the fast and furious | the m0vie blog

New Escapist Column! On How “F9” is All “Family” and No Heart…

Posted on June 25, 2021 by Darren

I published a new In the Frame piece at The Escapist this evening. With the release of F9: The Fast Saga this weekend, it seemed like an opportunity to take a look at one of the paradoxes of the movie.

The Fast and Furious is a franchise about “family.” It is woven into the fabric of the franchise, and very directly into the plot of the latest film. This makes it all the more frustrating that F9 is completely lacking any humanity. With changes to the cast and weird structural choices, F9 has lost touch with the central appeal of the franchise and cut itself off from the warmest members of the ensemble. F9 is a strangely heartless movie about family.

You can read the piece here, or click the picture below.

Filed under: On Second Thought | Tagged: f9: the fast saga, fast and furious, Paul Walker, the fast and furious, the rock, Vin Diesel | Leave a comment »

Non-Review Review: Fast and Furious Presents – Hobbs and Shaw

Posted on August 1, 2019 by Darren

Fast and Furious Presents: Hobbs and Shaw works best when it delivers exactly what audiences expect from that title.

The breakout star of The Fate of the Furious was the chemistry between Jason Statham and Dwayne Johnson. Behind the scenes conflicts between Johnson and franchise headliner Vin Diesel had forced the production team to structure the eighth film in the franchise so Johnson and Diesel didn’t have to share the screen. This led to a number of endearingly absurd set pieces, such as a heart-to-heart appeal between the two men conducted across a street over the speaker systems of monster cars. It also meant that Johnson had to find a new screen partner, and Statham was the member of the ensemble who fit the bill.

I have to admit, there were many more explosions and fistfights than I expected for a historical biopic exploring the relationship between Thomas Hobbes and George Bernard Shaw.

It’s easy to over-intellectualise the chemistry between Johnson and Statham. There’s the obvious physical contrast; Johnson has the bulk of a former professional wrestler, while Statham has the lean physique of a diver. There’s Johnson’s wholesome all-American persona set against Statham’s slightly devilish charm. There’s Johnson’s deep authoritative voice playing off Statham’s distinctly hard-edged accent. The duo play very well as a study in contrasts, while both also being able to support otherwise forgettable action films in their own right. They are a perfect fit.

Hobbs and Shaw works best when it understands this. The film’s best scenes are not the ridiculously over-the-top action scenes, which often seem borrowed or lifted from much better movies and which only fleetingly manage to tip themselves over into the delightful surrealist absurdity that makes the modern (Johnson era) Fast and Furious movies such a delight. Instead, the movie comes to life when Johnson and Statham are trading schoolyard insults, posturing and snarking, indulging in the sort of old-fashioned buddy action movie banter that is so rare these days.