Dwayne Johnson, more commonly known as The Rock, has come a long way since his infamous cameo in The Scorpion King.
The highly bankable superstar appeared in two films in 2018, and is set to star in three films this year. It seems like movie-goers just can’t get enough of a rock.
But in all the films he’s appeared in, he’s well-known to be the star that’s the face of the Fast & Furious franchise, together with fellow beefcake Vin Dinsel. His entry also changed the direction of the Fast & Furious franchise altogether, turning it from a racecar-based franchise to an action-packed mindless franchise.
In the latest instalment to the franchise, The Rock reprised his role as Agent Luke Palagi Hobbs, but this time, it’s considered a “spin-off” since it stars him and Jason Statham, who plays Deckard Shaw.
As it’s a rather stand-alone movie, you won’t need to have watched its predecessors to understand the plot.
But as the first spin-off of the Fast & Furious franchise, would it be a Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, which performed extremely well for the Stars Wars spin-off, or would it flop like Solo: A Star Wars Story, which became a box-office flop?
Let’s find out.
Numbers Don’t Lie
For a start, Hobbs & Shaw has already proven that a Fast & Furious spin-off does work: in the US alone, it has brought in an estimated USD$60.8 million, making it the highest opening this weekend, though it still didn’t perform better than its last predecessor, which got USD$98.8 million.
But still, a good start.
Over at Rotten Tomatoes, it has an approval rate of 66%, which is just 1% lower than the approval rate of 67% for its predecessor.
Nevertheless, does it rock like The Rock?
A Fast & Furious film without Vin Diesel might sound like a disaster, but it surprisingly works.
Just like any film in the franchise, it’s filled with action that is choreographed to perfection. Pioneer fans of the franchise won’t be disappointed as there are still enough car scenes to feed your addiction for race cars that defy the laws of physics, though the bulk of the action doesn’t take place on the road unlike what you see in the trailer.
While the other films have hilarious scenes, this spin-off is almost like Endgame minus the flying people: it’s almost like a comedy, and any fan of Dwayne Johnson would know that the bufflord can definitely make even us laugh.
Other than Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham, who are obviously the Hobbs & Shaw, another Shaw steals the show: Vanessa Kirby, who’s also a Shaw as she plays the sister of Deckard Shaw.
It’s not her English accent that stands out, but the simple fact that the Shaw here could actually refer to her, since her role is much more important with a girl power that’ll match Captain Marvel.
But still, the movie has mindless action scenes and one-liners that don’t seem to work. It’s also relatively long and it doesn’t seem to end—you’d have thought that it’s ending but ta-da: it’s still going, and you’d have to apologise to your bladder again.
Is it still worth a watch?
As the only blockbuster in cinema now (if you’ve watched The Lion King, that is), it’s worth the price. Just don’t go in for a plot with a super twist—after all, no one watches any Fast & Furious for its plot.
Rating: 3.5/5
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