It’s an odd movie title: “Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw.”

How can a movie present two of its characters?

Perhaps the title was chosen so as to not confuse the movie with the “Calvin and Hobbes” daily newspaper comic strip (1985-1995) by United States cartoonist Bill Watterson.

Just kiddin.’

There’s no confusing the comic strip with “Hobbs & Shaw,” although the action movie’s plot line is paper-thin and the dialogue might as well be enclosed in cartoon word balloons.

The movie’s title, which is almost as long as the movie, is to brand “Hobbs & Shaw” as part of the “Fast & Furious” franchise, while setting it apart from the series. That it does.

“Hobbs & Shaw” is billed as a spinoff of the series. The ninth and 10th “Fast & Furious” movies are set for release in 2020 and 2021, respectively.

“Hobbs & Shaw” is a far cry from the street-racing origins of the “Fast & Furious” series, the first of which was released in 2001. The series is Universal Picture’s biggest franchise, and the ninth-highest-grossing film series, having taken in more than $5 billion.

“Hobbs & Shaw” is one-part James Bond, one-part “Mission: Impossible,” one-part “The Bourne Identity,” one-part buddy-cop film, one-part “Iron Man” Marvel Cinematic Universe superhero film, one-part mixed martial arts competition, and one-part “Terminator.”

Get the picture? It’s a mash-up of action-genre films. With “Hobbs & Shaw,” the mash-up works. The film has clever dialogue, phenomenal action scenes and is set in globe-hopping locales (London, Moscow, Ukraine and Samoa). “Hobbs & Shaw” should please fans of the franchise and action-film buffs, too.

In “Hobbs & Shaw,” Luke Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) and Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) can’t stand each other but must team up, along with Shaw’s sister, Hattie (Vanessa Kirby), to prevent a cyber bio-engineered terrorist, Brixton (Idris Elba) from implementing a deadly virus.

This leads to all manner of mayhem, competition between Hobbs and Shaw, and some tender moments, too, between Hobbs and his daughter and Shaw and his sister.

There’s all manner of car chases, including one through the streets of London with Statham behind the wheel of a McLaren 720S gull-wing, two-door sports car, as Elba is in hot pursuit on a motorcycle. The McLaren and the motorcycle slide under a semitractor-trailer. The scene concludes with Elba crashing his motorcycle through the side of a red British double-decker bus.

Don’t try this at home, even with CGI, which flows seamlessly through the movie, making the impossible seem possible, including a rappelling chase down the side of a glass skyscraper.

The film concludes with a wild chase on the dirt roads of Samoa, involving matte-black Land Rovers and hot rods, including a 1966 Peterbilt truck and 1935 Ford truck “Rat Rod” chained, along with other vehicles, to a Blackhawk helicopter, which the trucks are trying to crash. You have to see this scene to believe it and, even then, you won’t.

The plot also leads to all manner of fighting, including not only with semi-automatic rifles, but hand-to-hand combat between Hobbs and Hattie, before they team up, and Hobbs, Shaw and Hattie versus Brixton and his minions in various interior settings. That any mortal could survive such brutal bashings is preposterous. The bad guys don’t. Hobbs, Shaw and Hattie do.

The mano-a-mano finale on Samoa, in a nod to Johnson’s real-life familial roots, gets downright medieval, with “family heirlooms” turned into weapons as Hobbs and his Samoan brothers, along with Shaw and Hattie, battle Brixton and his armed terrorists.

“Hobbs & Shaw” is directed by David Leitch (“Deadpool 2,” 2018; “Atomic Blonde,” 2017), an actor, martial arts expert, kickboxing competitor and former stunt double for Brad Pitt and Matt Damon (“The Bourne Ultimatum”) with a wicked sense of humor and a penchant for violence, the latter mostly cartoonish and not graphic in its depiction of blood or mangled bodies.

The screenplay is by Chris Morgan (“The Fate of the Furious,” 2017; “Furious 7,” 2015; “Fast & Furious 6,” 2013; “Fast Five,” 2011; “Fast & Furious,” 2009; “The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift,” 2006) and Drew Pearce (“Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation,” 2015; “Iron Man 3,” 2013). The screenplay is based on a story by Morgan and characters created by Gary Scott Thompson.

Saying that “Hobbs & Shaw” is akin to a superheroes movie isn’t too much of a stretch. Brixton’s character is referred to as “the black Superman.”

Johnson and Statham have a good rapport, irascible as it is depicted. Kirby (“Mission: Impossible — Fallout,” 2018; Netflix’s “The Crown,” 2016-17) is a welcome addition to the team. Elba (“Avengers: Affinity War,” 2018; TV’s “Luther,” 2010-19; “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom,” 2013; TV’s “The Wire,” 2002-04) is perfect as a great villain.

