Ever since hulking lawman Hobbs (Johnson), a loyal agent of America's Diplomatic Security Service, and lawless outcast Shaw (Statham), a former British military elite operative, first faced off in 2015’s Furious 7, the duo have swapped smack talk and body blows as they’ve tried to take each other down. But when cyber-genetically enhanced anarchist Brixton (Idris Elba) gains control of an insidious bio-threat that could alter humanity forever — and bests a brilliant and fearless rogue MI6 agent (The Crown’s Vanessa Kirby), who just happens to be Shaw’s sister — these two sworn enemies will have to partner up to bring down the only guy who might be badder than themselves.
Fast and furious, one of my favourite movie franchises, returns for some more action. But this time focusing on two arch-enemies that are well known to us in the franchise, Luke Hobbs and Deckard Shaw. The series has been under a lot of scrutinies recently due to the last few films straying off course from the original purpose of the films - to show fast and modified cars which made many people fall in love with the car scene. Naturally, you would think that this film focuses on cars as it is a Fast and Furious film, but there’s a lot more than that here - a full storyline about a bio-terrorist who aims to commit genocide. There are plenty of twists and turns, but what makes this film interesting is not only how the film focuses on characters we know and love, but also drags back the curtains to really enhance the series by making them feel way more personal than before. The main question though, is this film a “Dude I almost had you” or is it more of a “Winning’s winning”? Here are my thoughts.
You know the drill, I’ll start off with what I liked about the film because there was a lot. I thought that the starting sequence to the film was really important to the overall flow and structure of the film because of how well it was executed. Seeing Hattie as a soldier infiltrating Brixton not only gave us the whole storyline of the film, but it also built up a really exciting and interesting ‘chase’ feel to the film, because we were introduced to Brixton (Idris Elba) in such a mischievous manner which gave him a really badass feeling, whilst maintaining a mysterious feel to him - combining to make one scary guy! The film also really introduces us to two well-known characters, but what makes it interesting is how well they are combined together - I love how the film takes the two enemies and forces them to work together, something that at first feels funny and comedic due to the bickering and fights between them but then throughout the film it is exciting and interesting to see their friendship mature and for them to be much more of a team. The film also throws us straight into the action which I like, something the series is renowned for, by starting off the film with an ambush not only does it get the heart pumping quickly but it also builds up Brixton as a threat right from the beginning and establishes key roles for characters early on. The film really utilises it’s characters well in order to really make them seem interesting - I love how the film doesn’t really need to cover who they are in order to maintain a level of fluidity for fans, whilst introducing them at enough detail to ensure that all viewers are at the same point with regards to understanding the characters. Seeing their background stories through relationship types and cross-cut camera shots is really clever and helps to really make the two characters seem really different, seeing them in the same situation but going about their own way of doing things such as the fight, or the morning routine at the same time. These give us really good and strong indications that they will not get along, and make the altercations between them all the more explosive! But not only do the characters feel electric but they also have a meaning and a purpose too, seeing flashbacks of Shaw’s childhood with his sister give us context behind the story and allow us to connect the dots ourselves to work out their family ties, again helping to intensify the story because it isn’t just about saving the world (if that’s not enough!) but it’s also personal too. The banter between the characters is great too, not only does it help to make the film feel more enjoyable but it also establishes a relationship and dare I say it, a friendship between Hobbs and Shaw which feels really organic. The films characters in general though feel really exciting, seeing them involved within fast paced fights with a twist to make them feel fresher, quick car chases and being taken around the globe - the characters seem to feel really interesting in more ways than one though, here they actually feel realistic because of how we see them portrayed with their girls (daughter and sister) and this allows us to really delve into the characters much more. They feel realistic too - Hattie’s fear of dying from the drug is actually really infectious (sorry, had to!) but in all seriousness, it makes her feel really immersive and realistic - she isn't confident that they will get the antidote but instead she feels anxious and pessimistic, which leads her to be a really exciting character because of how realistic she feels, as well as her intense battle scenes too. Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham have incredible chemistry, making it consistently very funny throughout and actually making the characters feel solid on their own film, without the need of the other characters from the series we know and love and their back and forth dialogue was absolutely hilarious. Throw in Vanessa Kirby and it was a perfect trifecta! I thought that Vanessa felt like a modern ’Letty’ and that she played the character really nicely, not only getting us interested in the character but also through her intelligence it definitely made her a character that stood out. Idris Elba was perfect as "Black Superman" and his interactions with the other three leads was gold, not only was he scary but he felt mysterious and tense too which really helped to create an atmosphere from the audience when he came into shot. Seeing Hattie getting the antidote at the end feels rewarding for us too.
