The Fate of the Furious
The Fate of the Furious is a 2017 American action film directed by F. Gary Gray and written by Chris Morgan. A sequel to 2015's Furious 7, it is the eighth installment in the Fast & Furious franchise and stars Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson, Jason Statham, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Chris "Ludacris" Bridges, Scott Eastwood, Nathalie Emmanuel, Elsa Pataky, Kurt Russell, and Charlize Theron. The Fate of the Furious follows Dominic Toretto, who has settled down with his wife Letty Ortiz, until cyberterrorist Cipher coerces him into working for her and turns him against his team, forcing them to find Dom and take down Cipher.
Plans for an eighth installment were first announced in March 2015 when Diesel appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! and announced that the film would be set in New York City. Preparations for the film began immediately after the release of Furious 7, with Diesel, Morgan, and producer Neal H. Moritz re-signing. After setting an initial release date in the same month, casting took place between April and June 2015. In October 2015, Gray was announced to direct the film in the place of James Wan, who had directed the previous installment. Principal photography began in March 2016 in locations such as Mývatn, Havana, Atlanta, Cleveland, and New York City, continuing the franchise's tradition of filming in exotic locations around the world.
The Fate of the Furious premiered in Berlin on April 4, 2017 and was theatrically released in conventional and IMAX theaters in the United States on April 14, 2017 while also playing in 3D, IMAX 3D, and 4DX internationally. The film received mixed reviews from critics, many of whom praised the performances and action sequences, but criticized the storyline and the long running time. The film grossed over $1.2 billion worldwide, making it the thirtieth film to gross over $1 billion, the third-highest-grossing film of 2017, and the eleventh highest-grossing film of all time. It also grossed $541.9 million worldwide during its opening weekend, which made it the highest-grossing worldwide opening of all time until the release of the following year.
A sequel, F9, is scheduled to be released on April 2, 2021.
Plot
Following the defeat of Deckard Shaw and Mose Jakande, Dominic "Dom" Toretto and Letty Ortiz are on their honeymoon in Havana when Dom's cousin Fernando gets in trouble owing money to local racer Raldo. Sensing Raldo is a loan shark, Dom challenges Raldo to a race, pitting Fernando's reworked car against Raldo's, and wagering his own Third Generation Chevrolet Impala. After narrowly winning the race, Dom allows Raldo to keep his car, earning his respect, and instead leaves his cousin with his car.The next day, Dom is approached by the elusive cyberterrorist Cipher who coerces him into working for her by showing him an unseen photo. Shortly afterwards, Dom and his team, comprising Letty, Roman Pearce, Tej Parker, and Ramsey, are recruited by Diplomatic Security Service agent Luke Hobbs to help him retrieve an EMP device from a military outpost in Berlin. During the getaway, Dom goes rogue, forcing Hobbs off the road and stealing the device for Cipher. Hobbs is arrested and locked up in the same high-security prison in which he helped imprison Shaw. After Shaw and Hobbs both escape the prison, they are recruited by intelligence operative Mr. Nobody and his protégé to help the team find Dom and capture Cipher. Shaw reveals that Cipher had hired his brother Owen to steal the Nightshade device and Mose Jakande to steal God's Eye, Ramsey's software program. The team tracks Dom and Cipher to their very location just as the latter two attack the base, causing injuries to the team, and stealing God's Eye. Roman suggests bringing Brian in to help them, but Letty rejects the idea as they agreed not to bring him and Mia into any more missions for the sake of their children.
When Dom questions Cipher's motives, she reveals that she has been holding hostage Dom's ex-lover and DSS agent Elena Neves—as well as their son, of whose existence Dom was previously unaware. Elena tells Dom that she wanted him to decide the child's first name, having already given him the middle name Marcos.
In New York City, Cipher sends Dom to retrieve a nuclear football held by the Russian Minister of Defense. Prior to the theft, Dom briefly evades Cipher—with the help of Raldo—and persuades Shaw's mother, Magdalene Shaw, to help him. Cipher hacks into the electronics systems of a large number of cars, causing them to disable the convoy so that Dom can take the football. The team intercepts Dom, but Dom escapes, shooting and apparently killing Shaw in the process. Letty catches up to Dom, but is ambushed and nearly killed by Cipher's enforcer, Connor Rhodes, before Dom rescues her. In retaliation, Cipher has Rhodes execute Elena in front of a helpless Dom.
