The Fate of the Furious Review

Reviewed by Justin D Williams

Otakus & Geeks attended the world premiere of The Fate of the Furious at Radio City Music Hall. It was a star studded event with cast members, celebrities and fans in attendance. Vin Diesel and director F. Gary Gary grace to stage to say a few words before the film. F. Gary Gary discuss his journey from Straight Outta Compton till now. Vin Diesel said a few touching words about Paul Walker and the importance of this film. It was two moving speeches before the film began and you feel the electricity in the air.  Onto the review below: 

Now that Dom (Vin Diesel) and Letty (Michelle Rodriguez) are on their honeymoon, Brian and Mia have retired from the game, and the rest of the crew has been exonerated, the globetrotting team has found a semblance of a normal life. But when a mysterious woman seduces Dom back into a world of crime that he can't seem to escape, the crew will face trials that will test them as never before.

I will be the first to admit after the perfect ending of Fast 7, I felt the franchise should have stop. It was a nice a great send off to Dom and the gang. It did a great tribute to Paul Walker. After watching The Fate of the Furious I still feel the same way. Now this doesn't mean The Fate of The Furious is a bad film because it's not. This just means storywise you can only do so much with the franchise. The Fast and Furious franchise is at the point where Dom and his family should appear at the after credits of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and be superheroes. The Fate of the Furious is that over the top and at times absurd but entertaining as hell fun. 

As stated in the synopsis Dom encounters a mysterious woman name Cipher played by Charlize Theron.  She is a cyber terrorist who gives Dom an ultimatum that he can't refuse. Either help her or bad things will happen to the ones he love. For the sake of spoilers I won't reveal what she has on Dom. I will say that it is a worthy entry to the series and the plot expands on Dom's character arc. However this new dynamic is not enough for The Fate of the Furious to avoid some usual cliches on the I have a secret on you and you must obey me plot.  The story will be a hit or miss for fans and there were some plot holes I couldn't ignored. This is not a spoiler because it was revealed in the trailer. Jason Statham character joins the team. He has his own vendetta against Charlize Theron's Cipher character. However the team just willingly works with because their is no choice. But not once did they mention that this guy killed Han. I guess everything is forgiven, I mean he did kill our friend but it's all good.  Little holes like that had me scratching my head and when you're at the 8th movie consistency can be tough. The plot also requires you to suspend disbelief. There is plenty of scenes where the law of physics and the human body are thrown out the window. As stated before at this point Dom and his family need to be in Marvel or DC. The lack of logic doesn't hurt the film because it knows it's audience wants good action. However there are too many scenes in here where even the most sense of disbelief  a person will go okay that character should be dead. Overall the story is okay and does well for a non stop action flick. The tone and theme hits the familiar beats of family, loyalty and brotherhood. The film has some emotional moments but truthfully the theme of family and loyalty has run it's course and it's time to inject some new blood into the overall theme of this franchise. 

The acting in The Fate of the Furious is well done. The cast chemistry is stronger than ever. Ludacris and Tyrese bring their comedic chops which really does steal the show. Tyrese has one of the best moments he has had in years finally showing how deadly he actually is with a gun. Dwayne Johnson brings his charismatic charm and one liners to the mix and his chemistry with Jason Statham is great. I would love to see these two in a buddy movie in the future down the line. Michelle Rodriquez doesn't have much to do this time around. However she is the emotional heart of the team this time. She is a woman torn between her loyalty to Dom and the team. Michelle does great showing that battle on her face and in her performance. New entry to the cast Scott Eastwood as Eric Resiner I found entertaining. His character works with Kurt Russell as the new employee to his division. He can be a bit of prick but I felt his chemistry with the team worked well. He is a little under developed but I can see him being a standout should the series move forward. The real star of the movie is Charlize Theron. I love when she plays the antagonist. She is cold, threatening and a psychological threat to Vin Diesel's Dom. Her character Cipher gives off a Bond villain vibe and for the story presented it worked. Finally F. Gary Gary directing the film shows that he can do action as well. His breakout film "Straight Outta Compton" was great. In The Fate of the Furious he is able to unleash everything. The shots are beautiful, the action while over the top was splendid and a wild ride. The best sequence in the film is the New York chase sequence which uses practical and CGI that blends well.

Overall The Fate of the Furious a fun ride but very over the top. If you can suspend disbelief and logic you will have a good time. However the franchise needs a new injection of themes because family and loyalty can only be tested so many times. Eventually Dom and his team will have ride off to the sunset and I think the next ride should be the last ride.