empire magazine gave the new FAST FURIOUS movie 3 stars

more of the same, more or less, with the emphasis heavily on more

It starts with Vin Diesel’s Dom and his wife Letty (Rodriguez) on holiday in Cuba

the franchise’s seemingly contractually obliged street races

a true first for movies — a submarine-car chase

enough vehicles are totalled to make the end of The Blues Brothers look like the start of The Blues Brothers

action sequences are handled comfortably by new director Gray

the long-held feeling that some of the supporting characters aren’t really that compelling

three actors having the time of their lives

1 Kurt Russell's character Mr Nobody pops up from time to time to helpfully explain what the hell’s going on

The action stuff he leaves to newcomer Scott Eastwood as his deputy, Little Nobody

whenever Russell’s on screen, his eyes twinkle like a man enjoying one hell of a career resurgence

2 Dwayne Johnson steps up to the preposterous plate, whether it’s tackling a torpedo with his bare hands, or exchanging choice insults with Statham

3 Jason Statham emerges as the film’s MVP. There’s no glowering here — this version of Deckard Shaw is a quip-happy one-man-army that utilises Statham’s natural charisma in a way Hollywood has mostly missed until now. His standout sequence, though it borrows liberally from John Woo’s Hard Boiled, is huge heaps of fun. Give this man his own spin-off.

Russell, Johnson and Statham, of course, are in on the joke.

Charlize Theron’s villain Cipher, who doesn’t get to do much except stare at computer screens and bark standard-issue threats.

Diesel finally gets a couple of scenes with Dame Helen Mirren

if you’re playing the Fast & Furious drinking game, take a shot every time Vin says “family”

If you can’t abide the Fast franchise, you’ll be furious, but fans will have a nitrous oxide blast.