Fast & Furious 5 (2011) - Fast Five
Box office
Fast Five accrued $209,837,675 (33.5%) in the United States and Canada and a further $416,300,000 (66.5%) elsewhere – a total of $626,137,675,[3] making it the seventh highest-grossing film of 2011 worldwide.[57] This amount makes Fast Five the number 116 highest-grossing film of all time in the domestic market and the number 66 highest-grossing film of all time worldwide, in unadjusted dollars.[3][58]
On May 14, 2011, after 25 days in theaters, Fast Five overtook Fast & Furious to become the highest-grossing film in the Fast and the Furious franchise, with a gross of $369,744,415, and the highest grossing installment of the franchise outside the US and Canada, with $214,619,415[59] – both figures taking account of inflation.[60] On May 15, 2011, with a gross of $168,780,000, Fast Five passed Fast & Furious ($155M) in the US and Canada to become the highest-grossing film in the franchise domestically – again taking inflation into account – earning in 16 days what it had taken Fast & Furious 91 days to achieve.[61][62][63] On the same day, with a worldwide gross of $440,480,000, Fast Five surpassed Rio ($428.6M) to become the highest grossing film of 2011.[64] It held this record for 15 days before being supplanted on May 30, 2011, its (then) $530.4M gross surpassed by the $623.7M of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.[65] On May 18, 2011, with a total gross of $465,717,712, it also entered the top 100 highest-grossing films of all time worldwide – in unadjusted dollars – at number 97.[66] In October 2011, with a gross of $626.1M, it reached a peak of number 55 on the same list before leaving theaters.[58]
- Markets outside the United States and Canada
Fast Five was initially released in Australia on Wednesday April 20, 2011 – nine days before the first release in North America – followed by further releases in the UK, South Korea and New Zealand. The earlier start in these countries was timed to coincide with their Easter holidays[67] and avoided competition from forthcoming summer films,[68] although this placed it in direct competition with the superhero film Thor. On the opening day, Fast Five took $2.1M in the UK,[69] $570,000 from South Korea[69] and $260,000 from New Zealand.[69] By the end of the opening weekend, the film had accrued a total of $24M[70] from foreign countries, including $10.3M from Australia (Universal's biggest opening in that country), $8.8M from the UK, $3.4M from South Korea and $870,000 from New Zealand.[69] On its second weekend in foreign countries, Fast Five earned an estimated $45.3M across 3,139 theaters in 14 countries, ranking first at the box office in each of its ten new overseas markets[71] and breaking records for Universal's highest-grossing openings in Russia ($11.5M), Spain and Turkey.[72] Its international gross takings, however, put it in second place behind Thor, which had opened in more countries than Fast Five.
In the third week after release Fast Five opened at number 1 in a further 44 countries, bringing the total to 58 – 6,979 theaters altogether. With both films open in a similar number of countries (58 for Fast Five to 57 for Thor) – Fast Five regained the number one position, with a total gross of $184.5M against Thor's $176.1M, which fell to second place.[73][74]The week saw the film break opening-weekend records for Universal in 12 countries: Argentina, Brazil ($5M),[75] Chile, France ($8.8M),[75] India, Italy ($7.4M),[75] Malaysia, Mexico ($8.6M),[75] the Netherlands, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates and Vietnam.[73] It broke the record for the biggest ever opening gross in the United Arab Emirates ($2.6M), holding this record for two weeks before being replaced by Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides ($2.7M).[76] On May 31, 2011, Fast Five, with a cumulative gross of $350M, was replaced as the highest-grossing film of 2011 internationally by Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides ($472.3M).[77]
- United States and Canada
