Over the course of eight films the Fast & Furious franchise has delivered moments of such jaw-dropping ridiculousness, the makers had to know they needed more than just crazy stunts to justify a spin-off. Don’t get me wrong; Fast & Furious: Hobbs & Shaw is crammed with crazy, ridiculous stunts (a motorbike practically flies into the top of a double decker bus, in another instance a mid-air chopper is tethered to a string of cars while navigating the edge of a cliff), but the film leans just as heavily on the sheer charisma and the winning chemistry of its leading men.

Reprising their roles from the original franchise, Dwayne Johnson plays Luke Hobbs, a former federal agent, and Jason Statham is Deckard Shaw, a British soldier turned mercenary. You might remember they fought on opposite sides in the last film, and, while they still don’t particularly like each other, they reluctantly join forces this time to save the world.

The film’s villain is Brixton, a cyber-genetically enhanced soldier, played by Idris Elba, who calls himself Black Superman, although as the film progresses he becomes more machine than man. Brixton has been ordered to recover a deadly virus that could wipe out half of humanity, but it’s just his luck that rogue MI6 agent Hattie (Vanessa Kirby) has injected it into her body.

The plot, expectedly, is preposterous, but it’s good to see the actors having fun with it. Johnson and Statham alternate the blows and punches with name-calling and banter. While there’s no question they can pull off even elaborate action scenes with ease, their sharp comic timing is a surprise reward. I especially enjoyed a scene in which Statham single-handedly vanquishes a corridor full of bad guys even as Johnson looks on pretending to be unimpressed.

Hobbs & Shaw signals a departure from the early Fast & Furious instalments. It’s true; we’ve come a long way from the scrappy street racing origins of the 2001 film starring Vin Diesel and Paul Walker. What hasn’t changed is the emphasis on family. A plot turn designed to shoehorn this running theme takes us to the island of Samoa for the film’s big finale, where amidst teary reunions and emotional unburdening there are more chases and explosions.

To be clear, the film doesn’t skimp on action. There are some impressive set pieces like one staged at a London skyscraper that is intense and thrilling. It must be said here that director David Leitch has no problem holding a shot so we can appreciate and enjoy the action, unlike in other blockbuster films where breakneck editing frequently makes it hard to follow who is doing what to whom.

While the film is focused on its titular heroes, there’s enough for the other characters to do. Kirby, best known for playing the feisty Princess Margaret in The Crown, proved she can kick ass just as good as the next guy in last year’s Mission Impossible: Fallout. She brings more of that here, holding her own with the boys. Elba too appears to be having a blast as the tortured bad guy, even if the part itself feels woefully underdeveloped. There’s also clutch of unexpected cameos that provides a clue into what’s to come in further sequels.

Hobbs & Shaw is pure popcorn entertainment. Nothing more, nothing less. It’s a tad long at 2 hours and 15 minutes, but its winning cocktail of action and comedy, and the screen-burning appeal of Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham seldom leaves you bored. I can’t think of two other actors who could’ve made such flimsy material work.

I’m going with three out of five for Hobbs & Shaw. It’s what the word ‘time-pass’ was invented to describe.

Branching out of a franchise like The Fast and the Furious without its most known face Vin Diesel demonstrates the production house’s faith in the relatively newer entries to the series, and the makers were not wrong in their assessment as the charm of Dwayne Johnson and cynicism of Jason Statham make a heady cocktail which makes you whistle at the top of your lungs. It’s one of those spin-offs that makes you totally ignore how it could have looked with the original star-cast.

Add Idris Alba’s half-human, half-robot tinge to it, of course with his peculiar swag that makes you wonder why he isn’t playing James Bond yet, and you get 132-minutes of ridiculously thrilling action scenes and some surprise casting to speculate more such films in the series.

Let me be clear—this could have worked as a standalone film too. It doesn’t need the Fast and the Furious tag to get our attention. That must have helped though. There is a definitive drift in the tone of the action scenes from the original franchise. It’s not about judiciously consuming less nitrous oxide for more thrust anymore. Slow motion uppercuts and Ukrainian scientists have also crept into the lives of Johnson and Statham.

What hasn’t changed one bit is the idea of family being the place of timely returns. Luke Hobbs (Johnson) goes back to Samoa and Deckard Shaw (Statham) travels to his childhood. That is also the cue for Deckard’s sister Hattie (Vanessa Kirby) to throw some punches and their mother Magdalene (Helen Mirren) to say a couple of done to death things about family. In short, family is probably the only emotion worth dying for.

You also meet Idris Alba pouring his heart out and trying to add some mortality in the insane action drill planned every 10 minutes. You’re almost a robot, why don’t you do what others are doing, which is killing people for just being in your range. Because when he does it, he looks far more stylish than the two guys brought together for the franchise.

You may differ but The Fast and the Furious films have been mostly about that one action scene which could make you go crazy in your seat. Whether Paul Walker would cut the corner in time or would Letty get hold of her subconscious before it gets too late. This time, the director David Leitch discards the idea of leading up to that one breaking point and lays his canvas evenly. You get to know more about the people behind tough exteriors and unbelievable muscles.

The sharp one-liners, banters and other tried and tested breathers such as cameos and occasional-vulnerable-colourful funnymen, are all present in Hobbs and Shaw. Writing wise, the tone has been the same, maybe a little less serious. Vin Diesel’s absence means for something after all, no?

Hobbs and Shaw is so heavy in action, which is what we cared for initially, that you would look for occasional kisses or maybe a dance number. Instead, you get Roman Reigns maneuvering his way to the camera with a spear in hand.

Anyway, it delivers more than what it promises. It’s a solid adrenaline-pumping film with an unwavering focus. It’s pure fun and you don’t even need to bother about what The Rock is cooking.