165. Fast Five (Summer of Rock)

Author: Laci Roth & Matt Stokes
Published: Fri 18 Jul 2025
Episode Link: https://sites.libsyn.com/99026/165-fast-five-summer-of-rock

Laci and Matt hop in a go-fast car and head for Rio de Janeiro to join up with Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel), Brian O’Conner (Paul Walker), and their whole extended family, as they attempt the heist of the century. All while trying to evade federal agent Luke Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson), the deadliest agent you’ll find in Hillary Clinton’s State Department.

We discover how fascinating Vin Diesel is for Laci, who has had startlingly little exposure to the man of the vast empire he controls. We try to figure out what it is he does well… because it’s hard to say what it is, there’s just something about him.

Honestly, that’s true for Paul Walker, Jordana Brewster, and Tyrese Gibson as well. It’s not that they’re captivating actors. They just have a certain quality that you can’t help but love.

We also get into the history of the Fast & Furious series and the strange journey it took to becoming a Star Wars-level international blockbuster franchise.

Time stamps:

00:14:24 — Our personal histories with the Fast & Furious franchise

00:30:55 — History segment: The history of the Fast & Furious franchise; director Justin Lin; on the weekend of Fast Five’s release, Dwayne Johnson Tweets the news that Osama bin Laden has been killed

00:49:55 — In-depth movie discussion

02:02:15 — Final thoughts and star ratings

Next week: Pain & Gain (2013)

The Summer of Rock is our summer 2025 miniseries covering the movie career of Dwayne Johnson through nine movies, presented in chronological order. Starting with his attempt at crossing over from the world of wrestling, The Rock’s career got off to a bumpy start before finally taking off in the 2010s. But it wasn’t long before the bumps returned, and we’ll be telling the story for you all summer long!

Bonus video: Matt reviews Planet 51 (2009), the bonkers science fiction family film that was Dwayne Johnson’s first animated movie: https://youtu.be/-lG6Gnwe1GY?si=0gOccnMr7Pev3PPd

Subscribe to our Patreon, Load Bearing Beams: Collector's Edition for $5 a month to get extra episodes! patreon.com/loadbearingbeams

Sources:

“'Fast Five' Will Transition Franchise From Street Racing To Future Full Of Heist Action” by Nikki Finke | Deadline (2011) - https://bit.ly/4kqBbtm

“How Paul Walker nearly quit the ‘Furious’ franchise” by Amy Kaufman | Los Angeles Times (2015) - https://lat.ms/4kpmqH6

“The remarkable evolution of the Fast and Furious movie franchise” by Zach Harper | CBS Sports (2015) - https://bit.ly/3IaSYHF

Artwork by Laci Roth.

Music by Rural Route Nine. Listen to their album The Joy of Averages on Spotify (https://bit.ly/48WBtUa), Apple Music (https://bit.ly/3Q6kOVC), or YouTube (https://bit.ly/3MbU6tC).

Songs by Rural Route Nine in this episode:

“Summer of Rock” - https://youtu.be/dvRY72jNIEE

“Winston-Salem” - https://youtu.be/-acMutUf8IM

“Snake Drama” - https://youtu.be/xrzz8_2Mqkg

“The Bible Towers of Bluebonnet” - https://youtu.be/k7wlxTGGEIQ

"Summer of Rock" theme song credits:

Words and music by Matt Stokes

Engineered, mixed, and mastered by TJ Barends | Bare Sounds

Personnel:

TJ Barends - backing vocals

Wade Hymel - drums/guitar/backing vocals

Laci Roth - vocals