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The third week in May brings us the latest from the Fast Franchise. Below is my take on Fast X as well as a few other options now available. If you’d like to see more of my scores for films and thoughts, feel free to follow me on Letterboxd here.

Fast X (Theaters)
Starring: Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriquez, Chris Bridges, Tyrese Gibson, Nathalie Emmanuel, Jason Statham, Jason Momoa, Scott Eastwood, Alan Ritchson, Sung Kang, John Cena, Charlize Theron, Helen Mirren, Brie Larson, and Jordana Brewster
Synopsis: At some point it’s going to be easier to list who’s not in these movies than the cast, which continues to expand. This is the 10th installment in the Fast Franchise and the 11th film in the expanded universe. It’s billed as the beginning of the end. It was always going to be two films—now likely three films. And will that be the end of the franchise? Who knows! At this point, you know what to expect from these films. Since The Fate of the Furious, they’ve gotten increasingly wild, and effects driven. These characters feel more like Marvel heroes than the grounded people they were when it all began back in 2001. And the loss of Paul Walker—this is the now the third feature without his lead character Brian O’Connor—looms large for fans like me. There’s a nice nod to him in the opening here, but it’s getting harder to believe a world where Brian is still alive and yet doesn’t get into the middle of the action with Dom (Diesel), even when his wife Mia (Brewster) still does. This one has a connection to Fast Five—one of the best installments in the franchise—as we’re introduced to Dante (Momoa), whose father was the target of this family. His mission is to make them suffer and to create chaos. And he brings his own style. Dom just wants to be a husband and father, but he also has a drive to protect his extended family. When Dante threatens all that, he drives into action once again. This one ends with a cliff hanger, feeling a lot more like Avengers: Infinity War than previous installments. We’ll have to wait to see how it all plays out, but this still delivers everything you’re expecting from one of these movies. This isn’t a bad movie. In fact, I liked it better than the past two installments, placing it squarely in the middle of the franchise rankings for me. But I would be remiss if I didn’t say I miss the old style of the franchise, which was thrilling but felt grounded more in the real world. This latest phase of the franchise feels cartoonish and over-the-top. That’s equally true of Momoa. Some have enjoyed the wild style of his villain, but it was over-the-top in all the wrong ways for me. He was a distraction that felt unnecessary in both the writing and the choice of performance. It’s also becoming clearer that these films have no real stakes for those involved. Is anyone ever truly dead here? I’m beginning to think the answer is no, so it’s hard to totally believe in the peril that’s depicted. Despite that, it’s a fun summer ride, the kind of film you’d expect.
Rating: Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, language and some suggestive material.
Verdict: Three stars out of five

Kandahar (Theaters May 26)
Starring: Gerard Butler and David Negahban
Synopsis: In this new film, Butler plays Tom Harris, a spy working undercover in Afghanistan. He’s on a job with his interpreter (Negahban) when a leak in the government leads to his cover being blown. Suddenly, he’s the No. 1 target in the country and his one way out—a plane leaving from Kandahar—is many hours and many miles away. Can he and his companion make it to safety in time? That’s the challenge for this film, which comes from director Ric Roman Waugh. Waugh and Butler are frequent collaborators at this point, having teamed on Angel Has Fallen and Greenland in the past. This film presents Butler as a conflicted family man caught in the middle of the action, just trying to shoot his way out. It’s a formula that we’ve seen time and again from Butler in movies and it works about the same here. The story here is OK and some of the action scenes are solid. But this feels a bit too much like a formula we’ve seen before without adding anything especially original or compelling. Kandahar opens Friday, May 26 in theaters nationwide.
Rating: Rated R for violence and language.
Verdict: Two stars out of five

White Men Can’t Jump (Hulu)
Starring: Sinqua Walls and Jack Harlow
Synopsis: Back in 1992, Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson made for an unlikely duo to grace a basketball court. In the film, the pair team up on the court and win. The film, written and directed by Ron Shelton, was a win with audiences, too. Even 30 years later it still draws interest from fans. In this era of everything that’s old is new again, it makes sense that the film would get a re-boot. But it’s also fair to wonder if we really need a re-boot of this film. We might not need a re-boot, but the one we got is better than you’re probably expecting. The new version captures some of the basic premise—a couple basketball hustlers, one white and one black, team up for a street ball tournament. Beyond that, the only connection to the first film is the shared name. This one comes from writers Kenya Barris and Doug Hall, directed by Calmatic. The director is no stranger to re-boots, having delivered a re-boot of House Party earlier this year. I didn’t enjoy that re-boot but this one found its groove. In it, Kamal (Walls) was a high school prodigy whose career went off the rails. His father (Lance Reddick) meant everything to him as a coach and guiding presence, and his illness took Kamal off his game. A decade later, he’s still playing pick-up games and he’s still got undeniable talent, but he never followed through on that early promise. When he crosses paths with Jeremy (Harlow) he dismisses him as less than a player. When Jeremy not only manages to get in Kamal’s head but also beat him at a shooting competition, his view changes. Eventually, the pair team to hustle other teams in pick-up games. Both still in need of money, they team for a two-on-two tournament that might be the kick start they both need to achieve their dreams. The blend of comedy and drama works well here. Walls and Harlow—a musician making his feature acting debut—have good chemistry. The story thrives because it isn’t trying to be a re-make, it’s taking a similar idea and title while aiming to do its own thing. The background of these characters and their issues are different. The way the film works out and the goals they achieve are different, too. It’s not a perfect film. There are some cliché plot points along the way and it drags a bit as it’s heading toward the third act. The film also never quite figures out what to do with the storyline for Reddick, which is a shame considering it’s one of his final screen appearances. Still, it’s more entertaining than it has a right to be and it’s a lot of fun. Calmatic does a nice job bringing it all together and the script helps you buy into these guys and want to see them succeed.
Rating: Rated R for pervasive language and some drug material.
Verdict: Three stars out of five