Fast Five is one of the highest-rated entries in the Fast & Furious franchise. However, Fast Five could also be viewed as a bittersweet movie in the series, since it marked a major change for Fast & Furious movies. Early in the Fast & Furious series, the movies were primarily focused on street racing. However, over the years, the franchise expanded significantly, and the movies turned into more traditional action films. While there were hints of this in the fourth movie in the series, Fast Five was the movie that marked a major change for the franchise.
Fast Five was directed by Justin Lin, who previously helmed the last two entries in the series, and more than ever before, served as a major team-up movie. Fast Five includes many iconic Fast & Furious characters, such as Dom, Brian, Roman, Gisele, Han, and Tej. It also served to introduce audiences to Luke Hobbs, played by Dwayne Johnson. Based on the number of major characters included, it was clear that in 2011, Fast Five was the biggest movie in the franchise yet.
Fast Five’s Missing Race Perfectly Illustrates How Much It Changed Fast & Furious
Fast Five Was No Longer Focused On Street Racing
In Fast Five, Dom and his team are on the run in Rio de Janeiro, where they plan to steal $100 million from corrupt businessman Hernan Reyes. While planning their heist, they realize they need to acquire a car fast enough to avoid being caught by security cameras. This excites Dom and Brian, who, in classic Fast & Furious fashion, find a group of street racers in Rio. Dom challenges one of the racers, putting both of their cars on the line. However, the scene ends, and in the next scene, Brian is driving the car that Dom won.
It is almost as if there was meant to be an intense street racing scene, but it was cut because that is not the focus of Fast Five. Not including a street racing scene, which the Fast & Furious franchise was known for, proved that the series truly had evolved into traditional action movies. Not having time for a one-on-one racing scene showcased that Fast Five was much more interested in bigger action set pieces that involved more members of the cast.
Fast & Furious Became A Completely Different Franchise After Fast Five
The Fast & Furious Franchise Focused More On Action After Fast Five
Fast Five's missing racing scene was a major indicator for what the franchise was becoming. Clearly, there were plans to move away from street racing and into higher-stakes action. Upon the release of Fast Five, it quickly became the most successful entry in the Fast & Furious franchise, almost doubling the earnings of the fourth film at the box office. Therefore, following the success of Fast Five, it made complete sense for Universal to want the series to continue down this track.
In F9 , the series also decided to send Roman and Tej to space in a car, which perfectly showcases how absurd the franchise became.
After Fast Five, the series became known for showcasing increasingly absurd action sequences. Some of Fast & Furious' craziest action scenes include Dom driving a car through several skyscrapers in Abu Dhabi and Dante unleashing a giant bomb ball in Rome. In F9, the series also decided to send Roman and Tej to space in a car, which perfectly showcases how absurd the franchise became. This trend began with Fast Five's missing race scene, making it one of the most notable moments in the Fast & Furious franchise.
The fifth installment in the Fast & Furious franchise, Fast Five continues the Fast Saga in a high-octane thrill ride. When Dom Toretto (Vin Diesel) and Brian O'Conner's (Paul Walker) gang become international fugitives, they are hunted by Luke Hobbs, an agent of the DSS. They also fall foul of a Brazillian drug lord, deciding to perform a heigh-stakes heist in order to steal $100 million from him.
Release Date April 29, 2011
Studio(s) Universal Pictures
Runtime 130 Minutes
Distributor(s) Universal Pictures
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English (US) ·