Fast and Furious 9
The latest instalment in the juggernaut series delivers all the classic beats, but struggles to find anything fresh despite literally leaving planet Earth.
Dom (Vin Diesel) and Lettie (Michelle Rodriguez) are living the quiet life, but are called back into the fray when Mr Nobody (Kurt Russel) is attacked by a mysterious foe after a world ending device. The re-assembled team, including Roman (Tyrese Gibson), Mia (Jordana Brewster), Tej (Ludacris), and Ramsey (Nathalia Emmanue), are shocked to discover that the man they are chasing is none other than Dom’s long lost brother Jacob (John Cena), who has teamed up with a mad billionaire and captured Cipher (Charlize Theron).
The issue with Fast and Furious 9 could be put down to the absence of Dwayne Johnson, whose ass-kicking Hobbs has been a staple and fan-favourite of the series for the last four movies. But that would be a little too all-encompassing, because Fate of the Furious (Fast 8) had DJ in prime position and still wound up short. It could also be put down to Cipher as the villain, hacking her way from a point of remoteness and removing the nuts and bolts physicality of the threat of either of the Shaw boys. Or, perhaps more compellingly, it could be down to the tragic loss of Paul Walker, whose absence continues to prove he was really the glue that held this whole precarious mess together.
Either way, Fast and Furious 9 suffers the same issues as Fate of the Furious - it’s big, it’s bold, and it’s brash, but despite ratcheting up the insanity like never before, it feels unsurprising. One longs for the days of a car chase through three buildings in Abu Dhabi, or even a simple cast break and one-liner from DJ. The funny thing is the rockets strapped to a old car, taking Tyrese and Ludacris to space in the final set piece of the film aren’t even the least believable element of this movie - instead, it’s the way things like magnets and computers work that really make you struggle to suspend disbelief.
That being said, there is still a lot to love here. Cena is a welcome addition, grumbling his way through the terrible dialogue in the same manner as Diesel, who goes a long way to proving that Dom Torretto is really his only strong role. Tyrese and Ludacris are a lot of fun, with a good recurring meta gag about how Tyrese is invincible. Helen Mirren steals the show in a brief cameo. Coupled with these performances are a series of unbelievable, mile-a-minute stunts, which have varying degrees of exciting engagement. The most engrossing inevitably wind up being the physical stunts, with the fist fight between Cena and Diesel a particular highlight.
In the end, if you’re a fan of the franchise, you’ll probably love this film. It’s not the best in the franchise, but nor is it the worst - it’s middle of the road, but it’s also starting to feel like the more characters they bring back from the dead, the more of a swansong these films become. Which would be a shame, because when they work (much like when this film works), they work really well and are a hell of a lot of fun. ands.
