F9

F9
2021 | Dir. Justin Lin | 145 Minutes

"It’s not about being the stronger man, Dom. It’s about being the bigger one."


Dominic Toretto's crew is called to action again when rogue agents forcefully extract their nemesis Cipher from Mr. Nobody's custody. With help from a long lost friend, Dom must confront his past in order to save the world from a would-be despot in league with an unexpected adversary, Dom and Mia's estranged brother Jakob.

While there is still plenty of mindless fun to be had, F9 is equal parts forced sequel and unnecessary prequel, loaded with flashbacks dubiously attempting to manufacture a plot that barely holds together the film's set pieces while serving up a massive helping of perhaps misguided fan service to those who have stuck with the films through thick and thin. The sudden introduction of a long lost Toretto sibling this late in the game doesn't quite work despite all the effort expended to weave him into established continuity. The sequences featuring younger actors filling in as Dom and Jakob in their pre-The Fast and the Furious youth do a decent job of fleshing out the story of their father's tragic demise while bringing the picture back to the franchise's racing roots, but they also show just how far the series has come in a bad way, juxtaposing sharply against its current loud, over-the-top, mostly nonsensical smorgasbord of impossible stunts and espionage action. More in response to fan demand than to serve the overarching plot of these pictures in any meaningful way, the more the filmmakers attempt to explain Han's seemingly miraculous return the less it makes sense on a story level, arguably invalidating the mid-credits twist at the end of Fast & Furious 6 and practically discarding the entire dramatic motivation behind Furious 7. The one aspect of the script that works remarkably well is the self-referential humor offered up by Roman and Tej as the bickering duo become aware of and question the crew's apparent invulnerability.

The action scenes are competent but they frankly just aren't as fresh as the ones from previous, better installments. The jungle sequence in the first act featuring a car chase through a minefield culminating is a physics-defying, logic-defying vehicular swing across a mountain range is absolutely ridiculous even for this series. Thankfully, the mid-film and climatic chase sequences through Edinburgh and Tbilisi heavily featuring highly exaggerated electromagnet mayhem are much more amusing. Roman and Tej's impractical excursion into Earth's orbit is also good fun despite leaving the strong impression of being shoehorned into the picture to address years of mostly-ironic speculation from fans. Leaving much to be desired, all of the hand-to-hand combat sequences are sloppily performed, and choppily shot and cut.

Disappointingly, Vin Diesel practically sleepwalks through this film despite being the de facto lead this time around. John Cena does a fine job as Jakob, appropriately intimidating while easily selling the role of a sympathetic antagonist. Playing young Dom and Jakob, Vinnie Bennett and Finn Cole deliver serviceable impressions of Vin Diesel and John Cena while lifting more dramatic weight than either top-billed star. JD Pardo also stands out as Toretto patriarch Jack, giving the character an proper face as well as a bit of unexpected nuance. Thue Ersted Rasmussen plays a rather forgettable antagonist that's a cross between a poor man's David Bowie and an even poorer man's Elon Musk. Michael Rooker is a great addition as Toretto family friend Buddy but his role is mostly thankless. Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster return not only to take part in a fair amount to the action but also share a few decent dramatic beats as Letty and Mia for once. The natural comedic chemistry between Tyrese Gibson and Chris "Ludacris" Bridges is at its very best, allowing the pair to deliver the best Roman and Tej moments to date. Nathalie Emmanuel capitalizes on her chance to show off her comedy skills as Ramsey in one hilarious action sequence. It's a thrill to see Sung Kang return as Han but he oddly doesn't have very much to do besides escorting a living McGuffin played by Anna Sawai, doing what she can with such a vague sketch of a character. Tokyo Drift alums Lucas Black, Bow Wow, and Jason Tobin are a welcome sight despite being awkwardly slotted into the plot. Also returning from previous films are Kurt Russell, Charlize Theron, Shea Whigham, Helen Mirren, and Don Omar in what amount to glorified cameos.

Constructing its plot through excessive retconning and packed with increasingly silly novel gimmicks, F9 fully embraces the franchise's post-shark-jump status with mostly mixed results. While it's an entertaining installment overall, more discerning audiences can't be blamed for checking out entirely at this point. This one can only be recommended for ride or die Fast & Furious fans.


MID-CREDITS STINGER
Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) letting off some steam beating a sniveling man inside a punching bag is interrupted by a knock on the door. Shaw opens the door to see Han.


