Fast & Furious 6

Franchise fatigue is beginning to show in this instalment of the technically proficient street-racing series. This time, the cars and cast are transported to an unrecognisably traffic-free London for more tyre-squealing action. Ex-con Vin Diesel and ex-cop and new father Paul Walker are tempted to bring their fugitive gang out of retirement for "one last job" when Dwayne Johnson's federal agent promises them a pardon. Between deafening set pieces (highlight: a preposterously inventive and witty daylight tank chase on a Spanish motorway; lowlight: a murky, confusing night-time assault on a hulking Russian cargo plane), the larky pit-stop banter falls clangingly flat. Diesel's low-rumbling platitudes about "family" and "the code" are barely audible, while Welshman Luke Evans's ex-SAS baddie lacks the requisite boo-hiss villainy. However, there's a glimmer of hope offered in the post-credits tease, which introduces a much better bet for the gang's adversary in part seven.