Not only did the characters feel great but so was the storyline and the actual structure of the film! I thought that a great part of the story was how it felt like a fast and furious film but evolved. There were key themes from the story such as the importance of family as well as fast cars and chases, but the film also added in new themes like technology and terrorism which helped to make the film feel unique in the series, whilst comfortably fitting in as a decent addition to the franchise. I loved how the film made me feel like this though, it had the emotional value that the series is known for, whilst twisting things up to add new elements and themes - I thought it was well-executed though. This was because of the story, not only did it feel powerful but it was exciting and somewhat believable too - the characters explain a lot of what is going on for them and what the current state of the film is. This is really clever because it ensures that the characters have a purpose and a meaning, but it also makes the film easy to follow too, such as when they give details of their plan to break into the top-secret compound, the provide reasons why and what they will do which keeps us involved and understanding. Not only is the film easy to understand but it is also exciting and really enjoyable, I love how it felt like it had a spy element to it in some places where Hobbs and Shaw tracked down a series of different scientists and key personnel whilst travelling around the world, and combined with the top-secret weaponry and a potential genocidal weapon results in a really powerful and action-packed film. The film includes a series of chase and fight scenes too, these are interesting and feel really unique, such as when Hobbs returns to his family in Samoa and then the family fight Brixton whilst attacking a helicopter - the fights and chases here are full of the typical stunts we expect which are great, but once again they mix things up, such as the addition of the nitrous scene which of course for fans will make us remember the original scene, it cleverly mixes in old and new which I love! The actual storyline feels fresh and unique though, it is established early on so right throughout we know exactly what the purpose is, and seeing the various locations and character dialogue types help to make it funny too. Especially seeing Ryan Reynolds and Kevin Clarke, they are both really funny and surprisingly fit into the film well by mocking CIA agents and having the typical banter which makes the series.so popular. The film's story also adds in a series of small, yet clever elements which have a big impact, these include pathetic fallacy, which helps to personify the mood of the characters in the film through weather, this makes it really simple for us to understand the various moods during the film. My favourite part of the film though is definitely the infiltration, I thought it was so exciting and there were so many fast-paced and exciting scenes in the film which really help to keep it exciting, fluid and entertaining throughout.
The film wasn't all perfect though, I had a few problems with it. My main problem is that yes it's a Fast and Furious film and it does feel like one but in another sense, it really doesn't. There aren't any Easter eggs, references or characters from the original films present here, the film feels like far too much of a standalone film because there aren't really many references or ways that it links itself to the series, which means that it feels more. like a standalone action film rather than a film from the series which is disappointing. There is also a lack of cars here, F&F is a modified car movie series but there really isn't much here in terms of that, all we really have is a Mclaren 670s and some off-road buggies at the end, sure it's more modern-day but they could've at least tried to input in some of the pedigree that made the series so popular in the first place right? It just doesn't feel like it has the same intensity of the old films, where street races are broken up by the police or a showdown between two rival racers, none of that is here and the film has some nice cars but most of the time they are in the background. I thought this was a real shame. Because of this, the car chases don't feel the same, so basically, all of the car scenes here feel like a bit of a letdown from the perspective of a Fast and Furious fan. The feel and emotion between the characters from the series which makes the characters so interesting just isn't here, there aren't any police chases or street races, the closest thing is when Hobbs and Shaw steal the buggy and try to escape after rescuing Hattie. I understand that it's a slightly different type of film to the previous ones but it just doesn't seem to live up to the name. This isn't much of a negative but I wish there was more musical soundtrack for the film, the music that I heard during the film was fantastic, it really helped to build the mood and make scenes exciting, I just wish there were more scenes which had music, because the choices here we're great! I was also disappointed with the CGI here, a lot of it felt very unprofessional, for example where Shaw jumps his buggy onto the back of the lorry Hobbs is driving on their getaway from the research centre, upon landing the car sticks like glue even though it is nearly hanging off, a lot of scenes felt like this where it felt far too transparent to be taken seriously, even at the end where the helicopter crashes - the characters seem unscathed even though they've just fallen off a cliff...
Overall, I would rate this film a 7.5. I thought it was good, I liked the intense and fast-paced storyline and I thought that the chemistry between Statham and Johnson is great but I thought that Vanessa Kirby was the standout actor here because she helped to add emotion to the characters and storyline. But yes, the film was exciting and intense - for an action film whilst maintaining some of the pedigree of the series. Not enough though was used in my opinion, the lack of many actual car chases or races meant that the film feels nothing like the original series and it is a real shame that none of the original characters star in it either, because, without Hobbs and Shaw, I would honestly question whether this deserves to be in the franchise or as a single standing film at all. All in all though, I would recommend it - it's an exciting and we'll put together film, if you're a die-hard Fast and Furious fan though, I wouldn't expect anything like what the early films had in terms of content or storyline because even though they're good here, they're completely different. But still, I'd recommend checking it out.
Thanks for reading my review, I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did watching the film and writing this review. Have a lovely day and please if you have time, head over to my Facebook page and give it a like. This is my passion and every like and view I receive means the world to me. ❤
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