Few movie experiences bring me greater joy than the release of a new installment in the Fast and Furious franchise. Every new sequel somehow amps up the over-the-top stunts and explosions of the previous movie. This series started with the cast street racing and stealing DVD players and now they’re single-handedly saving the world and somehow traveling beyond.
The series has always had a theme of the importance of “Family.” Yet, the plot of this movie introduces Dom’s brother Jakob (John Cena), who we’ve never heard about before. Don’t worry though, F9 utilizes several flashbacks to show you the history of Dom and Jakob and precisely why there’s bad blood between them. In fact, things are so bad now, that Jakob is working along with a power-hungry junior dictator to take over the world. It’s up to Dom’s crew to save the day with fast cars and imaginary physics.
Because the series wants to convince the audience that Dom had a brother this whole time, the narrative jumps between present day and flashbacks. I’m not just talking about a few brief sequences either. A decent percentage of the movie is dedicated to late-teens Dom and Jakob (played by younger actors) and how their blood feud began. Not only does the plot show us why they have a rivalry, but it also tells us again through conversations in the present day.
This series excels because it knows its audience. With F9, the filmmakers have lost the plot. The flashbacks completely derail the pacing and the movie feels as if it’s playing it safe driving the speed limit a school zone. Every one of the previous movies has elements of a tedious plot, but this is the first one (I can remember) where it feels it. The runtime is a gluttonous 2 hours 25 minutes, and I found myself craving some stupid action to liven things up.
With a severe edit, this flick could have reached the standard entertainment of the rest of the series. The main issue here is that the movie goes out of its way to incorporate elements and characters from every previous installment. It’s just not necessary. Charlize Theron returns to the series as the villainous Cipher, but spends her four minutes of screen time in a glass cell. Helen Mirren shows up to act as Dom’s speedy chauffeur in a pointless scene. Cardi B shows up with her teen girl squad just because they were shown in a previous movie. These characters only slow the excessive plot down.
This series found its winning NOS with Fast Five because it finally realized what kind of movie it is. While there have been diminishing returns as far as the magic formula in that movie, the action set pieces have gone bigger, louder, and more insanely unrealistic. We’re now to the point where space cars are a minor part of the action.
An actual scene from F9
The joke of the series has become just how superhuman or divinely protected the main crew is. In a meta twist, Roman (Tyrese Gibson) even calls it out, acknowledging they’ve survived countless death-defying events and don’t even have a scratch. I appreciated the joke, but everything here just feels like a kid playing with action figures in a sandbox. There are no stakes and everything will end in a family-oriented BBQ in the end. If you ever think a character is about to meet their end, don’t worry, Dom will drive his Charger and catch them on its hood. Safe and sound.
While the majority of this movie is a slog, it finally gets into gear for the climax. F9 culminates in a thrilling and hilarious final half hour. I say hilarious because the action is so implausible that I could not stop laughing. I don’t laugh that hard in straight-forward comedies. I can’t get mad though, it finally found the formula that fuels the series better moments and it paid off in spades.
If you haven’t bothered to watch more than two Fast and Furious movies, then don’t bother with this one. This sequel won’t win you over. Though, for those die-hards who get ironic or unabashed enjoyment from the series, this is a necessary movie that will have you cheering. It’s just unfortunate that it wades through nearly two hours of flashbacks and pointless character introductions to get there. Your brain cells are sure to die, but at least they’ll die with a smile. C-
Comments are closed.