Johnson, a Freedom High School, Bethlehem Area School District graduate (“Fighting with My Family,” 2019; “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle,” 2017; “San Andreas,” 2015; “Fast Five,” 2011) is obviously a powerful screen presence, but also gives a nuanced performance, thanks to his engaging face, and that doesn’t only have to do with his trademark raised eyebrow move (which is spoofed). Johnson, said to be the highest paid male actor in Hollywood (whose Seven Bucks Production company refers to the amount of money he had in his pocket at a low point in his sports career when he was let go by the Canadian Football League), has clearly taken over the action hero mantle of Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Statham (“The Fate of the Furious,” “Furious 7,” “Fast & Furious 6”) has a compact and stern screen presence. He’s taken over the action hero mantle of Bruce Willis.

Ryan Reynolds has an uncredited role as CIA Agent Locke, and Kevin Hart has an uncredited cameo as Air Marshal Dinkley.

Noteworthy in the cast are: Eliana Sua (Hobbs’ daughter Sam), Eddie Marsan (Professor Andreiko, who created the Snowflake virus), Helen Mirren (Shaw’s mother), Eiza Gonzalez (Madam M), and Lori Pelenise Tuisano (Hobbs’ mother).

“Hobbs & Shaw” has just enough character development between Hobbs and his daughter, between Shaw and his mother, between Shaw and his sister, and in the ruminations of Brixton to give the action film some depth.

Make no mistake, this is an all-action film throughout its two-hour and 17-minute length.

“Fast & Furious Presents Hobbs & Shaw,”

MPAA rated PG-13 (Parents Strongly Cautioned Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13. Parents are urged to be cautious. Some material may be inappropriate for pre-teenagers.) for prolonged sequences of action and violence, suggestive material and some strong language; Genre: Action, Adventure; Run Time: 2 hrs., 17 mins. Distributed by Universal Pictures.

Credit Readers Anonymous:

The “Fast & Furious Presents Hobbs & Shaw” end credits has several bonus scenes, including two with Ryan Reynolds and one with Dwayne Johnson.

Box Office,

Sept. 6-8: ”It Chapter Two” opened at No. 1 with $91 million, the second largest-ever horror film opening (second only to the original “It,” opening with $123 million in 2017), scaring “Angel Has Fallen” down one place after two weeks at No. 1, to No. 2 with $6 million, $53.4 million, three weeks.

3. “Good Boys” dropped one place, $5.3 million, $66.8 million, four weeks. 4. “The Lion King” dropped one place, $4.1 million, $529.1 million (its $1.6 billion global tally ranks it No. 7 all-time), eight weeks. 5. “Overcomer” moved up one place, $3.7 million, $24.7 million, three weeks. 6. “Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw” dropped two places, $3.7 million, $164.2 million, six weeks. 7. “The Peanut Butter Falcon” moved up five places, $2.2 million, $12.2 million, five weeks. 8. “Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark” dropped one place, $2.2 million, $25.6 million, five weeks. 9. “Ready or Not” dropped four places, $2.2 million, $25.6 million, three weeks. 10. “Dora and the Lost City of Gold” moved up one place, $2.1 million, $54.1 million, five weeks.

Box Office,

Aug. 30-Sept. 2: “Angel Has Fallen” continued at No. 1 over the Labor Day weekend, with $15.3 million, $44.4 million, two weeks. “Good Boys” continued at No. 2, $12.1 million, $59.1 million, three weeks. 3. “The Lion King” moved up two places, $9.3 million, $523.5 million, seven weeks.

4. “Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw” stayed in place, $8.4 million, $159.2 million, five weeks. 5. “Overcomer” dropped two places, $7.7 million, $19.3 million, two weeks. 6. “Ready or Not” stayed in place, $7.4 million, $21.9 million, two weeks. 7. “Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark” moved up one places, $6.2 million, $58.9 million, four weeks. 8. “The Angry Birds Movie 2” dropped one place, $5.9 million, weekend; $35.7 million, three weeks. 9. “Dora and the Lost City of Gold” stayed in place, $5.8 million, $51.2 million, four weeks. 10. “Spider-Man: Far From Home” moved up five places, $5.6 million, $386 million, nine weeks.

Unreel,

Sept. 13:

“The Goldfinch,”

R: John Crowley directs Nicole Kidman, Finn Wolfhard, Sarah Paulson, Ansel Elgort and Oakes Fegley (of Allentown) in the drama. A boy is raised by an upper East Side New York City family after his mother is killed in a bombing.

“Hustlers,”

R: Lorene Scafaria directs Constance Wu, Jennifer Lopez, Julia Stiles and Keke Palmer in the crime drama. A group of strip club employees blackmail their patrons. The film is based on a New York Magazine article.

Three popcorn boxes out of five popcorn boxes.