One of the biggest action movies of the year, Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw has raced on to Blu-Ray, 4K, DVD and digital download formats—complete with an alternative opening scene and over 80 minutes of bonus features.
Jason Statham stars as Deckard Shaw and Dwayne Johnson is Luke Hobbs. The two have been at odds since they made their Fast & Furious debuts. Shaw first came to our attention as the killer behind the murder of Han in the post-credits scene of Fast and Furious 6. Johnson stormed into the series like a lightning bolt with Fast Five as Hobbs’ lawman injected some serious gravitas into an already powerful franchise. Shaw (and his criminal clan) has provided the franchise with a charismatic wrong side of the law entity that had been, in many ways, missing from the series. I mean, they got Helen Mirren to play the family’s matriarch and Luke Evans’ Owen Shaw was a fantastic UK-based baddie in Fast and Furious 6.
Somewhere the idea of spinning off flicks from the original world of Fast & Furious probably started with dollar signs in movie studio executives’ eyes. For fans, it was a chance to see something cinematically beyond “the family” and give supporting players a chance to become the central attraction. The first of these Fast & Furious presents is Hobbs & Shaw and to commence the spin-offs with Johnson and Statham, two of the action genre’s best bets, is a virtual slam dunk.
Fast & Furious Presents Hobbs & Shaw was decently received by critics, currently sitting at 67-percent on the movie reviewer collective. For The Movie Mensch, the greatest joy of witnessing this film was actually two players beyond those whose monikers comprise the film’s title. Idris Elba’s villainous Brixton and Vanessa Kirby’s Hattie Shaw (yup, Deckard’s sis!) truly shine and breathe vivacious life into what is the ninth entry in the series. Sure, witnessing Statham and Johnson having to get over their long-standing differences to work together to stop a supernaturally altered terrorist (Elba) is wickedly entertaining. But our scene stealer here is absolutely Kirby, who finds priceless ways to inject bodaciously blissful fierceness into a franchise that seemed to be up to the brim in that realm. Witnessing Hattie, Deckard and Luke join forces to take on the chemically altered super-soldier that is Brixton is an utter blast.
The design and execution of a cyber-genetically enhanced villain does something else as well. By having him, essentially, serve as a dark side of the Captain America coin baddie, the suspension of disbelief that goes on throughout Fast & Furious history is given far-reaching parameters that allows filmmaker David Leitch (Atomic Blonde, John Wick, Deadpool 2) lots of audience leeway to basically have these four fight in the most outrageously fantastical ways and have the audience right there with you the entire way—all without questioning a thing. That’s a pretty freedom-inducing creative landscape for those behind and in front of the camera.
Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw also possesses a race against the clock premise that always adds layers to the suspense and antsiness of an audience. Brixton wants to destroy as much of the world as he can, and in a rare move for movies of this ilk, audiences actually learn the “why” beyond the “what”—adding layers to the resonance.
For more on the film itself, check out our theatrical Hobbs and Shaw review!
Johnson & Statham: Hobbs & Shaw is a three-and-a-half minute look at the pairing of the titular characters and why it worked and works so well. It certainly helps that the two actors get along like gangbusters off camera and that permeates every moment of this featurette. Their chemistry is priceless and if the film’s $759.4 million box office is any indication, audiences voted with their wallet and would love to see more from these two in the future beyond the confines of Fast & Furious 8 and beyond.
Next up on our look at the bevy of brilliant bodacious bonus features is Practical Action. Any film that features Johnson and Statham is going to have (“surprise,” said no one ever) a ton of action. Practical Action looks at the numerous action set pieces and breaks down how exactly Leitch and his team achieved the jaw-dropping sequences. Each fight was carefully choreographed, and it is such a joy to strip away all the flash of the finished product and get a glimpse into how that movie magic is created.
Speaking of fight scenes, Progress of a Fight Scene with Director David Leitch is a five-minute gift to Fast and Furious fans. It goes from script to storyboarding to actors and stunt people arriving on set and working out the nitty-gritty details. Leitch does an uncanny job of verbally quantifying what he and his team are doing as we witness the integration of digital and practical effects for that final fight scene that may go down—when all is said and done—as one of the greatest conclusions of any flick in this series.