Dom infiltrates a base in Russia to use the EMP device to disable their security and then to disable a nuclear submarine, enabling Cipher to hijack it and attempt to use its arsenal to trigger a nuclear war. They are once again intercepted by the team, who attempt to shut down the sub, and then drive out toward the gates that would prevent the sub from leaving into open waters. Meanwhile, Shaw, whose death was faked, teams up with Owen, and at Magdalene's behest, infiltrates Cipher's plane to rescue Dom's son. Once Shaw reports that the child is safe, Dom turns on Cipher and kills Rhodes, before rejoining his team. Infuriated, Cipher fires an infrared homing missile at Dom, but he breaks away from his team and maneuvers around it, causing the missile to hit the submarine instead. The team quickly forms a vehicular blockade around Dom, shielding him from the ensuing explosion. Shaw reaches the front of the plane and confronts Cipher, who jumps from the plane with a parachute.
Mr. Nobody and his protégé visit Dom and his team in New York City to report that Cipher is still at large in Athens. Hobbs is offered his DSS job back, but he declines in order to spend more time with his daughter. Shaw delivers Dom his son, putting his differences aside with Dom and Hobbs. Dom names his son Brian, after his friend and brother-in-law Brian O'Conner, and celebrates with his friends.
Cast
- Vin Diesel as Dominic Toretto, a former criminal and professional street racer who has retired and settled down with his wife, Letty and the Biological Father of Brian.
- Dwayne Johnson as Luke Hobbs, a Diplomatic Security Service agent who allied with Dom and his team following their outings in Rio de Janeiro and Europe.
- Jason Statham as Deckard Shaw, a rogue British Special Forces assassin who was imprisoned by Hobbs and the DSS after his defeat in Los Angeles, who serves as an ally to help Dom's team take down Cipher.
- Michelle Rodriguez as Letty Ortiz, Dom's wife and a former professional street racer and the stepmother of Brian.
- Tyrese Gibson as Roman Pearce, a former criminal from Barstow and a member of Dom's team.
- Chris "Ludacris" Bridges as Tej Parker, a mechanic from Miami and a member of Dom's team.
- Scott Eastwood as Eric Reisner / Little Nobody, a law enforcement agent working under Mr. Nobody.
- Nathalie Emmanuel as Ramsey, a computer hacktivist and a member of Dom's team.
- Elsa Pataky as Elena Neves, the biological mother of Brian and a former Rio de Janeiro police officer who moved to the United States to become Hobbs' new partner at the DSS.
- Kurt Russell as Mr. Nobody, an intelligence operative and the leader of a covert ops team which previously aided Dom and his team in taking down Deckard in Abu Dhabi.
- Charlize Theron as Cipher, a criminal mastermind and cyberterrorist who coerces Dom into working against his team by holding Elena and their son hostage.
Production
Development
Following the release of Furious 7, Vin Diesel said regarding a possible sequel:Diesel further hinted at an eighth film on Jimmy Kimmel Live! when he stated that Kurt Russell's character would span multiple films. He also stated that the next film would take place in New York City. Chris Morgan returned to write his sixth script in the franchise, while Neal H. Moritz returned to produce. Moritz later stated, " is going to have to be something enticing for all of us. It has to be as good as or better ".
At the 2015 CinemaCon in Las Vegas, Diesel announced the film for an April 14, 2017 release date. On August 16, 2015, at the 2015 Teen Choice Awards, Diesel gave the film the initial title Fast 8. In September 2015, Diesel stated that the script had almost been completed, and expressed interest in Rob Cohen, who directed the first film, to direct the eighth installment. On October 14, 2015, Diesel announced on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon that Straight Outta Compton director F. Gary Gray would direct the film.
In July 2015, Moritz said that Walker's character, Brian O'Conner, would not appear in the film, following the use of CGI in the previous film after Walker died in a single-vehicle accident on November 30, 2013, with Moritz stating that his character had "moved on". It had previously been reported that Paul's younger brother, Cody Walker, would either join the cast in a new role, or replace his older brother in the role of O'Conner; however, it was later announced that the character will not return to the franchise. Moritz also said that the film would shift the focus of the franchise from a series of heist films to a spy caper, following a similar change in focus from street racing in Fast Five. In December 2016, the film was retitled The Fate of the Furious.
