'F9' reviews: Nostalgic nods, Torettos' face-off, super magnets, and space
What's the story
F9 (or Fast & Furious 9) released in South Korea and Hong Kong recently and is scheduled for a June release in the US and India. This, of course, will depend on the COVID-19 situation. So, reviews are in for this ninth installment of the gravity-defying Fast & Furious franchise. They aren't that promising, leading to the question: is it worth the hype?
Fans
Fans wonder if it's the most ridiculous 'F&F' movie yet
Ardent fans of the franchise were hoping that that series could return to being about cars doing things that could (possibly?) be emulated. But F9 is literally sending cars into space, leaving many wondering if it's the most ridiculous F&F movie yet. In this light, IndieWire commended director Justin Lin's effort to turn "a semi-grounded saga about illegal street racers...into a bonafide cinematic universe."
Cast
The brothers, Vin Diesel and John Cena, don't disappoint however
F9 has Vin Diesel and John Cena playing long-lost brothers, Dominic "Dom" and Jakob Toretto, respectively, who duke it out, and fans are here for it! Thankfully, they do not disappoint. "Diesel and Cena are terrific. Tyrese (Gibson as Roman Pearce) is the stealth MVP (Most Valuable Player). It's a cacophony car-crunching mayhem. Plenty of gas left in the tank," critic Courtney Howard said.
Return
The much-anticipated return of Han and Mia
Now, death is seldom final in this crazy franchise, and F9 stands testimony to that. It, after all, brought back the beloved Han from the Tokyo Drift film. But guess what, the script hardly does him justice. But fans still found him just as cool and funny as the previous films. Dom's sister Mia, last seen in the 2015 film Furious 7, returns too.
Twitter Post
'Longtime FAST fans will adore all nods to previous films'
I watched #F9 today it’s exactly what you hope it will be. It is the perfect summer blockbuster. Massive memorable action sequences w/ lots of humor, heart, family drama, super magnets and THEY FINALLY GO TO SPACE! Longtime FAST fans will adore all the nods to previous films. pic.twitter.com/qqidMqrWX0
— Erik Davis (@ErikDavis) May 18, 2021
Early reviews
'Miles from the precision of 'Fast Five': A reviewer
"It's a TON OF FUN!! This is ultimate Fast & Furious," said Molly Freeman (Screen Rant). Howard from Fresh Fiction called F9, "Grandiose fun, bombastic, brazen, bold." However, IndieWire's David Ehrlich said, "F9 is by far the biggest and most ridiculous Fast & Furious yet. [But it's] miles from the precision of Fast Five or the fun of Tokyo Drift."
Box office
One of the highest-grossing film franchises ever
To note, the Fast & Furious franchise is one of the highest-grossing film series ever with combined earnings of around $6 billion at the box office worldwide. Distributed by Universal Pictures, it also inspired a spin-off called Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, which released in 2019 and scorched cash registers. The Fast Saga will finally be concluding with the yet-untitled eleventh film.