FRAGMENTS
- The series' tradition of assigning unconventional titles to its sequels continues; while the title of this installment is neat and succinct F9, the marketing campaign gives this film, and perhaps the mainline series itself, the rather heavy-handed subtitle The Fast Saga

- In Japan, the title for this film is Wild Speed: Jet Break

- The film opens with a variation of the Universal Pictures logo based on the version from the 1990s

- The drag race flashback sequence is particularly amusing in how features a complete cast of actors playing young versions of the Dom's entire original crew from The Fast and the Furious

- While it's not any more out of place than anything else featured in this series, the Cardi B cameo is super distracting 

- Revisiting stock footage of pre-Wonder Woman Gal Gadot's Gisele from Fast & Furious 6 sure is trip

- The Star Wars banter between Otto and Cipher is actually kind of hilarious



- Charlize Theron (Clea in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness)
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Luca

LUCA
2021 | Dir. Enrico Casarosa | 101 Minutes

"Some people, they’ll never accept him, but some will, and he seems to know how to find the good ones."


Disguised as humans, teenage sea monsters Luca and Alberto enter a small coastal town looking for a Vespa with dreams of traveling the world. Giulia, a fisherman's plucky daughter, recruit the duo to enter a triathlon in hopes of besting the town bully. Though constantly at risk of discovery by the fearful townspeople while dodging Luca's over-protective parents, Luca and Alberto have the summer of their lives.

Set in the Italian Riviera, Luca is an ode to Italian culture and youthful summer days spent with friends swimming, biking, gorging on pasta, and dreaming in the sun. For better or worse, the tone of the film is as light as its low-stakes plot, though the narrative gains a considerable amount of momentum at the end of the second act as the picture's central relationship, a fully-realized friendship with ups and downs that are true to life, eventually presents a conflict more compelling than the one posed by the story's antagonist. In its third act, the picture comes together beautifully, particularly during the frantic climatic triathlon sequence. Beyond the bountiful comedy mined from its literal fish-out-water premise, jokes and physical gags that practically write themselves, the simple story of a mythical creature going to great lengths to pass as human in order to live among them may easily be applied as a metaphor for the experiences of anyone who has ever been labeled an outsider by society.

As to be expected from a Pixar film, the attention to detail in every aspect of the production design is meticulous and absolutely lovely. Populated with countless interesting unique extras and landmarks that quickly become recognizable, weathered to perfection, the fishing town of Portorosso feels alive, believable, welcoming, and very Italian. While the animation quality is splendid throughout, the fantastical dream sequences within Luca's imagination in particular are full of wonder and spectacle.

Jacob Tremblay delivers a natural performance as the eponymous hero of the story, lending his youthful voice to a boy who gradually learns to stifle his fears and pursue his dreams. Tremblay plays perfectly off of Jack Dylan Grazer's over-confident, secretly insecure Alberto, creating an amusing dynamic. Voicing the fiery Giulia, Emma Berman is appropriately full of pep. Slightly over-the-top, Saverio Raimondo imbues the bully Ercole with almost too much smarm. Maya Rudolph and Jim Gaffigan's opposing comedic stylings are perfectly fit Luca's high-strung mother and laid-back father. The film also features Marco Barricelli as Giulia's taciturn father with a heart of gold, Sandy Martin as Luca's knowing and subtly supportive grandmother, and Sacha Baron Cohen as the bizarre anglerfish Uncle Ugo.

Luca is a real crowd pleaser, full of joy and emotionally resonant where it counts. A brisk ride through an idyllic Italian summer setting, it is a heartwarming if rather modest picture greatly elevated by Pixar's customary top quality artistry. Its small-scale story of friendship and overcoming fear as an outsider isn't the most dramatic narrative by modern animated feature standards, though it may be a richer allegory than expected for audiences who care to read into it.


POST-CREDITS STINGER
Uncle Ugo monologues about life in the deep to a lost sheepfish.


A113
Luca's train ticket to Genova is ticket number A113


PIXAR INTERCONNECTIVITY
- The ball from 1986 Pixar animated short Luxo, Jr. appears on the roof of one of the buildings during the triathlon sequence

- A Pizza Planet Piaggio Ape appears during the final rainy stretch of the triathlon


FRAGMENTS
- The film is credited as "produced in our slippers around the bay area" in reference to how the picture was produced remotely by Pixar staff during the COVID-19 lockdown of 2020

- Luca's surname is Paguro which means "hermit crab" in Italian, while Alberto's is Scorfano which means "scorpionfish"

- The town of Portorosso is named after Hayao Miyazaki's 1992 film Porco Rosso

- 94608, the number on the train to Genova, is the zip code for Pixar Animation Studios in Emeryville, California

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