor’s (Paul Walker) old childhood friend. Roman Pierce gives the franchise its comedy relief that it so desperately needed. Besides the villain being pretty two dimensional, the movie hits on a whole new level. It’s a fun movie that everyone will enjoy.
- “Fast X”: ★★★★☆
The tenth movie of the franchise was almost a love letter to the fans. Some would say it is the “Avengers Infinity War” of the franchise as it features all of our beloved characters with Dominic Torreto (Vin Diesel) at the forefront. When I say “all of our beloved characters,” I mean all of the characters. The movie revolves around a new villain Dante Reyes (Jason Mamoa), who is the son of Hernon Reyes (Joaquim De Almeida), the mob boss in Fast Five. Reyes is sort of a rich boy psychopath. I was a huge fan of how Jason Mamoa played his character. The movie introduced him as a guy so intimidating and powerful that he could destroy anyone and anything. Then they show us that he’s psychotic and sporadic which makes him even more dangerous. The movie is very action packed and fun to watch overall. It was really tough to find a spot for this movie because it’s really good but if someone were new to the franchise, the movie and the plot won’t make much sense.
- “The Fate of the Furious”: ★★★★☆
The eighth movie is a sort of rebirth for the franchise after “Furious 7,” setting just about the lowest bar you can get for a Fast and Furious movie. “The Fate of the Furious” is a fantastic movie that flips the idea of Fast and Furious on its head. Having Cypher (Charlize Theron) as the villain, viewers gain a sense of hatred for her ruthless take on the character, which means she’s playing her part perfectly. Cypher was also one of the first villains in the franchise that felt more three dimensional to me. It was a big stepping stone in the franchise. Although this movie is really good I don’t believe it’s deserving of five stars compared to the next two movies. However, this movie showed that the franchise can still perform well without Paul Walker in the mix.
- “Fast & Furious 6”: ★★★★★
The sixth movie of the franchise proves to be the essence of the franchise as a whole. It is nearly the perfect Fast and Furious movie. This movie captures the street racing, the action and the characters perfectly. The stunts are just mind blowing. The plot was consistent and exceeded expectations. Owen Shaw (Luke Evans) was the first villain that really left a mark in the Fast & Furious franchise. He was serious but had personality to his character. Owen Shaw was the inspiration for Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) who makes his first appearance in “Furious 7.” All in all if you’re in the mood to watch a Fast and Furious movie, this is a great option.
- “Fast Five”: ★★★★★
“Fast Five,” the fifth movie in the franchise, is perhaps the best Fast and Furious movie there is. This movie is by far the most thrilling, light hearted and fun Fast and Furious movie you will see. It’s a heist movie that teams up characters from all different movies including Tej Parker (Ludacris) and Roman Peirce (Tyrese Gibson) from “2 Fast 2 Furious.” From “Fast & Furious” Leo (Tego Calderon), Santos (Don Omar) and Gisele Yashar (Gal Gadot) and from “Tokyo Drift,” Han Lue (Sung Kang). Led by Dominic Torreto (Vin Diesel) and Brian O’Connor (Paul Walker), this cast of characters gives the movie a massive opportunity to deliver, and deliver it did. It has the perfect balance of funny, action, fun and awesome viewers need. Although the heist aspect isn’t your typical Fast and Furious movie, I will confidently say this is the best Fast and Furious movie you’ll see.
