First, if you haven't been keeping up with the Fast and Furious franchise, please send me the address of the Dwayne Johnson you currently live under so I can send you a copy of the seven (7) previous installments. You don't need to see them to see this one but, like, what are you doing?
F8 starts off a short time after Furious 7 ends. We've got bi-annual bad boy Vin Diesel's Dominic Toretto honeymooning with Letty (M-Rod) in Cuba. Pretty standard stuff. They do something in the very beginning, though, that they haven't done in quite some time. They ACTUALLY RACE (not counting the farewell to Paul Walker at the end of Furious 7). Toretto looks to free his cousin from the debt of a local racer, and does so in expected-but-spectacular fashion. Can nitrous boost a car enough to win a race going in reverse? Sure, but only after you've taken every other part off the car. Dom is a damn wizard. Our local racer man is impressed, and gives him that R-E-S-P-E-C-T!
Our lovebirds' honeymoon is cut short when mysterious Charlize Theron appears, and she coerces Toretto to do her bidding. From there, as the team is reassembled for a mission given to Hobbs (Johnson), Dom is forced to sabotage the crew for the gain of Theron, who is revealed to be a cyber-terrorist. This is important, as her character had a big hand in the plots of the previous two movies and will possibly be a villain for one or two more.
Once the movie hits its stride, it's business as usual. There is a definite working formula to the F+F movies, and they don't stray far from it. They've moved on to amazing hand-to-hand combat sequences (leaving most of the car mayhem to CGI) with the introduction of Statham's Deckard Shaw in the the previous film. He and The Rock shine in a large prison breakout scene, and the shaky alliance that forms between their characters is accompanied by sometimes-uninspired back-and-forth dialogue. At one point they even stop and laugh at each other, and I'm assuming that's because they're aware they have the comebacks of middle schoolers. Can't wait for that spinoff!! Am I right?? Theron and Diesel have a similar scene in which they're just rattling off buzz phrases from previous movies, and I couldn't help but notice how forced it sounded.
However, I am never disappointed by the stunts in this franchise. They manage to keep it original, too, which must be hard. Ok, you've taken down an airplane on the runway. Ok, you've jumped a car between three buildings. Fighting a submarine in the arctic is literally the next logical choice, no? I think so. Dom and the gang can do anything with cars. ANYTHING! There aren't many breaks in the action and they pull off quite a bit in a range of different vehicles. It's all crazy, but it all works. If you've gone into any movie of this franchise looking for more than explosions, fistfights and vehicular aerobatics you'll be sorely disappointed. This movie is no exception, in that it only works if you pretend that physics is all theory and no law.
What is noticeably missing from this installment is Paul Walker. They've made the story make sense with him gone, but you can't fool me by throwing Young Eastwood in. He ain't Paul. I see you, though, Tormund.
If you've been a fan, you'll still be a fan after seeing Fate of the Furious. Additionally, I think it can be enjoyed by people who have seen none of them. It's a top-notch action flick and it doesn't run too long; it's just over 2 hours. There are few fun surprises, as well. Keep your eyes peeled for a handful of familiar faces, and one unfamiliar to the franchise but VERY familiar to moviegoers.
Verdict: Should See That
F8 starts off a short time after Furious 7 ends. We've got bi-annual bad boy Vin Diesel's Dominic Toretto honeymooning with Letty (M-Rod) in Cuba. Pretty standard stuff. They do something in the very beginning, though, that they haven't done in quite some time. They ACTUALLY RACE (not counting the farewell to Paul Walker at the end of Furious 7). Toretto looks to free his cousin from the debt of a local racer, and does so in expected-but-spectacular fashion. Can nitrous boost a car enough to win a race going in reverse? Sure, but only after you've taken every other part off the car. Dom is a damn wizard. Our local racer man is impressed, and gives him that R-E-S-P-E-C-T!
Our lovebirds' honeymoon is cut short when mysterious Charlize Theron appears, and she coerces Toretto to do her bidding. From there, as the team is reassembled for a mission given to Hobbs (Johnson), Dom is forced to sabotage the crew for the gain of Theron, who is revealed to be a cyber-terrorist. This is important, as her character had a big hand in the plots of the previous two movies and will possibly be a villain for one or two more.
Once the movie hits its stride, it's business as usual. There is a definite working formula to the F+F movies, and they don't stray far from it. They've moved on to amazing hand-to-hand combat sequences (leaving most of the car mayhem to CGI) with the introduction of Statham's Deckard Shaw in the the previous film. He and The Rock shine in a large prison breakout scene, and the shaky alliance that forms between their characters is accompanied by sometimes-uninspired back-and-forth dialogue. At one point they even stop and laugh at each other, and I'm assuming that's because they're aware they have the comebacks of middle schoolers. Can't wait for that spinoff!! Am I right?? Theron and Diesel have a similar scene in which they're just rattling off buzz phrases from previous movies, and I couldn't help but notice how forced it sounded.
However, I am never disappointed by the stunts in this franchise. They manage to keep it original, too, which must be hard. Ok, you've taken down an airplane on the runway. Ok, you've jumped a car between three buildings. Fighting a submarine in the arctic is literally the next logical choice, no? I think so. Dom and the gang can do anything with cars. ANYTHING! There aren't many breaks in the action and they pull off quite a bit in a range of different vehicles. It's all crazy, but it all works. If you've gone into any movie of this franchise looking for more than explosions, fistfights and vehicular aerobatics you'll be sorely disappointed. This movie is no exception, in that it only works if you pretend that physics is all theory and no law.
What is noticeably missing from this installment is Paul Walker. They've made the story make sense with him gone, but you can't fool me by throwing Young Eastwood in. He ain't Paul. I see you, though, Tormund.
If you've been a fan, you'll still be a fan after seeing Fate of the Furious. Additionally, I think it can be enjoyed by people who have seen none of them. It's a top-notch action flick and it doesn't run too long; it's just over 2 hours. There are few fun surprises, as well. Keep your eyes peeled for a handful of familiar faces, and one unfamiliar to the franchise but VERY familiar to moviegoers.
Verdict: Should See That