* * * *
The Fate of the Furious.
Directed by F Gary Gray.
With Vin Diesel, Jason Statham,
Dwayne Johnson, Charlize Theron, Helen Mirren.
REVIEW:
Paul Eksteen
It’s all about family. Or so the tagline goes. You couldn’t make the irony up. The word behind the scenes is that Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has it in for Fast & Furious stalwart Vin Diesel. They share one scene together, during the now obligatory pre-meal prayer, and considering the muscle Johnson sports through the course of this film, Diesel had better cross himself and put all those souped-up horsies to good use.
In The Fate of the Furious, Diesel’s Dominic Toretto and Letty (Rodriguez) have settled into a languid lifestyle (well, as languid as you can get with a stylised hotrod as your ride) in Havana when an international terrorist forces Toretto to betray his family. Cipher (Theron) plans to hold the world accountable for trying to shut her down by stealing nuclear warheads, and dangles a precious carrot in front of Toretto in order to make him do her bidding – the baby son he never knew he had.
With an international relations disaster at hand, the US government hires the rest of Toretto’s crew, including former foe Deckard Shaw (Statham) to hunt him down. Joining in the high-stakes fun is agent Eris Resner (Scott Eastwood) and covert ops leader Frank Petty (Russell). It’s a terrific grouping of talent, but it’s only when Toretto manages to double-cross Cipher that they manage to gain any level footing in a war that involves stunts on a frozen ocean with a nuclear sub, a New York traffic jam like no other, and a memorable shootout involving a baby seat.
When Cipher escapes, it’s pretty much the signal that this very successful assignment is revving up for more instalments. And though the script is essentially a remix of Fast 6, the Fast & Furious formula, bolstered by the presence of serious star power, has yet to run out of puff. In Cipher, the franchise is blessed with a villain distilled in a vat of pure evil. Theron plays an ice princess like she was born to the role and her backstory cries out for more flesh. Meanwhile, Johnson and Statham dominate the physical action, cutting a swathe through hordes of heavies and seriously cheesy one-liners.
It’s no Oscar contender, but it doesn’t pretend to be. With an army of dedicated fans, The Fate of the Furious dishes up exactly what they will be filling up the cinemas for: eye-candy by the bucketload, beautiful cars and high-octane action.