If you live in the US we’ve got a pretty big weekend coming up. I got the chance to screen a few new films.
Fast & Furious 6
Agent Luke Hobbs enlists Dominic Toretto and his team to bring down former Special Ops soldier Owen Shaw, leader of a unit specializing in vehicular warfare. If you’re a fan of the franchise (especially Fast 5), then I don’t see why you wouldn’t love this one too. I think it’s my new favorite, but Fast 5 still nips at its heels. Tyrese stole the show a lot with his dialogue and one-liners. It was great seeing Michelle Rodriguez return. And The Rock was great too.
Not to spoil anything, but it kicks off with a super awesome montage of all the prior films that really gives you a nostalgic feeling and brings new fans up to date. The audience actually cheered for it. They were the funnest crowd I’ve been around in years, and I’ve seen a LOT of movies. There were many cheers at several points, and some guy even stood up at the end of one crazy sequence!
It’s got all of the intense, over the top, impossible action sequences you could imagine and then some, and it’s completely unapologetic about it which adds to the fun. I love a good chick fight and Gina Carano and Michelle Rodriguez really throw down. The movie got its job done and ENTERTAINED! For the franchise to continue to have this amount of steam 6 movies in is truly remarkable. There will be a 7th installment that kick starts a new trilogy, but most fans already knew that. They’ve built the characters, we’re invested as fans and we’ll see it through ’til the end! Well, as long as Vin Diesel’s crew is there anyway… Considering that Fast Five pocketed a cool $630 million worldwide and this one will likely do even more, I can’t blame them for milking the gravy train. The franchise is healthier than ever.
Hangover 3
This time, there’s no wedding. No bachelor party. What could go wrong, right? But when the Wolfpack hits the road, all bets are off. Well, it was definitely better than Hangover 2, but it’s still a far cry from the success of the original. I chuckled here and there but there weren’t any gut-bustingly funny moments where the crowd is so loud that you can’t hear the movie. I almost fell asleep at a slow point too but forced myself to stay awake (which is more than I can say for Now You See Me where I think I slept through half of it. They do these screenings on weeknights and I’ve worked all day, but I digress).
I would have been disappointed if I paid for it. The jokes felt stale and the running gags weren’t so effective. I dunno, I was just expecting a lot more funny. I think John Goodman was funnier in the upcoming film The Internship than he was here and that’s completely due to the script. Melissa McCarthy’s first scene was about the only time when I laughed a healthy dose, but she is in it all too briefly and even still it didn’t make up for the lack of true comedy throughout the rest of the film. So far This is the End is the funniest genuine comedy I’ve seen this year followed by The Internship. Hell, I’d even add Fast 6 unofficially because there were a lot of big laughs, but that’s not really classified as a comedy, so I’ll just stick with an honorable mention. I believe this marks the end of the Hangover franchise. I’m glad it’s stopping while it’s ahead though the damage has already been done.
Star Trek: Into Darkness
After the crew of the Enterprise find an unstoppable force of terror from within their own organization, Captain Kirk leads a manhunt to a war-zone world to capture a one man weapon of mass destruction. Though this film has already been released, it’s certainly on the table for a weekend option. I got to see it in real IMAX in 2D, which is all you need. For those of you who don’t know, there’s a difference between real IMAX and the lieMAX tickets they try to sell you at movie theatres. Thcy charge the same price to give you way less and it’s a total ripoff. I actually heard complaints about the the 3D anyway as this film is post-converted.
The movie is a lot of fun and great on the big screen, but the first film in 2009 was much better to me. It was just all so fresh and fun then. This one felt like more of the same somewhat, even with its darker tone. Overall it’s still one of the best films I’ve seen all year. I’m just a little worried about the health of the franchise. Apparently the weekend gross was below expectations and you know if they are going to green light a sequel it’s got to make money. Unfortunately an $84 million haul just isn’t enough these days, especially sandwiched between several huge multi-billion dollar franchises.