Fast & Furious 9

Stars: Vin Diesel, Charlize Theron, John Cena, Kurt Russell, Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster, Tyrese Gibson, Chris 'Ludacris' Bridges, Nathalie Emmanuel, Sung Kang, Helen Mirren, Lucas Black, Shea Whigham, Cardi B

Director: Justin Lin

After Another Round with a drunken Mads Mikkelson, here's another round with Vin Diesel & Co, who are only drunk on high-speed action. Like Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard, this is James Bond (very) lite. Most of the things that made the series so watchable have now been dumped in the back seat.

Having said that, bits and pieces of the action are still enjoyable, even if they have now zoomed from grounded thrills into the realms of fantasy.

It goes like this. We open predictably on a scene of domestic bliss for Dom (Diesel), Letty (Rodriguez) and their son Brian, but all too soon they're visited by members of their 'fam'ly' (old crew), hurtling them into a fresh adventure with the news that master criminal Cipher (Theron) has escaped from custody.

Cue action around the world (including a 'Japan' that looks little like the real thing) before the series rises literally to new heights (or should it be depths?) at the end, as Dom and the gang pursue another set of objects that can ensure world domination. At least the series is keeping Diesel fit as well as rich (he's looking good at 53), although Cena is pretty wooden as apparent villain Jakob.

Feisty Brit Emmanuel knocks spots off the rest of the female cast, which includes Mirren unwisely reprising her winceworthy role as a cockney crime queenpin. Alas, Fast & Furious 10 is already on the drawing board.

David Quinlan

USA/Canada/Thailand 2021. UK Distributor: Universal. Colour by FotoKem.
145 minutes. Widescreen. UK certificate: 12A.

Guidance ratings (out of 3): Sex/nudity 0, Violence/Horror 1, Drugs 0, Swearing 1.

Review date: 28 Jun 2021