Casting
Diesel, Russell, and Michelle Rodriguez were the first to confirm their involvement in the film, and Tyrese Gibson and Chris Bridges both confirmed their return soon after. Lucas Black had signed on to reprise his role from ' as Sean Boswell for Furious 7, and two more instalments in September 2013, though he did not appear in Fate. In May 2015, Dwayne Johnson confirmed his involvement in the film, additionally hinting at a possible spin-off film involving his character, Luke Hobbs. Jason Statham also confirmed his return. In April 2016, Charlize Theron and Kristofer Hivju were confirmed as additions to the cast, in villainous roles, while Scott Eastwood also joined the film as a law enforcement agent. On May 17, 2016, Diesel posted a photo on his Instagram page of himself and Elsa Pataky on set, indicating that she had also returned for the film, and was followed two days later by a video on set with Nathalie Emmanuel, who also starred in the previous film. In June 2016, Helen Mirren announced in an interview with Elle that she would appear in the film. In July 2016, Don Omar tweeted that he and Tego Calderon would return to the franchise for the eighth picture. During an interview with Chris Mannix on July 21, 2016, Lucas Black confirmed he would not appear in the eighth instalment, due to scheduling conflicts with '.Filming
In keeping with the franchise's penchant for filming in "exotic" locations, such as Dubai and Rio de Janeiro, in January 2016 it was announced that Universal was seeking approval from the United States and Cuban governments to shoot part of the film in Cuba. Principal photography began on March 14, 2016, in Mývatn, Iceland, where strong winds sent a plastic iceberg prop flying into a paddock. The prop struck two horses: one was wounded and the other mortally injured; it was later euthanized. In late April, filming began in Cuba's capital city, Havana. In May, filming also took place in Cleveland, Ohio. Franchise cinematographer Stephen F. Windon returned for the eighth instalment. Filming also took place in Atlanta and New York City.Music
, who scored the third, fourth, fifth, and seventh installments, was tapped to compose the film score for the eighth picture. A soundtrack album by Atlantic Records was released on April 14, 2017, coinciding with the film's US theatrical release. The film's score album was released on April 27, by Back Lot Music.Release
The Fate of the Furious had its world premiere in Berlin on April 4, 2017. The film was theatrically released in the United States on April 14, 2017, playing in 3D, IMAX 3D, and 4DX internationally, and received a day-and-date release across major markets such as Australia, the United Kingdom, China, and India, beginning on April 12, 2017. The film was released day-and-date in 1,074 IMAX screens around the world, making it the widest day-and-date opening in IMAX history.Home media
The Fate of the Furious was released on 4K, Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital HD on July 11, 2017, but has yet to be released in 3D Blu-ray.Reception
Box office
The Fate of the Furious grossed $226 million in the United States and Canada and $1.010 billion in other territories for a worldwide total of $1.236 billion, against a production budget of $250 million. It is Universal Pictures' most ambitious worldwide distribution release in the studio's history. The film was released day-and-date in 64 territories worldwide, including almost all major markets, starting from April 12, 2017, and was projected to earn anywhere between $375–440 million in its five-day opening weekend. By the end of the weekend, it ended up earning $539.9 million from nearly 23,000 screens, way above initial projections, to score the biggest global opening in cinematic history until it was surpassed by ' the following year. It also marked the third time that a film earned over $500 million in a single weekend, after ' and Jurassic World. In IMAX, the film made $31.1 million from 1,079 screens to record the biggest IMAX April debut and the fourth-biggest overall at the time.On April 30, it crossed the $1 billion threshold, becoming the second release of 2017, the fifth film released by Universal Pictures and the thirtieth film overall in cinematic history to gross over $1 billion. It was the third-highest-grossing film of the year, behind , and Beauty and the Beast, the second-biggest action film that is not a fantasy or superhero movie, behind Furious 7, and was Universal's highest-grossing live-action release since Jurassic World back in June 2015.
The Fate of the Furious concluded 2017 as the third highest-grossing film of the year worldwide.
