I still find it hard to believe that we are now on our tenth Fast and the Furious movie, including the Hobbs & Shaw spin-off sequel we got back in 2019. It would be easy for me to look down my nose at these movies, but I really do genuinely and unabashedly love them. They have evolved so much over the years, from the comparatively humble beginnings of the original The Fast and the Furious back in 2001 to the ridiculous, physics defying stunts the film series is now known for and honestly, the series is better for it.
As the film opens, we discover that Dom (played by Vin Diesel) and Letty (played by Michelle Rodriguez) are living the quiet life on a secluded farm with Dom's young son, Brian. Soon enough though, they are drawn back to action by teammates Roman (played by Tyrese Gibson), Taj (played by Chris "Ludacris" Bridges) and Ramsey (played by Nathalie Emmanuel) who show up with an encoded message from Mr. Nobody (played by Kurt Russell) sent specifically to Dom's team. Turns out Mr. Nobody's plane had crashed after he arrested series villain Cypher (Charlize Theron) and carrying one half of a highly classified device called Aries, a device that will allow its user access to any computer system they want - including weapons systems. Of particular interest to Dom is that one of the people behind the attempt to steal it was Dom's heretofore unmentioned brother Jakob (played by John Cena). This device needs a second half as well as a specific code in order to work. So the race is on for Dom's team to retrieve the first half from the wreckage of Mr. Nobody's plane and figure out where the second half is before Jakob and his employer, Otto (played by Thue Ersted Rasmussen), who is also holding cyber terrorist Cypher prisoner after rescuing her from the clutches of Mr. Nobody.
The film marks director Justin Lin's return to the series, working from a script he wrote with Daniel Casey. They manage to come up with a suitably entertaining globe trotting adventure that fans of these series have come to expect at this point. The troubled relationship between Dom and his brother Jakob forms the film's emotional backbone, while the race to obtain the Ares device feels a bit like a rehash of Furious 7 and the race to get the similarly powerful God's Eye device. Yet, the funny thing is I really didn't mind because everything surrounding the plot is just straight up fun. The filmmakers come up with a new slew of outrageous stunts, including our intrepid heroes trying to drive across a suspension bridge as it falls apart under them followed by Dom and Letty equally improbably using a remaining cable from the same bridge to swing themselves, in their car, from one cliff to the other. It's these sorts of over the top stunts that get me back into the theater for each crazy installment. This one has even more crazy stunts in store that I don't even dare spoil because the surprise is part of the fun. Of course, this all depends on if you are able to go along with the crazy plot twists this series has foisted on it's audience over the various films resulting in an admittingly messy continuity. Villains become heroes and characters thought to have died have a tendency to be resurrected as needed (this has happened on more than one occasion, with Han (played by Sung Kang) the latest member of the Lazarus club.). Still, that's part of the fun with this series as it grows increasingly self aware of itself, with Roman even remarking at one point how they seem to get out of these various massive cataclysms with nary a scratch on any of them and wondering if they are indeed indestructible.
As this series has grown, it has amassed a large group of characters which the filmmakers do a reasonably good job of juggling. Vin Diesel is still front and center as Dom, who is struggling with whether or not to settle down and get out of the game of globe trotting Special Ops and focus on his family. Of course, he gets pulled back into action but Diesel does a good job portraying Dom's hesitancy. He also handles the emotional conflict Dom encounters with his brother Jakob and their fractured relationship as brothers. Michelle Rodriguez is as ever solid as Letty, Dom's wife and partner in action. Tyrese Gibson continues to steal every scene he is in as the quick witted motor mouth Roman Pierce and much like the previous installments, provides plenty of levity throughout the film, including the aforementioned moment of reflection. Chris "Ludacris" Bridges and Nathalie Emmanuel play off each other one another as the team's resident hackers Taj and Ramsey and the two share decent chemistry, even as they often feel like the other two stooges with Roman. Jordana Brewster makes a welcome return to the series as Mia after sitting out The Fate of the Furious, and is actually part of the team again and right in the middle of the action with the rest of them after being effectively sidelined for much of Fast and Furious 6 and Furious 7. John Cena makes his debut in the series as Jakob and does well with the very conflicted role and juggles his character's rage and animosity towards Dom quite well. Thue Ersted Rasmussen does his best in the role of Otto, but never quite comes across as the formidable villain he's supposed to be. On the other hand, Charlize Theron makes the most of her screen time, relishing playing the clearly unhinged, just wants to watch the world burn Cypher and feels like a far more intimidating baddie.
Overall, one's mileage with F9 is going to vary (no pun intended) depending on whether or not you're willing to go along with the over the top shenanigans this series has become known for because this movie certainly only goes more over the top and outrageous as it goes along. These movies have struck a curious balance between melodrama and the absurd that despite all logic actually still works. So, one's enjoyment of these movies will depend very much on how much you are willing to go along with it. Personally, much like the other entries in the series, I found F9 to be a lot of fun. I certainly had a blast watching it in theaters. Which is a good thing, since we almost certainly have a planned two-part finale coming our way before we know it. I, for one, can't wait.
