Director F. Gary Gray
Genre Action | Crime | Thriller
Cast Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson, Jason Statham, Charlize Theron
Rating PG-13
Release Date April 14th, 2017
“When a mysterious woman seduces Dom into the world of terrorism and a betrayal of those closest to him, the crew face trials that will test them as never before.”
The Fate of the Furious is the 8th installment in the fan favorite The Fast and the Furious franchise, dating all the way back to the original release in 2001. I grew up watching these movies, and as a young sophomore in high school when the first move came out, I remember thinking, "Man it would be cool to be able to have a license and drive a car anytime I want." Granted the ability to drive or even better yet own one of the many amazing cars they have in these movies would be another level entirely. The latest entry is directed by F. Gary Gray, the man who brought us The Negotiator, the thrilling and underappreciated Law Abiding Citizen, and Straight Outta Compton. The stellar cast includes, Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson, Jason Statham, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Ludacris, Charlize Theron, Kurt Russell, Scott Eastwood, and Helen Mirren.
Action-packed, hilarious, and a heartfelt tribute to the beloved late Paul Walker, The Fate of the Furious is yet another stellar entry in the series. I have a special place in my heart for all of the films, although some are certainly better than others, and I own each and every one on crystal clear Blu-ray. Well I am pleased to admit I absolutely loved The Fate of the Furious and I thought it was the perfect way to reignite the franchise and take it in a seemingly new direction. After the trailer was unveiled I, like many other fans, was taken aback by Dominick Toretto's (Vin Diesel) decision to go rogue on his family, which means everything to him as engrained in us for almost 2 decades now. Not knowing why kept me on the edge of my seat throughout, and certainly kept the blood pumping. When the smoke cleared, everything made perfect sense. The prevalence of humor has become a benchmark for the series and this entry is no different. To me that is a tribute to the chemistry the core of the cast has developed over the years. Chris Morgan deserves a great deal of credit as the man who penned the script. He was able to add an impressive level of depth to the story and took full advantage of the acting talents he had at his disposal. Morgan previously wrote Tokyo Drift, Fast & Furious, Fast Five, Fast & Furious 6, and most recently Furious 7. F. Gary Gray proved he is more than capable of grabbing the reigns of the series, picking right up where talented director James Wan left off with Furious 7. I was slightly concerned about that transition just because of what Wan has achieved in his career, but Gray is a man of many skills as well and has also worked with Diesel in the past. What is most mind-blowing to me is the simple fact that they are able to "one-up" themselves with each film, very much an uphill battle each and every time. People can complain all they want about how it used to be about street racing and what happened to that blah blah, but if they continued to make the same old movie over and over again, not only would these same people complain about that, they would flop in the box office and there would be no more franchise. Creativity and a passion for the series has kept The Fast and the Furious alive and I feel blessed to watch it flourish. I won't give anything away but the film also has a few tributes to the late Paul Walker's character Brian, one of which got me pretty good. They handled Paul Walker's death within the framework of the direction of the franchise perfectly with Furious 7, and it was really nice to see them keep his memory alive in the latest film.
It is rare to have a stunt heavy film such as this with literally no evident weakness in terms of the cast. I mean sure much of the cast is considered mid-level by Hollywood standards- Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Ludacris etc, but they have carved out the perfect niche with their characters within this franchise. The Fate of the Furious makes it a point to up the ante by adding not one, but two Oscar winning actresses. Charlize Theron is a fantastic addition to the franchise, even though she finds herself on the bad side of things. Helen Mirren has a small roll but is a very welcomed addition as well. I have been telling people over and over again, that Dwayne Johnson’s surprise role in Fast Five was huge for the franchise, and The Fate of the Furious just further proves that point. Now they add in the likes of Jason Statham alongside Johnson, and you have yourself what some may call a dream come true for fans of action flicks. Add in the continued success of the core cast, and of course the missing yet never to be forgotten pillar of the franchise Paul Walker, and you have yourself a recipe for success that shows no sign of slowing down.
The Fate of the Furious will satisfy fans and newcomers alike, but those expecting an Oscar-worthy film need not apply, this quite simply is popcorn entertainment at its finest. I refuse to refer to the franchise as mindless because each script is well-written, the cast works hard to bring their characters to life, and most importantly each and every person involved pours their heart into what eventually hits the big screen. I read that it was Paul Walker's dream to keep this franchise alive as long as possible, and Vin Diesel is determined to keep that dream alive. Go ahead Vin, continue to do your thing, and I will continue to stand in line on opening day. Highly recommended
