Fast & Furious 6

... and the bubble burst. NOS² testosterone³ in an absolutely unnecessarily over CGIed action scene which is more like gameplay footage than a regular movie. For Lin, this is a sad return to a never-ending series of routine movies that don’t know when to stop. However much number five was surprising (and deserved) winner of the action premier league, number six is on the brink of relegation to the second league of yawnably familiar rubbish. (23/05/2013)

Lin has hit his limits, given that situations involving the characters and their emotional interactions elude him, taking his own feet from under him and in the final decision-making, he is unable to offer more than self-sacrificing glances and theatrical gestures. That’s assuming he doesn't fire off any major action bombs, but rather a still technically brilliant arrangement that has since last time abandoned any semblance of reality and ventured into the sci-fi genre (without a major highlight, moreover). This necessarily means a rough and painful fall that's ultimately hampered by the cast where everyone has parked themselves into their roles in a way that feels like they were just born for them. (12/06/2014)

A bit more spectacular again than no. 5. The title sequence nicely summarizes all past parts (except part 3) and throws us into the luxury life that the brand new millionaires Torreto/O'Connor enjoy the very full. There’s even a new addition to the family. Then Hobbs comes along and spoils everything with the photo. Then comes destruction, action, fights both male and female and, as usual, lots of fabulous cars and the phenomenal more-than-chases that seem to break the laws of physics. They are basically three really long and sophisticated, action scenes filmed the old way where sheet steel and people get dented. There’s even a TANK! Diesel and Lin egged each other on and stepped on the gas. Also the groundwork for the last (?) part is full of promise and at last justifies the making of the bland part 3. (25/05/2013)

The mechanical, hastily put together screenplay of Fast & Furious 6 is closer to Die Hard 5 than to Fast & Furious 5. Meeting, action, meeting, action, meeting, action and so on. The meetings are not as funny as they would like to be and the action is comically exaggerated and not easy enough to follow, given that Fast & Furious is the most successful action series of today. Furthermore, the sixth instalment does not take place in an attractive exotic environment like the fifth one does and its story has detours that make it unnecessarily protracted and less dynamic (the visit in the jail, Vin Diesel and Michelle Rodriguez racing), and we’ve already seen all of its highlights in the trailers. (26/05/2013)

It is becoming a purely family affair. The chemistry among the cast is fantastic, the lines, the gags, and most of the dialogues are great. This is not a precisely rehearsed acting performance, this is the natural chemistry between people who have been working together for several years and create an incredibly likeable team. It can be seen, it can be felt. The improvisation, not artificiality, brought me the greatest joy. At the same time, it is good to say that Fast and Furious is slowly moving towards the style of The Expendables, because the cast is increasingly expanding not only in the main roles but also in the supporting roles (this time with Gina Carano). We already know that Jason Statham will be in the next part, so there will certainly be no lack of interesting faces. Despite all of this, the sixth part is not better than the fifth, not by a long shot. It may be "smoother," more grandiose, and with a higher budget, but one thing is megalomania (a tank on a highway) and another thing is scenes that totally lack logic and make the viewer feel like an idiot. The tank's destruction, Vin Diesel as Superman, a 10-kilometer-long runway, these are things that cannot be tolerated. The excellent fight between Carano and Michelle Rodriguez in the subway is good, especially the now legendary staircase-falling scene (captivating work in terms of stunts, camera work, editing, and emotions), a few well-destroyed cars, and excellent sound as a whole. However, the unpleasant "sci-fi" elements that the film is overloaded with are disappointing. It was difficult to go further after the fifth film, but it certainly did not have to go further in terms of action. It should have gone in a slightly different direction. (26/05/2013)