F9: The Fast Saga

F9: The Fast Saga
Starring Vin Diesel, John Cena, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson
Directed by Justin Lin

The dictionary defines "saga" as "a long story of heroic achievement, especially a medieval prose narrative in Old Norse or Old Icelandic" (where the phrase "a figure straight out of a Viking saga" comes from). In film, there's several well-known franchises that could categorize themselves as sagas: "Lord of the Rings," "The Avengers," "Harry Potter," and the like. "The Fast and the Furious" has decided to include itself in the saga business, and while it does hold to the general definition, it's far from a perfect saga. Still, by this time, no one really cares anymore and just go to see how this twenty-year and running franchise will continue to its (hopefully) eventual end.

Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and his wife Letty (Michelle Rodriguez) are happy and living life off the grid with their young son Brian, when they're visited by their longtime friends Roman (Tyrese Gibson), Tej (Ludacris) and Ramsey (Nathalie Emmanuel), who tell them that their old boss Mr. Nobody (Kurt Russell) has captured the evil villain Cypher (Charlize Theron), but has gone missing, and has given them clues to his whereabouts and a hint of something they're searching for. They come out of retirement to discover that Mr. Nobody has been in search of a world-ending weapon known as Aries, and that it's also being pursued by Dom's younger brother Jakob (John Cena) - a brother whom Dom never mentioned because Dom holds him responsible for their father's death back in 1989.

Jakob is working with Cypher to find the pieces of Ares that will turn control of the world's powers to Jakob, as he keeps trying to one-up his older brother and keep the family on their toes. With the addition of Dom's sister Mia (Jordana Brewster) and long-thought-dead Han (Sung Kang), Dom and his team embark on a worldwide adventure to stop Jakob before he can bring about the destruction of the world.

To say "The Fast and the Furious" has strayed from its original concept is putting it lightly. The first three films focused on dazzling cars, scantly clad women, and drag races that made the franchise an endearing go-to for male and female car enthusiasts around the world. However, as the films continued, the drag races were abandoned in favor of worldwide espionage, as Dom and his friends became recruits to the American government to prevent one international incident after another. It always has the same plot - some villain is in search of a MacGuffin that will give them worldwide power, which of course is split into several parts so they have to traverse the world to find each one, giving the good guys a chance to catch up and set traps of their own, which ultimately culminate in explosive action, breakneck speed car chases, and opportunities for redemption for even the hardest of criminals. It's harmless fun when you think about it - and these films really don't ask you to think about much, because if you did, you'd find that nothing makes a lick of sense and as Drew Carrey says in "Whose Line It Is Anyway:" "where everything is made up and the points don't matter."

"The Fast and the Furious" has become a unique James Bond-esque style of international espionage and intrigue delivered through a compelling, vastly multi-cultural cast that really draws you in due to their continued chemistry and dedication. Nowadays when many franchises are trying to be re-branded to turn once-Caucasian characters into minorities for the sake of having minorities in film, "The Fast and the Furious" highlights these minorities in a natural way that doesn't feel forced or something that the production company demanded to increase to promote cultural diversity. There's not a single Caucasian hero in the family (with the exception of Paul Walker's Brian, who's obviously absent due to the actor's death, but yet still is mentioned several times in the film, serving as the off-screen babysitter to his and Dom's children, which is a plot point that really needs to end because no one in their right mind would believe Brian would continually forego the action that the rest of the crew goes through in order to stay home and watch "Bluey"). At its core, "The Fast and the Furious" is a film about family, and shows that family doesn't necessary have to be blood - but those who would shed blood for one another, and it's an admirable thing.

However, I might be thinking too much into it, and I should take the films for what they are at face value: a chance to globe-trot the world and get involved in epic car chases and explosions that'd make Michael Bay jealous. Even on that end, the franchise typically works, but there's something about "F9" that makes it...something less. It's almost like everyone has reached the catharsis of the series, and now it's almost expected to see such outlandish things happen, and we just shrug our shoulders because it's something that's expected. The exciting doesn't really become exciting when we've seen it over and over again, and it just becomes ordinary.

What I did appreciate, especially with this film, is the meta quality that some of the characters possess, especially Tyrese Gibson's Roman. He clearly states that the things that they do don't make sense, and that they should've been dead countless times already, but they're not - they don't even have a scratch after epic events that would leave normal people dead. It's done as a humorous moment, but it really points out the inconsistencies in the franchise, but it's such an endearing one that audiences tend to forgive it - but that forgiveness is starting to wane. Such is the appearance of long-thought-dead Han, who's death in a previous installment seemed certain to be factual, but then there he is in the flesh once again. The reasoning he gives for being alive still makes no sense - but then again, nothing in this series does - but whereas this bait-and-switch happened before and was met with laughter and loving nature, it's now a groan-inducing way to offer up plot holes for dinner, and more eye rolling than you can shake a stick at.

Even the performances seem a bit out of whack, as each actor still is fully committed to the film, but it seems that they also breeze through it with simplicity. Vin Diesel's Dom has gone through a metamorphosis since his first appearance as the franchise's antihero into the series main hero, and you can see the physical and mental toll it's taken on him in his performance (getting back to plot holes, there's a flashback of his father's death in 1989 where Dom and Jakob were serving as their father's pit crew, and they clearly look older than teenagers, which makes their ages now at the low bar fifty, if not older). Still, if you really inspect the film, you'll find that Diesel isn't really in the film that much, as more prominence is given to other members of the Family and their own pursuits and relationships. John Cena is known more for his aloof comedic roles, and here he has no moment of brevity, and his rock-like face remains stoic throughout, not giving a moment of enjoyment. The remaining Family members all do their just duties with their performances, with the standouts being Gibson, Ludacris and Nathalie Emmanuel, who are the only ones who are able to express comedy and humor in the most tense moments of the franchise. Michelle Rodriguez's Letty proves that she needs the excitement and constant danger in her life and she can't settle for being a stay-at-home step-mom, while Jordana Brewster returns because...I guess she wanted to? She's not given anything really to work with, and it seems that she feels like Letty in that she can't just be a stay-at-home, but needs the excitement to fuel her purpose.

Much like the MCU, it seems that if you're an A-list actor in Hollywood, you've got to appear in at least one "Fast and Furious" film. Looking back at the past, there's Paul Walker (RIP), Eva Mendes, Gal Gadot, Dwayne Johnson, Djimon Honsou, Tony Jaa, Rhonda Rousey, Jason Statham, Luke Evans, Scott Eastwood, Idris Elba, Vanessa Kirby, Cliff Curtis, Ryan Reynolds and Kevin Hart. "F9" includes superstars Charlize Theron, Kurt Russell, Lucas Black, and Helen Mirren who reprise their roles from other films in the franchise, and also includes rapper Cardi B and Michael Rooker, so I wouldn't be surprised to see Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Tom Hanks, or Meryl Streep in the final two installments.

With "The Fast and the Furious" films continuing to churn out film after film like flimsy Fords, "F9" seems like it's the beginning of the end for the long-loved franchise, offering everything you'd come to expect from the series, but without the excitement or appeal that the other films provided.

The Score: B+