As we have already stated, Elba’s take on Brixton is the stuff of legend. The Bad Guy explores what makes that so special in an all-too quick (two minutes!) featurette that puts the spotlight on the British actor who some would like see play James Bond one of these days. Meanwhile, The Sister shines the spotlight on Vanessa Kirby and her turn as Hattie Shaw. This too is too short, clocking in at just under four minutes, but is fascinating nonetheless.
We utterly treasured the featurette Hobbs’ Family Tree. The three-minute-twenty-second piece does something that countless Fast & Furious fans will find quite familiar—showcase the importance of family and how that hangs over the entire series. For Johnson’s Hobbs, his clan—based in Hawaii—becomes integral to that legendary fight scene between Brixton’s men and Hobbs, Shaw and what seems to be every bad ass on the island! The featurette introduces us to Hobbs’ mother and his brothers and gives further weight to their importance played out in the film. There’s also a nice little sequence concerning Hobbs’ onscreen daughter.
The Matriarch allows us to bask in the glow of awesomeness that is Mirren. Sure, her screen time is limited, but the Oscar winner makes the most of it and hangs over her son’s screen existence like a proud shadow. In this featurette, Mirren talks about returning to the role and even hints at what it would be like to have this character expanded in future installments. Do it!
New Friends (spoilers for those who haven’t seen the movie yet!) is a delightful featurette that shows us how two cameos came to be in Hobbs & Shaw that could not be more welcomed and wickedly awesome. Kevin Hart and Ryan Reynolds talk about their roles and their place in the film and any potential for their return in the future. Again, do it! We want more of Hart and Reynolds in the Fast & Furious world.
For wrestling fans, do not miss the featurette Keeping it in the Family: A Conversation with Roman and Dwayne. The five minute chat finds Johnson and Roman Reigns talking about coming from a long line of wrestlers and how their familial heritage looms large in why this film series is especially dear to both men. Witnessing the two together, behind the scenes, is a surprising delight as it contains such a rare and raw honesty, that is rarely seen in bonus featurettes that can often feel like publicity vehicles.
Elevator Action is such a welcomed addition to the behind-the-scenes making-of pieces. You know the scene, teased in the Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw trailer that finds Statham in an elevator and Johnson finding his way to the ground floor a little differently. Seeing how this stunning scene came together is at the heart of this featurette and is in many ways, perfectly encapsulates the commitment filmmakers, actors and the stunt team have to giving audiences, who think they’ve seen it all, something extraordinarily out of this world.
Dwayne and Hobbs: Love at First Bite gives us unfettered access to the hairiest of characters in the flick…yup, the dog! Johnson’s onscreen French Bulldog Hobbs almost steals scenes as much as Kirby did, but in the most different of ways. This featurette gives the canine his close-up.
Stunt Show and Tell is a three-and-a-half minute featurette that answers many “how did they do that?” questions. Utilizing film clips and behind-the-scenes stunt coordination, Leitch further explores some of the other important action set pieces in Hobbs & Shaw and exactly how the director achieved action amazingness.
Blind Fury is a touching, yes there is room for heartwarming moments in a Fast & Furious film. I mean, they’re expertly intertwined through the series. This featurette shows Johnson’s mom as she learns that the film contains an homage to her father. It’s endearingly entertainment of the highest order.
Don’t want to give it away, but definitely check out the “alternative opening” to the film. It’s fun, but I am glad they went with the opening that audiences adored in theaters.
Lastly, on future viewings of the film, turn on that feature commentary track with Leitch and prepare to learn more about the making of this blockbuster smash than one could ever expect. Leitch has a way of putting film-speak into layman’s terms so that we are not only entertained by the action on the screen, but wholeheartedly enamored by how Leitch and his team achieved greatness.
Film Grade: B
Bonus Features: A-