Exploring how family has been presented in each Fast and Furious film, this should be fun!
With Fast and Furious 10 expecting to be released in 2023, we have some catching up and reflecting as to how the family term has evolved in each installment.
When we think about the Fast and Furious films, the nature of simplicity pops to mind. Fast cars, music video esque scenes, and narratives that make no rational sense, however, throughout the saga we have been bombarded with the theme of family.
For better or worse, every single film of the franchise has dealt with a different aspect of the word family, and perhaps Fast and Furious has redefined what family means in blockbuster terminology. Even some of the best blockbusters ever made don’t put this much of an emphasis on a theme as important and relatable as family.
Deaths, betrayals, marriage, barbeques, the Fast and Furious family have stood the test of time and this is thanks to some hefty performances and a cast that have stayed loyal to the franchise since 2001, providing them with a paycheck to last generations, almost as long as the fast and furious saga, put together.
For the case of this article, I wanted to explore how family has been presented in each film and what the messages were. I believe the importance of family has evolved stronger in each film, either because of further character development or a plot that seems to escalate the stakes so much that no Fast and Furious modified brake could stop it, and yes I am even talking to the tech wizard team in the ninth installment.
The production team tends to create a chaotic orchestra around the themes of family, whether that means taking the crew abroad, cars smashing through buildings and characters leaping out of cars to land on another. It’s the scenario that is actually created first then the family is put right in the center, that’s how you get it as effectively as possible.
Despite some unfavourable reviews, I truly believe that if you erase all forms of film criticism and try to immerse yourself into the relationships of the characters in the family, then you can enjoy all of these films. Without getting on board with the concept of family, then the films will probably loose you at some point.
Whether how ridiculous these films have been, Vin Deisel’s commitment to the franchise has been admirable and he has been in pretty much every Fast and Furious film, taking charge of the crew in most installments. Let’s start off with the first film.
1) The Fast and The Furious (2001)
The first film is maybe the most important in the franchise, what we get is the theme of loyalty. I think the film is all about loyalty, staying loyal to the people close to you and not betraying them.
This theme of loyalty gets strengthened throughout the film when we learn of the chemistry between Paul Walker and Vin, who both challenge each others views on family and friendship. As soon as Brian crosses Dom’s family, we learn how important the crew are to him. It establishes a bond that literally cannot be broken, not even flying cars and bullets, that’s for sure. It sets the scene and gets the audience on board.
2) 2 Fast 2 Furious
Although 2 Fast 2 Furious is my least favorite installment, the theme of family can be seen in its bromance between Paul Walker and Tyrese Gibson, who form a close brotherhood, encountering numerous threats in the film including shootouts and gunplay.
Their chemistry is rather infectious, similar to the dynamic in the Bad Boys films. 2 Fast 2 Furious is more of a music video then it is a real fleshed out feature length narrative that challenges the concept of simple entertainment. It’s a short film that knows exactly what is it, perhaps the theme of family isn’t as strong this time around, but brotherhood seems to be the main pull.
3) The Fast and the Furious: Toyko Drift
This is more of a father and son relationship that reaches full circle at the end of the film. For those who havent seen the film, Lucas Black is sent over to Toyko after landing himself in some pretty voilent trouble at his previous school. His relationship with his father practically falls apart, but by the end, the two work together to build a car, designed to win every race. However, not without practice. Check it out.
4) Fast and Furious
The clip above is giving emphasis to Dom’s love to Letty, the series has given a lot of screen time to this relationship until 2009.
This installment is more of a tame reunion, a catchup if you like. The family haven’t seen each other in years and catchup to see how each other have changed and what they are doing now with their lives. Brian O Connor is working for the FBI and fully embracing it yet Dom still has a place for him.
We see conflicts between some of the members, a few clashes over past mistakes and career over family obstacles. Its the same themes in the first films but it’s tweaked slightly. The plot is also not as ambitious as some of the latter releases, making it more contained just like the first film.
What I like about this film is that it reunites Dom and Brian after nearly 10 years since the first film, it tells the audience how and why the two have remained friends, talk about loyalty considering what they have both been through all these years.
5) Fast Five
Talk about a family reunion, this film establishes that theme with amazing action sequences and an even bigger and talented cast. This barbeque scene is the series best family moment and yes the speech was well delivered by Dom. He definitely planned it out before or did he improvise on the spot?
Fast Five which I still think is the best one yet in the franchise, really raising the action sequences and introducing audiences to the whole family yet again since the 1st installment whilst introducing us to Dwayne Johnson, what a charm he turned out to be.
This time around, Brian has entered a committed relationship with Jordana Brewster, who is now pregnant with their first son. Imagine trying to maintain this whilst running and chasing from explosions, talk about marriage obstacles.
We get more scenes with the whole team this time around, interacting and working together on more risk tasking missions, with an onslaught of the term family shared amongst corona beers and plenty of barbeque food.
6) Fast and Furious 6
Dom’s moral values are challenged by Shaw who threatens to push every button.
This gives us more of what we liked from the fifth film, but there is a difference. Letty returns to whom Dom thought was dead. It gives a nice nostalgia nod to Fast and Furious and the 1st film.
This series finds away to always retain the legacy of the characters and to keep their energy pouring into each installment.
7) Furious 7
Furious 7 showed audiences the first real hand to hand combat scene. Yes, Diesel fought Dwayne in Fast Five, but the 7th film showed gave Statham and Vin hammers and various other mechanical weaponry, it’s an advanced showdown with two titans of the franchise, a character that stands for loyalty and the other seeking revenge, two massively contrasting themes coming together in an epic showdown to which we haven’t seen before, The music nearly crosses the line of parody, but it just about gets away it.
Dom acts out physically to Statham and completely goes for it in all meanings of the word action man.
8) The Fate of the Furious
Although, the 8th installment is not the strongest as its plot is probably the least plausible of all nine films. Dom goes rogue and we are meant to buy into that premise. The family element is the strongest when Vin meets his baby and calls him Brian. A nice nod to the late but great Paul Walker’s Brian O’Connor, making it a satisfying moment.
The highlight this time around is Dom’s characer arc, crossing between lines of betrayal to being accepted towards the end. Take note of the films finale, where we learn how important he is to his team and how they cannot afford for him to cross those lines again.
9) Fast and Furious 9
The recent 9th film was the teams most ambitious mission yet, reaching the heights of space and discovering that maybe each member has superhero like abilities. The stakes have increased but its sense and grounding of the characters remains true to blood yet again, with the whole crew returning.
It was great seeing Han return and reestablishes themes of friendship and loyalty once again in dramatic fashion. Dom’s relationship with his crew is the most strongest in this film. Each member cares a lot about each other and are forced to fight against the menacing John Cena.
The film carries the themes of the previous films, by letting the crew work and ride together through waves of advanced enemies. The dynamic between the crew have gone stronger but also the technological context, the weaponry and level of threat is the highest its ever been.
Author Bio
Sam is a content writer. He loves all elements connected with film and writes with passion, always. You can find him on Linkedin, where you will be able to read more articles. When he is not writing, you can find him practicing football
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