Fast Five (alternatively known as Fast & Furious 5 or Fast & Furious 5: Rio Heist) is a 2011 action film written by Chris Morgan and directed by Justin Lin, and the fifth installment in The Fast and the Furious franchise. The film stars Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Jordana Brewster and Dwayne Johnson and was first released in Australia on April 20, 2011 followed by a United States release on April 29, 2011. Fast Five
follows Brian O'Conner (Walker), Dominic Toretto (Diesel) and Mia
Toretto (Brewster) as they plan a heist to steal $100 million from
corrupt businessman Hernan Reyes (Joaquim de Almeida) while being pursued for arrest by U.S. DSS agent Luke Hobbs (Johnson).
For development of Fast Five, a conscious effort was made by Universal Studios to shift away from the street racing
theme prevalent in previous films in the series. Emphasis was instead
placed on transforming the franchise into a heist action series that
utilized cars in an attempt to attract wider audiences that may
otherwise be turned off by the series' focus on cars and car culture. Fast Five
is considered the transitional film in the series, featuring only one
car race with more attention given to action set-pieces such as gun
fights, brawls and the heist of $100 million. The production employed a
comprehensive marketing campaign, marketing the film across social
media, virtual games, cinema chains, automobile manufacturers and NASCAR
racing.
Fast Five garnered financial success, breaking box office
records for the highest grossing opening weekend in April and the second
highest opening weekend in Spring, earning $168 million. The film
surpassed Fast & Furious (2009) to become the highest grossing film in the franchise and overtook Rio to become the highest grossing film of 2011, holding this title for fifteen days before being replaced by Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. Fast Five has grossed over $605 million worldwide, placing it #61 on the list of highest-grossing films of all time worldwide—in unadjusted dollars.
The film received critical praise with critics praising the
combination of "action sequences that toy idly with the laws of physics" and comedy; some labeling the film the "best" of the series.Johnson was singled out for his performance, with critics calling him "the best thing, by far, in Fast Five" and remarking that scenes shared by Johnson and Diesel were often the "best moments".
Despite the positive response, many were critical of the film's running
time, considering it too long, and others criticized the treatment of
women, stating "[Females] cameo strikingly in buttock form. Others
actually have first names"
South American reviewers were critical of the film's portrayal of Rio
de Janeiro as a haven for drug trafficking and corruption, labeling it a
"stereotype."
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