The Fate of The Furious is the eighth instalment (you read that right) of the Fast and Furious franchise and this time around the crew go up against a mysterious cyber-terrorist named Cipher played by Charlize Theron who forces Dom to betray his “family”. Just when you would think that this franchise would begin to lose steam, director F. Gary Gray steps in and delivers an action-packed sequel that is in many ways superior to the previous instalment (Furious 7). Gray, whose previous work includes The Italian Job (2003) and the critically acclaimed Straight Outta Compton (2015), does a great job with this film. The Fate of the Furious is very well shot and edited, visually the film is slick and dynamic although Gray tends to overuse slow-motion which can be quite distracting at times. The film is briskly paced, it runs almost 2 hours and 20 minutes long but at no point does it stutter.
The Fast and Furious franchise is known for its outrageous action sequences and this film in no exception, there are some great set-pieces in the film, including an amazingly choreographed prison fight scene with Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham, who are by far the best parts of the film. The two are both so charismatic to watch and the banter between them is hilarious. There are numerous throwbacks to previous instalments which are integral to the plot, viewers who are not familiar with the franchise may have a hard time following the events unfolding onscreen.
The Fate of The Furious is not without its flaws; the opening sequence is mediocre at best, involving some cheesy dialogue and just overall bad writing. Fortunately, after a rocky 10 minutes the film picks up considerably. Charlize Theron gives a decent enough performance as the villainous cyber-terrorist Cypher, but is mostly restricted to pushing buttons behind a computer, which is disappointing as it would have been great to see her get in on the action. Veteran actor Kurt Russell returns as the secretive government agent Mr. Nobody and Scott Eastwood joins the cast as his subordinate, however Eastwood adds very little to the film, his entire character seems unnecessary and redundant. Furthermore, the ending of the film feels abrupt, it seems as if the studio ran out of budget at the very end and were forced to wrap up the film with a neat little bow, glossing over a major plot hole involving Charlize Theron’s character.
With each passing film, The Fast and Furious franchise continues to get more absurd than the previous, it honestly would not be surprising if the next instalment took place on the moon! However, absurdity and mayhem is what is to be appreciated about these films, they are fully self-aware and allow the viewer to suspend disbelief, sit back and indulge in some quality escapism. The Fate of the Furious is an adrenaline filled joyride worth a watch for anyone who loves movies.
7/10
The Fate of the Furious is now showing in cinemas.
