Fast and the Furious Franchise Ranking

With the release of Fast X, the 11th film in The Fast and Furious franchise, I thought it would be good to update my ranking of the Fast and Furious films. The Fast and the Furious franchise has gone through a lot of changes since it began. Starting off it was just a movie based on street racing but as it has made more movies, the franchise has gone totally off the rails and became a high-energy blockbuster series. The evolution of the series is broken down into three eras, the Pre Rock Era (Films 1-4), The Rock Era (Films 5-8 and Hobbs and Shaw), and the Post Rock era (Films 9-10). The three eras of this franchise are driven by Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's entrance and exit into the franchise as each period is very distinct. This franchise is what I call Junk food movies, they aren't high quality or are very good plot-wise but they are a lot of fun to watch with how ridiculous they are. With all that in mind, let's break down my thoughts on each film.

11. The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift

The 3rd film in the franchise is definitely the weakest of the franchise. The main positive in this film is that we do get the introduction of Han who is a fun character that shows up throughout the rest of the franchise. This is also the last film that really sticks to the focus of street racing. Overall, The film is largely disconnected from the rest of the characters in terms of characters and storylines, making it harder to be interested in. Some of the later films retcon this and connect to this movie a bit better, but as a whole, the movie is largely inconsequential. The movie also made some very bad acting and casting choices. The actor they chose to play Sean was such a bad choice as he is a lousy actor and looks 30 but is somehow playing a high schooler. The plot itself is really stupid as somehow every problem seems to need to be solved by racing. Several events play out that just make no sense as to why characters chose to make certain decisions. This is the type of movie that is so bad it is good. So much of it is absolutely stupid but it is fun to make fun of and laugh at. It may be entertaining for the wrong reasons but it is still entertaining.

Score: 5/10 Grade: C

10. Fast and Furious

This is a significant step up from Tokyo Drift but is still not good by any means. The movie is the last of the films in the Pre-Rock era but you can definitely feel the beginnings of the franchise going off the rails and extreme. Several sequences are a bit absurd throughout the movie but just are still quite fun to watch. The film is the beginning of the franchise moving from street racing to spy action movies. The story itself is pretty forgettable, it introduces the character of Gisele who is a fun character in later films as well as has a fun chase sequence through the border wall but aside from that doesn't really add any that stands out in the franchise. The movie also just doesn't really have the charm or chemistry of characters like in the later films. Dom and Brian don't quite have that connection that is so much fun to watch in the later films. In the end, while this film does have its moments, it is largely forgettable and not really one of the films that I find myself re-watching a lot.

Score: 6/10 Grade: C+

9. F9

The newest film in the franchise is definitely the craziest. Up to this point, the franchise has had a submarine car chase, cars fighting a tank, and cars pulling a safe down the street. This movie manages to somehow top that by having cars swinging from tree vines, cars with magnets pulling other cars around, and cars strapped to a literal rocket and launched into space. While this film has some extremely ridiculous scenes, it is so much fun to watch and is widely entertaining. This movie also pokes fun at all of the absurd sequences with some self-aware humor about how characters seem to survive everything. The thing that holds this one back is all the subplots about Dom's family problems and flashbacks that really bog the movie down. Most people are there for the insane action sequences and car action not for the family melodrama. At times it feels like Vin Diesel's character is taking these movies a bit too seriously. It is also the first film in the Post Rock era by trading out Dwayne Johnson with John Cena which I don't think was an equal trade. Overall, this movie has a lot of wild and entertaining sequences but the story as a whole gets way too bogged down with subplots, flashbacks, and family drama.

Score: 6.5/10 Grade: B-

8. 2 Fast 2 Furious

This film is probably one of the funniest in the franchise. It introduces Roman who is such a scene-stealer and is one of the best characters in the franchise. He manages to have great chemistry with anyone he is with. In this film, he does a great job of playing off of Brian with the duo being so much fun to see together. The whole third act is also a lot of fun. It gets a bit goofy in some of the sequences and humor but that is really what makes it so much fun. This film still has a bit of focus on street racing and small-scale action but there are definitely certain moments where you can see the franchise's potential to be really over the top and goofy. The main thing that holds this one back is that aside from the end, there aren't a lot of memorable moments. The whole villain plot isn't all that memorable and just feels like a typical buddy cop drug bust action film. The story itself isn't terrible, it is just really generic. In the end, this is one of the more forgettable films in the franchise but has a better story than all of the films before it on this list.

Score: 6.6/10 Grade: B-

7. Fast X

Fast X is the newest film in the franchise and manages to step back slightly from the extreme absurdity of the previous 3 films. Much like the most recent 5 films, this movie is still very goofy and over the top but its action sequences are more on the level of Fast 5-7 as opposed to 8 and 9. Regardless, it is still entertaining to watch. The best part of this movie is Jason Mamoa as Dante. He has so much fun in his role as the villain and is probably my favorite villain in the franchise. He plays a pretty goofy character but goes all in on it that it is just so much fun to watch. The film feels a bit like Avengers: Infinity War just in its plot structure and separation of characters. However, the main issue with this film is the fact that we don't get to see everyone all together. We have 4 different character storylines going on and none of them seem to connect at all. There is no common enemy they are working against with their own goal to be to get back together. It just makes the plot feel a bit disconnected. I also felt that the action sequences weren't as memorable as previous films. They were fun just not really anything standout. Overall, this story was fun but is really lacking in a connected story. Since this is just part 1 of the story, my ranking may change when I get to see the end of the story but for the time being this film has to sit lower.

