F9 The Fast Saga (2021)

I have to give this disclaimer every time I discuss one of the Fast & Furious movies; they aren't my jam. I don't like the aesthetic, the cast, the themes, or the unending commitment to asinine plotting and ridiculous stunts. I get that for many those are exactly the reasons they like the films. So for fans of the FF films. For me, once again the film left me cold. I came close to liking one with Hobbs & Shaw spinoff but it still isn't the sort of film I could get into rewatching for enjoyment. Now that we're back to the main story again, I am once again on the outs with popular opinion. 

For me watching absurdly over the top car chases, explosions, and stunts just isn't enough to entertain. I'm willing to give films a lot of leeway if they are fun but none of these films is quite fun enough for me to get invested. And the stories are just so filled with unreasonable coincidences, melodrama that would make the casts of any Real Housewives show blush, and questionable moral-to-the-stories that I just spend most of the run time frustrated instead of entertained. 

I am going to point out the yes the characters of colour remain sidelined compared to the light skinned cast, serving mostly as comic relief. And yes the women in the film still fill in the support roles there to ensure the men's arcs are completed. And yes, so much of this cast should stop pretending and come out of the fucking closet. I mean, they even when with a Pride Flag poster for this one. But hey! They go to space in this one! Yes, space. Seriously. 

But more power to those who love these films and seeing them on the big screen. I do know what it means to sit in a cinema in the dark and watch spectacle unfold with glee. I hope the audiences who keep consuming these films have that experience with this latest instalment and the endless. 

I do enjoy just how the films keep one upping themselves in the stupid name department. They make James Bond films seem like they have reasonable names. In this case I find it confusing. This one appears to be named "The Fast Saga" but to me the term "saga" implies the entire series. Yet this one is the "saga?"  Okay. 

F9 The Fast Saga

Starring: Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, John Cena, Chris "Ludacris" Bridges, Helen Mirren, Charlize Theron, Michael Rooker, Kurt Russell, Sung Kang, Jordana Brewster, Nathalie Emmanuel, Lucas Black, Bow Wow, Jason Tobin, Gal Gadot, Jason Statham

Director: Justin Lin

Writers: Daniel Casey, Justin Lin