Summary

• Fast X chased Fast Five nostalgia but failed to live up to its quality.
• Fast X lacked the organic setting and focused story that made Fast Five successful.
• Fast X's attempt to do too much with a massive cast and budget led to disappointment.

Fast X referenced Fast Five several times, but the latest Fast and Furious movie could not sur the quality and impact of the 2011 film. Before Fast Five, the Fast and Furious franchise was still trying to decide what it was going to be. 2 Fast 2 Furious tried to continue the series without Vin Diesel’s Dominic Toretto, whereas Tokyo Drift followed a new protagonist entirely. Fast & Furious (2009) brought the original characters back, but it was only in Fast Five that the now-established blockbuster saga was truly born.

The impact of Fast Five in the series can be noticed to this day, including in Fast X. Several Fast and Furious tropes, such as having a villain played by an action star, started with Fast Five. Still, whereas Fast Five is widely considered the 11 set to wrap up the story, the Fast Saga needs to learn from both Fast X’s mistakes and Fast Five’s qualities.

8 Fast X’s Fast Five Callbacks Added Little To The Story

Fast X felt like it was chasing Fast Five nostalgia

One of the biggest differences between Fast X and Fast Five is how the former seemed like it was trying to chase down nostalgia, whereas the latter was as original as a Fast and Furious movie could be. From the Christ the Redeemer statue on the poster to the opening flashbacks set during Fast Five, Fast X wanted viewers to the saga’s best movie going into the newest installment. While it makes sense to celebrate one of the most successful entries in the saga, Fast X did not live up to its Fast Five references.

7 Fast X Never Felt Like It Was Truly In Rio De Janeiro

The setting was an important part of Fast Five

Although not all of Fast Five’s Rio de Janeiro scenes were actually filmed in Brazil, the movie felt like it was taking place in a different country in real locations. Sequences like Hobbs and his men chasing down Dominic Toretto throughout the favela in Rio set the tone for Fast Five and made it organically different from other entries in the franchise. From then on, Fast and Furious would become a worldwide saga where every film is set in multiple countries, which is something that had already lost its charm by Fast X.

From Roma to Rio, Fast X’s story also took place in multiple locations around the globe, yet this scale is never felt in the film. Instead, it just seems like Dom and his crew are being teleported from one place to another without any sense of scale or age of time. With the help of characters like Brie Larson’s Tess and Helen Mirren’s Magdalene Shaw, there are no limitations to what Dom and his crew can do. This is very different from Fast Five, during which Dominic Toretto’s family couldn’t flee Brazil without alerting Hobbs.

6 Fast X Tried To Do Too Much At The Same Time

Fast Five was a much more focused movie

Every new Fast and Furious movie has gone bigger and bolder than the last one. While this approach made sure the saga remained fresh and led to some of the franchise’s biggest box office hits, such as Furious 7 and The Fate of the Furious, it also created a long-term problem. A blockbuster can only get so big in of cast and action pieces before it becomes difficult for it to even be profitable. Fast X’s box office disappointment has to do with the movie’s massive budget, which was translated into a film that tried to do too much.

Fast Five had a very simple story that made every action piece feel as important as it needed to be. Dom, Brian, and Mia were in Rio de Janeiro hiding from the FBI, and now the crew was going to have to deal with agent Luke Hobbs before getting out of Brazil. In addition to the cat-and-mouse game, Fast Five also included a heist, which would become a common element in the franchise. Fast X, on the other hand, had too much going on, including giant bombs, betrayals, massive plans involving dozens of characters in different locations, and more.

5 The Rock’s Hobbs Was A Better Villain Than Jason Momoa’s Dante

Dante was great, but Hobbs was better

Jason Momoa’s Dante Reyes was a highlight of Fast X and arguably the best thing about the movie. That said, when it comes to writing and the villain’s place in the story, Dwayne Johnson’s Luke Hobbs was the better antagonist. While Dante’s goal was more personal compared to Hobbs’, The Rock’s character was the exact type of villain Fast and Furious was asking for. “Action villains” like Deckard Shaw, Cypher, and Dante only exist in Fast and Furious because of Hobbs, whose scenes in Fast Five set the bar very high for the saga’s next villains.

A Hobbs spinoff movie starring Dwayne Johnson is currently in the works.

4 Fast Five Was The Movie Fast & Furious Needed In 2011

Fast & Furious needed a movie like Fast Five

Fast and Furious needed a movie like Fast Five in 2011, whereas Fast X was just more of what the saga was already doing but bigger. Although Fast & Furious (2009) succeeded in bringing the franchise’s original main characters – Dom, Brian, Letty, and Mia – back together, it was neither a massive commercial hit nor a critical success. Fast Five took Fast and Furious to the next level, making the street racing franchise into an action-packed blockbuster saga. Fast Five felt fresh compared to the previous entries, which cannot be said about Fast X.

3 Dominic Toretto’s Expanded Crew Was Something New In Fast Five

The crew was more of the same in Fast X

One of the most interesting things about Fast Five was how it brought together all corners of the franchise, from The Fast and The Furious to Fast & Furious (2009) and everything in between. Toretto’s family now included characters from movies he was not part of, namely 2 Fast 2 Furious and Tokyo Drift, the latter of which did include a brief Vin Diesel cameo. In Fast X, however, seeing a massive cast of characters was nothing new. The interactions between the crew are getting old, and these ensembles no longer feel as special as they were in Fast X.

Fast Five’s ending is so perfect that many believe it should have been the end of the saga.

2 Fast Five Gave Its Characters Time To Breathe

Fast Five’s action didn’t take over the whole movie

Fast Five had amazing sequences, many of which combined visual effects with practical stunts to create some of the best scenes in the entire franchise. However, the film also included scenes in which the characters had time to breathe and talk. Moments like Dom and Brian talking about their dads or Brian and Mia talking about their future together made it so that Fast Five was more than just an action film. Fast X, on the other hand, jumped from one action piece to another. There are no emotional stakes in Fast X.

1 Fast Five Had A Much Better Ending Than Fast X

Fast Five felt like a complete movie

Fast Five’s ending is so perfect that many believe it should have been the end of the saga. Every member of Dominic Toretto’s family gets a happy ending thanks to the money they stole from Reyes, and the scene where the vault is finally open is incredibly fun. For Fast X, the franchise went for the two-part finale strategy, meaning the film had to end on a cliffhanger. However, considering it’s unlike Dom and his son will be dead in Part 2, Fast X’s cliffhanger ending felt anticlimactic and unnecessary.

Stream Fast X on Prime Video