Score: 6.7/10 Grade: B-

6. The Fast and the Furious

The original film in the franchise is definitely the most grounded. It is so crazy to see how this franchise has gone from this movie about street racing and semi-truck robberies to movies with cars going into space. The street racing and characters are big draws for this movie. It is a very simple story (basically Point Break, but with cars). Without all of the crazy sequences, this movie can focus on practical car action as well as spend more time with the characters. We get to spend a lot of time with Dom, Mia, Brian, and Letty and really see their relationship begin. It is just really weird to see them like this and go to basically being special ops agents in the later films. I enjoy the simple nature of the story along with all of the practical stunt work. However, the grounded nature of this movie is also what brings it down for me. I love this franchise because of the crazy action and since this movie doesn't have that, it is just lower on the list for me. The movie is fine as a starting point but if the franchise would have stayed like the first film, I'm not sure I would still be watching it.

Score: 7/10 Grade: B

5. The Fate of the Furious

This film is the last film in The Rock era as well as the first film without Paul Walker. The action sequences are some of the craziest in the franchise, with the car submarine chase and the whole New York sequence. The banter between Hobbs and Shaw is also a lot of fun. Without those two, the movie wouldn't have been half as good as it is. The idea of having Dom working with the villains was also interesting and a new twist in the franchise. I also thought that Cypher is a great addition as the villain. She does a great job of portraying a character that you truly hate and want to see taken down. What keeps this one out of the top is the vast tonal shifts in the film. It will go from a scene where thousands of cars are being remote-controlled and chasing someone down to the next scene where a mom is shot in front of her child. Pretty much any time the movie shifts to Dom with Cypher, the movie slows down so much and feels like a completely different movie. This movie would be so much better if it didn't try to take itself so seriously. I also felt that without Dom with the rest of the team, the movie just doesn't have the same charm as some of the other films. The Rock tries to pick up the slack as the leader but without Vin Diesel and Paul Walker leading the team, it doesn't feel the same

Score: 7.2/10 Grade: B

4. Furious 7

Furious 7 is a pretty special film as it is the last film made with Paul Walker before his death. The basic story is pretty interesting with Shaw hunting down Dom and his team. Jason Statham as Shaw is a great villain as he is driven more by revenge against Dom and his family than by a big master plan. The movie also introduces some fun new characters like Mr. Nobody and Ramsey. Both of which carry over to later films. It also manages to handle Paul Walker's death in a very tasteful and emotional way. Walker dies about halfway through production and while it is pretty obvious what scenes he wasn't alive for, the movie was still able to pull off including him in the entire film. Finally, I thought that a lot of the action sequences were really fun. The tower party sequence is a standout one in this film. The main issue with this film is that the whole mission they are on doesn't make any sense. The team is trying to track down a device to find Shaw but everywhere they go, he shows up so there is really no need to track him down. The film also sidelines The Rock as he is only at the beginning and the end. Overall, this film manages to take on the tragedy of Paul Walker's death in a touching way. However, the story itself isn't quite up to par with those higher on the list.

Score: 7.5/10 Grade: B

3. Hobbs and Shaw

Coming into the top 3 is Hobbs and Shaw. This is such a fun movie. It completely drops the whole car racing driving aspect of the film and becomes a full-on spy action film. Hobbs and Shaw are hilarious and really have great chemistry together. Their banter and constant competition with each other are just so much fun to watch. Vanessa Kirby as Shaw's sister also makes for a nice addition to the group as she jumps right in with the 2 leads and plays off of them really well. The film also has some crazy action sequences as well as some cool fighting scenes. It also has a very fun and charismatic villain with Idris Elba. Finally, the film includes a couple of cameos that are just so much fun and so funny. Definitely a peak junk food movie and one of the best films in the franchise. What keeps this out of the top 2 films is that you can definitely feel the MCUificaiton of the Fast franchise. A lot of parts of this movie feel like they are just copying what Marvel has been doing. I also thought the movie was a bit too long. I felt that the final fight in Samoa was a bit tacked on and out of place. This movie could have been a tight 90-minute action film but they decided to tack on an extra 45 minutes because The Rock wanted to go to Samoa.

Score: 8/10 Grade: B+

2. Fast Five

Fast Five is the beginning of The Rock Era the franchise is definitely where the studio figured out what type of films they wanted to make. This film completely ditches the whole street racing aspect and becomes a heist film. This film is basically Oceans 11 with fast cars and I am totally on board with that. This movie brings all of the characters together from the previous 4 films and is so much fun to see. The addition of Dwayne Johnson is also great. He is one of my favorite actors and makes this franchise so much better. The film also decides to just go all in with the over-the-top action sequences that defy any laws of physics and logic which is what I love about the franchise now. There are a few things that hold this back from number 1. The first thing is that I felt the villain was pretty forgettable. He just feels like a generic crime boss and doesn't have anything stand out about him like the later villains. I also just didn't like the story as much as Fast 6. I don't think this story is bad. I just like the next one better. Overall, because of how this film reawakened the FF franchise with the charming character and over-the-top action, it is one of my favorites in the franchise.

Score: 8.3/10 Grade: B+

I. Fast and Furious 6

This is definitely the best film in the franchise as it completely makes the transition for the franchise from street racing to crazy action movies. The characters really find their groove in this film and we get to see them play off each other and really act like a family. This movie also has some of the best action sequences in the franchise that just keep getting better as the movie goes on. The middle act involves a huge chase with cars trying to take down a tank on the highway and somehow the movie still manages to top that in the third act in the film. Owen Shaw is also one of the best villains in the franchise and the rest of his team is also really cool. They seem like a real threat to Dom and his team. I also really enjoy that The Rock teams up with Dom and the rest of his team and essentially becomes part of the family. He gets some really great moments and is one of the best parts of the film. Overall, this movie is just so much fun and is a perfect example of why I enjoy this franchise.

Score: 8.4/10 Grade: B+