In the US and Canada Fast Five opened on April 29, 2011, in 3,644 theaters,[3] making it the 96th most widespread release of all time.[78] It took $3.8M in receipts during launch midnight showings, marking the best ever opening for a Universal title and for the Fast and the Furious series.[79] By the end of the opening day it had accrued a total of $34.4M including midnight takings, giving it the highest-grossing April opening of any year, replacing Fast & Furious ($30.1M),[80] and the second highest Friday opening outside of the summer and holiday period, behind Alice in Wonderland' ($40.8M).[81] In total, Fast Five earned $86.2M during its opening weekend, an average of $23,655 per theater,[2] with IMAXshowings contributing over $8 million.[82] This amount made it the highest-grossing opening of the series and the highest-grossing opening weekend for Universal, replacing The Lost World: Jurassic Park ($72.1M),[83] the highest-grossing April opening weekend of all time, replacing Fast & Furious ($71M),[83] and the second-highest spring opening, again after Alice in Wonderland ($116.1M).[84] The film was also the highest-grossing opening for Diesel, Walker, Brewster, Johnson, Moritz and Lin.[83]
The film opened in a further eighteen cinemas (making a total of 3,662) during the second week of release (6–8 May), taking more than $32M, or $8,860 per theater.[85] This was a 62.4% drop from the previous week's takings, a result partially blamed on a reduction in IMAX and large-format screens showing the film (reduced from 244[82] to 20[57]), which only contributed $510,000 to the second weekend's gross.[73] This moved the film into second place in theaters behind the newly released Thor with $66M.[86] Despite the competition from Thor, Fast Five earned a further $20M for the week, bringing the gross for the US and Canada to over $135M.[85] On May 7, 2011, Fast Five ($139.8M) surpassed Rio($116.5M) to become the highest-grossing film of 2011 in the United States,[57] holding the record for 36 days until June 11, 2011, when it was surpassed by The Hangover Part II($203.8M).[87] On June 4, 2011, 37 days after release in the US, the film became the first film of 2011 to accrue more than $200M.[88]
On June 15, 2011, Box Office Mojo compared the box office performances of ten sequel films released in 2011 with those of the original films of their franchises. Fast Five was at the head of the list, being the only sequel to have outperformed its franchise original; it was the highest-grossing film of the Fast and the Furious franchise (and the one with the highest estimated attendance since the 2001 series original). Fast Five was followed by The Hangover Part II and Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides on this basis.[89]
Fast Five closed on August 11, 2011, after 105 days (15 weeks), having accrued $209,837,675 across 3,793 theaters,[3] making it the second highest-grossing heist/caper film, behind Inception ($292.5M),[90] and the second highest-grossing car-racing film, behind Cars ($244.1M) – not adjusting for inflation.[91] The film received a one week re-release in IMAX theaters on September 30, 2011.[92]
Critical reception
Fast Five has received positive critical reception since its release, earning a score of 67 out of 100 from 29 critics on review aggregate websiteMetacritic[95] and garnering 78% approval from 183 critics on Rotten Tomatoes, whose assessment reads: "Sleek, loud, and over the top, Fast Five proudly embraces its brainless action thrills."[96]
Roger Ebert gave the film 3 out of 4 stars, praising it as "a skillfully assembled 130 minutes at the movies, with actors capable of doing absurd things with straight faces, and action sequences that toy idly with the laws of physics",[5] while Richard Corliss of Time Magazine considered it "maybe the first great film of the post-human era".[97] The New York Times said it deftly combined action and humor, stating "The only time you won’t be watching the screen is when your eyes have squeezed shut because you’re laughing so hard."[98] The Telegraph appreciated the presence of Johnson and Diesel together, calling it a "cosmic event", and added that director Lin had revitalized the series, saying "the start and finish here, defying every imaginable law of physics, are series highs."[99] Empire also heaped praise on Johnson, saying "How to re-ignite an ageing franchise? Drop [Johnson] on it. The best thing, by far, in Fast Five ... Dwayne Johnson hulks through the movie leaving testosterone trails in his wake." However, Empire took the view that the film itself was "not, by any normal criteria, a good film", arguing that it was too long, although conceding that the action scenes, in particular the final car chase, made the film "the most entertaining in the series."