Warning: This review may contain spoilers! Read at your own risk

Love conquers all is the theme of these two Summer blockbusters! With the help of @DMV_Nation, I was able to attend the screenings for both The Hangover Part III (Monday, May 20) and Fast & Furious 6 (Tuesday, May 21) and both were exciting!

The Hangover Part III

This screening was held in Auditorium 1 of AMC Mazza Galleria theater in Friendship Heights/ Chevy Chase neighborhood of Washington, DC. The show was set to begin at 7pm. I arrived at the theater at 6pm and the line was already insane! People had beach chairs set up, so who knows how long they had been waiting?!

Anyway, the movie begins and within the first five minutes jaws were agape and the crowd was asking “WTF?!” Allen’s crazy self was up to his usual, unsuspectingly reeking havoc on humanity through a series of unfortunate events. Allen’s well-to-do-parents, with whom he’s still living at almost 40 years old, urge him to finally grow up and get things together after he makes the evening news for one of his fatal stunts. He stresses his father out in particular and winds up being responsible for his untimely demise. Allen’s aloof attitude prompts his loved one’s to take further action and thus, the plot for the saga’s finale begins.

Doug, Stu and Phil come together with Allen’s pre-teen swim buddy, family housekeeper, sister and mother to form an intervention. The gang determines the best thing for Allen at this stage in life is rehab and therapy in Arizona. Road trip? Yes. Of course!

The gang is ran off the road and kidnapped on the way to the facility. The kidnappers reveal themselves and ask that they capture and bring them Leslie Chow, who has just escaped from solitary confinement at a prison in Beijing. Stu, Phil and Doug panic as they have not heard from Chow since the last movie, but of course Allen– who can’t tell a criminal from a friend– has been in touch with Chow recently.

Chow asks to meet his buddy Allen in non-other than Las Vegas, NV to bring the trilogy full-circle.

As to not give away the entire movie, the gang has an adventure in their old stomping grounds, calling on the aid of familiar characters like Phil’s ex-wife from the first movie and the resurfacing of “Black Doug.”

The Hangover 3 was better than The Hangover 2, and almost as good as the first. The elements and streamlined plot definitely aligned better to Part 1 than did Part 2. The sequence remained exciting and action packed leaving the viewer anxious to see how these guys get out of the mess that continues to grow more and more out of control.

I enjoyed seeing baby “Carlos” again. He’s a toddler now and able to speak and relate to human emotion. This interaction allowed us to see crazy, immature Allen in another light– through this interaction we were able to see that Allen isn’t crazy at all, he just choses when he wants to “be an adult” and when he just doesn’t give an * expletive*!

The movie was well-written and scene/act transitions were effortless. We moved through the plot as if we were along for the ride too.

Overall, I totally enjoyed the movie and recommend checking this out for a good laugh. Go expecting to giggle a lot, though you won’t likely roll in the aisle laughing.

TIP: Don’t leave until after the credits!

BobbyPen’s rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Fast & Furious 6

This screening was more of an experience than just watching a movie before its public premiere. Fast & Furious 6’s preview was held at AMC’s Majestic 20 in Downtown Silver Spring. On the strip mall adjacent to the theatre was a car display of powerful, fast and furious cars, carts and bikes provided by Automotive Rhythms– The Urban Automotive Experience.

Guests were welcomed into the theater and threatened (light-heartedly, that is) to turn off their phones or be kicked out of the film, the lights go down and ACTION!

The film kicks off with Domonic and Brian at a foreign estate with Brian’s wife and new baby. Dominic hugs his “brother” and reminds him that once he kisses his new bundle of joy their underground lifestyle of fighting crime must die– picking up from the previous movie.

No sooner than we check in with the “family,” Luke Hobbs calls Domonic asking for one last favor, managing to pull him away from his beautiful exotic island beachfront vacation with his new girlfriend and meets him with current images of  Letty. Letty was a part of Domonic’s gang of professional criminals and the apple of his eye; she was also presumed dead after the last installment of the Fast & Furious chain. Letty is not dead and is actually working with the enemy. Domonic is left to make the choice between rescuing his love and beating the bad guys or enjoying his life if peace and civility.

Domonic chooses love and rounds up Roman, Tej, Han and his girlfriend to take down the US Government chip stealing team of London and recover their friend Letty– who lost her memory in an accident and was coerced into joining this new team.

Cars race, people get shot, people fight old school using martial arts, things blow up, the good guys win the end!

Well, not exactly, the ending presents an interesting twists leaving audiences with the notion of a Fast & Furious 7?!

This film was action-packed to the core and it’s pace moved just as the title suggests– fast & furious. Scenes cut one-from-another seamlessly in a style I very much enjoy in filmography. As someone who has not exactly seen all of the movies in the franchise, the directors made it easy to catch up and get into the action without asking a million and one questions. The use of flashbacks and characters recapping the events of the past, you didn’t need to know the background to appreciate the amazing graphics and special effects of the sixth installment.

Myself, and Renzi of DMV Nation were literally sitting on the edge of our seats throughout the 130 minute motion picture. I found myself holding my breath or biting my nails at the competitive fight and chase scenes. Every time I thought I had the plot figured out there was an unexpected twist or turn. Who’s a good guy, who’s a bad guy? That concept is extremely fluid in Fast & Furious 6. You will need to be sure to bring your heart medication, inhaler and undivided attention to this cliff-hanger film this weekend.

I left the theater on a high. I felt like I had just gotten off a rollercoaster and wanted to ride again! …and I WILL be going back to relive that excitement again in theaters.

BobbyPen’s raiting: 5 out of 5 stars

Commonalities I noticed:

• Music from 2 Chainz | This guy has clearly made it. The Fast & Furious 6 original song featuring Wiz Khalifa, was HOT! So hot I saw a guest Shazam the tune to download it later. I wanted to party as it played during the closing credits.
• Love reigns supreme | So many on-screen unions between these films it’s not funny. If you go to either film as a date, prepare for an emotional embrace during a few scenes. Hopefully you’re not in the dog house for any reason, because if you are, you may catch it even harder.
• Teamwork saves lives | Even Superman rolled with the Justice League. Make this weekend about spending time with your bros or your girls. Life’s short and unpredictable, so what is it without a tight team to journey with together? 🙂
• Action packed! | Need I say more?

Let me know your thoughts on either of these films! I’d love to hear your reactions.

Have a happy and safe Memorial Day Weekend, everyone!