‘Hobbs And Shaw’ movie review

This review originally published on PureFandom.com

Note: This is a spoiler-free Hobbs And Shaw movie review

I come to you today bearing life lessons: balance in life is key.

Take friendships, for example. Sure, everyone loves the unpredictable friend good for a random night out. But the predictable, reliable old friend is also necessary for a time of need.

Movies are no different than friends. You love to be surprised, but every now and then you just need to know what to expect. The Fast & Furious franchise is old reliable.

Hobbs And Shaw provides all the fights, explosions, and testosterone you can hope for and expect from the Fast & Furious franchise

Fast, Furious, Formulaic

That’s right. Dwayne Johnson is back as Hobbs and Jason Statham is back as Shaw. And they’re both exactly who you want them to be if you’re a fan of this franchise.

All the ass-kickings, from the side of a skyscraper to the islands of Samoa, are there. Chase scenes, from the streets of London to top-secret laboratories, are there. All types of cars, trucks, helicopters, and anything else with an engine is subject to chase and/or blowing up.

Amongst the familiar Fast & Furious features, the three big chase scenes stand out the most in Hobbs And Shaw. The chase through the narrow streets of London is flat-out awesome and everything you want from a movie like this. Fast cars, motorcycles weaving in and out of traffic, cars and motorcycles maneuvering in impossible places. We got it all. There will be audible audience applause in your theater and the end of each chase scene and the London scene garners the biggest cheer.

Teasing Title Characters

But you can’t just have explosions and car chases for 2 hours and 15 minutes straight, those these movies certainly would try if you could. In between are the scenes driven by the characters, and with Hobbs And Shaw we get, well, Hobbs and Shaw.

The chemistry between the two characters is solid, and writer Chris Morgan knows how to make it work. These two action superstars are best together when they’re bantering and insulting each other back and forth. As a result, pretty much every scene with both guys is either one-liners, fighting, or both at the same time.

Johnson stands out more than Statham in the movie, as he’s simply a bigger presence on screen. Johnson is in his comfort zone lobbing insults and quips, no doubt calling on his wrestling days and his strong suit there. Statham is more impressive in the hand-to-hand combat and fighting scenes, but there’s little doubt the focal point and star of Hobbs And Shaw is Dwayne Johnson.

As far as the story goes, there’s also an attempt to work a family angle for both men. Is it a successful attempt? Not really. Is it heavy-handed? You bet. But be honest with yourself. You didn’t come to a Fast & Furious movie for the story anyway.

More Than Hobbs And Shaw

Beyond the title characters, a real strong suit of this movie is the secondary characters. That starts with Black Superman himself, Idris Elba.

The biggest downfall of Elba’s performance in this movie is you root for him too much as the villain. Even as an antagonist, the man is charming, cool, and cunning. He’s also the star of the London chase scene mentioned earlier. His style is a great complement to the high-octane levels that Johnson and Statham set, and he makes every scene he’s in better.

It also needs to be said that Vanessa Kirby represents a major woman kicking ass in her character, Hattie. Kirby is as good, if not better, than Statham in the hand-t0-hand fighting scenes and disposes of just as many henchmen as anyone in the movie. Hattie also plays the role of love interest in Hobbs And Shaw, but she stands out as a badass of a woman.

We also get a few surprise cameos throughout the movie. They all get a big reaction and are quality scenes you’ll enjoy.

Should I Go See Hobbs And Shaw?

If you are looking to turn your brain off for a few hours and enjoy a popcorn action movie, Hobbs And Shaw is for you. If you’re not a big action fan you can pass on this one, but you probably already knew that.

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(Featured Image courtesy of EPK)