[7] Anna Smith ofTime Out London also commented that the film was too long and criticized the simplistic characters and dialog, but she called the film "slick" and stated that these criticisms could be overlooked because "it doesn’t take itself too seriously."[100] Variety focused on the roles of Johnson and Diesel, lamenting the current lack of 1980s-style "brawny" leading men and of the "manly men" typical of the 1950s and 1960s, and calling their pairing "a welcome injection of tough-guy vigor". Variety commented that, based on Fast Five, a "sixth entry could be something worth waiting for".[101] The New Yorker called the action scenes "spectacular", praising director Lin by saying his "direction and the sharp editing never confuse or lose momentum", but also found the film too long and criticized the dialog, labeling it "subpar Ocean's Eleven-style banter".[102] On the characters, The New Yorker considered Walker and Diesel "serviceable", but singled out Johnson for praise for bringing a "hip, comic knowingness to his role ... his enjoyment is infectious and keeps the movie speeding along."[102]
Total Film welcomed the return of Ludacris and Tyrese Gibson to "[inject] the film with much-needed laughs" and felt that Johnson fit into the established cast with ease, though it believed the film itself was "no mould-breaker."[103] Peter Travers of Rolling Stone, who disliked the previous movies, gave the film 2.5 stars out of 4, praising the transformation of the series into a heist film ("Damn it, it works"), commenting favorably on scenes between Johnson and Diesel, and judging that "Fast Five will push all your action buttons, and some you haven't thought of."[104] The Los Angeles Times felt that scenes shared by Diesel and Johnson were the "best moments" and appreciated the humor, but considered the pacing a "strange mix", switching between exposition, comedy scenes and then sudden action.[6] The reviewer echoed other critics' sentiments concerning the running time of the film, but concluded that "the sheer audacity of "Fast Five" is kind of breathtaking in a metal-twisting, death-defying, mission-implausible, B-movie-on-steroids kind of way", labeling it the "best" of the series.[6]
Both Empire and Variety noted that the final chase scene of Fast Five contained allusions to Bad Boys II (2003): Variety stated that the scene "seems inspired in part by a similarly spectacular scene in Bad Boys II";[101] Empire said that it "nearly out-Bad-Boys-2s Bad Boys 2".[7]
Not all reviews were positive, however. Film4 criticized both the film's long running time and its treatment of female characters, remarking "[Females] cameo strikingly in buttock form. Others actually have first names". But Film4 praised Johnson's role as DSS agent Luke Hobbs, saying he "provides a more credible anti-antagonist to our anti-heroes than the straight up villains can manage".[8] The Boston Herald gave a more mixed reaction: it derided the lack of realism as removing any sense of threat to the protagonists, but conceded that "these films may be robustly anti-intellectual and deplorably commercialized, but they are the envy of the rest of the world."[105] Despite giving the film a positive review and praising the action, The Hollywood Reporter was critical of its stars, saying "it’s clear the budget wasn’t used on acting lessons for the cast."[106] The New York Post's Kyle Smith gave the film a negative review, criticizing the shortage of car-related action before the finale and calling it less a "vroomer" and more a "knucklehead Ocean's Eleven".[107] Smith went on to call the film's villain Reyes (Almeida) "unforgivably dull" and considered the long running time a result of taking "that long to read every item in the cliché dictionary."[107]Time Out New York stated that "The Fast and the Furious movies haven’t exactly gotten better as they’ve gone along" but gave the director a backhanded compliment, saying "Justin Lin, taking his third turn behind the franchise’s wheel, is at least a competent hack."[108] Ebert was more complimentary, saying "Justin Lin is emerging as a first-rate director in this second-rate genre"[5] and Rolling Stone managed "Justin Lin, who misdirected the last two sequels, finds his pace this time, staging dynamite action."
Brazilian critics
Brazilian reviewers criticized the use of Rio de Janeiro in the film, claiming it was stereotyped as "dominated by heavily armed drug traffickers, corrupt police and sexy women".[9] O Globo accused the producers of using "aerial shots and quick editing" to "deceive the viewer" into believing that the criminal acts take place in Rio. Globo also reacted negatively to the use of "foreigners" to represent Brazilians, "speaking Portuguese with laughable accents".[9] Veja agreed with O Globo, saying "The city of Rio and the Rio Film Commission supported the production. But the image that will spread across the world is exactly what the city doesn't want."[109]
Accolades and recognition
Tyler's score for Fast Five earned him an award at the 2011 BMI Film Music Awards.[110] The marketing components of Fast Five were nominated for three Golden Trailer Awards, winning one for Best Summer Blockbuster 2011 TV Spot.[111] For the 2011 Teen Choice Awards, Fast Five received five nominations, including Choice Action Movie and Choice Action Movie Actress.[112] Three of the five available nomination slots for Choice Action Movie Actor were taken by actors from Fast Five: Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson and Paul Walker.[112] The film ultimately received one Teen Choice Award, for Choice Action Movie.[113] The film received two nominations for the 2011 People's Choice Awards for Favorite Action Movie, and Favorite Action Movie Star for Diesel.[114] Diesel was nominated for an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture.[115] The film's sound and music editing was nominated for a Golden Reel Award for Sound Effects and Foley in a Feature Film by the Motion Picture Sound Editors society.[116] The film also received twoSaturn Award nominations from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films for Best Action/Adventure Film and Best Editing for Kelly Matsumoto, Fred Raskin, and Christian Watner.[117]
In December, 2011, Richard Corliss ranked the film number 10 on his list of the Top 10 Best Movies of 2011, saying, "A carnival of roguish heroes and pretty girls, car chases and cliffhangers, Fast Five is as much a tribute as The Artist or Hugo to the cinema's primal thrills."[118] Empire placed the film number 20 on its list of the Top 20 Films of 2011,[119]while IGN named it the "Best Action Movie" of 2011.[120] Fast Five was listed as the number 1 most illegally downloaded film of 2011 on BitTorrent with approximately 9.3 million downloads.[121][122]
Home media
On August 2, 2011, USA Network purchased the rights to the United States network premiere of Fast Five.[126] The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray in the United Kingdom on September 5, 2011,[127] and in the United States on October 4, 2011,[128] in 2.35:1 aspect ratio with DTS HD Master Audio 5.1 sound. A triple pack was also released containing a Blu-ray, DVD, and digital copy of the film in either Blu-ray or DVD packaging.[129][130] The Blu-ray versions contains several exclusive additional features, including behind-the-scenes footage, cast and crew interviews, a "virtual car garage" that provides further details on the vehicles used in the production, and music tracks from the film. Both the DVD and the Blu-ray contain a theatrical and extended cut of the film,[128] director commentary, deleted scenes, a gag reel and features on the three central characters.[130]Commenting on the extended cut, Lin said "this is the version that I prefer."[128] During first week sales in the United States the DVD was the number 1 selling DVD, the number 1 rental DVD,[131] and the number 2 selling Blu-ray disc behind the Blu-ray re-release of The Lion King.[132] 57% of the total first week disc sales of Fast Five were the Blu-ray disc version.[132]
To promote the release of the DVD and Blu-ray, Universal Studios Home Entertainment sponsored the first race of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, at the Chicagoland Speedway. The event, renamed as the "Fast Five 225", took place on September 16, 2011, with Gibson and Brewster as Grand Marshals; Gibson sang the American national anthem for the event and Brewster acted as honorary starter. The event served as the first race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup and was won by Austin Dillon.[133] The deal marked the first time that a film promotion had been allowed to take over a NASCAR race as a title sponsor.[134] Continuing the partnership with Car Town, the game was used as the exclusive means of pre-ordering the Blu-ray/DVD combo release at Walmart, via players clicking on a Walmart-themed truck, which in turn provided the player with Fast Fivebranded in-game rewards.[53]