North America
Like many of its predecessors, The Fate of the Furious was released in the United States and Canada in the month of April, and like its immediate predecessor, occupied the lucrative Easter week holiday period slot, where it was expected to open with $100–125 million. It received the widest pre-summer release ever, at an estimated 4,304 venues, besting the 4,242 opening theater count of ' the previous March. The film made $10.4 million from Thursday night previews from 3,310 theaters, the second-highest of the franchise behind Furious 7s $15.8 million. On its opening day it grossed $45.6 million, with Thursday previews making up 22.8% of the amount, slightly better than the 23% for Furious 7. Earning a total of $98.8 million on its opening weekend, the film scored the second-biggest opening in the franchise and the third-biggest April debut, behind Furious 7 and The Jungle Book. It posted an almost identical weekend multiplier like its immediate predecessor. However, this is not surprising considering how both films opened over Good Friday/Easter Sunday stretch. Scott Mendelson of Forbes magazine compared the opening to how Spectre opening fell from Skyfall. One notable record the film set was the best opening for a film with an African-American director, with Gray besting his own record set with Straight Outta Compton in 2015.Sticking to the franchise's famous and lauded habit of including a multi-ethnic cast of characters, the film played to audiences of all ethnicities. Domestically, Caucasians made up 41 percent of the audience, followed by Hispanics, African-Americans, Asians, and Native American/Other, according to comScore's exit polling service PostTrack. The pic skewed male at 58 percent, far more than the last film at 51 percent. 2D ticketbuyers represented 57% of the film's opening compared to its predecessor's 71%. This means more die-hard moviegoers came out to watch the eighth instalment rather than people who do not typically go to the movies.
While The Fate of the Furiouss debut is 34% less than its predecessor's opening, critics have noted that the debut is still considered a massive success and not a big letdown given it is the eighth installment in an action franchise. Universal Pictures was well aware that the robust debut of Furious 7 could not be duplicated due to the wave of good reviews and publicity over the death of star Paul Walker, as well as the notion that the installment was both a farewell to the actor and a kind of coronation for the franchise as a whole. Nevertheless, the film benefited from Easter holiday business with 74% of all K-12 schools off on Good Friday as well as a third of the nation's colleges. The film comes out in the wake of its parent franchise celebrating 16 years of availability in cinemas. To wit, few film franchises which are close to 20 years old have demonstrated a box office ability to increase their openings with each installment over time or maintain them in close proximity in terms of debut numbers; James Bond film series, Batman film series, Jurassic Park franchise, and Star Wars franchise.
Its hefty opening was followed by the second-biggest April Monday gross ever with $8.5 million, behind the seventh installment. Its Sunday to Monday drop was 60% compared to its prequel's 57% drop which is far better than the Monday dropped witnessed by other April releases; The Jungle Book and ', albeit without the advantage of a school holiday. Despite the entry of four new wide releases, critics and box office prognosticators kept a close watch on how much the film would drop in its second weekend. The film fell precipitously on its second Friday earning $11.17 million for a 76% drop which is the biggest in the franchise's history, besting the 72% drops for both its two immediate predecessors. The steep decline maybe attributed not because of the onslaught of competitions, but rather due to the polarized reception received by the film and due to just 12% K-12 schools beings off compared to 74% on Good Friday. It kept its hold at No. 1, albeit dropping about 61% in its sophomore frame for an estimated $38.4 million. That domestic drop is right in line with the 59–63% drops of the six previous installment in the franchise's on their second weekend out. It topped the box office for three straight weekends, witnessing similar weekend-to-weekend percentage drops like its prequel, albeit earning lesser in terms of numbers.
Outside North America
Internationally, The Fate of the Furious secured a release in 69 countries. The film was projected to post an opening between $275–330 million from over 20,000 screens, with some analysts believing it could go as high as $350–400 million. It opened Wednesday, April 12, 2017, in 8 countries, earning $17.9 million. It opened in 33 more countries on Thursday, April 2, for a total of 41 countries, earning $58.4 million, marking Universal Pictures overseas' highest-grossing Thursday ever, and for a two-day total of $82.2 million. It added 22 more countries on Friday, April 3, earning $112.1 million to score Universal International's highest-grossing Friday of all time, for a three-day total of $194.8 million. The robust Friday take helped Universal push past $1 billion internationally in 2017 which is the second-quickest ever and the studio's eleventh consecutive year overall the pass the mark. Moreover, on the same day, the franchise crossed the $4 billion milestone. In total, through Sunday, the film registered an opening of $441.1 million from 64 markets, setting new records for the biggest April international debut, Universal's biggest, and the biggest of all time overall —It is the first such film to open past $400 million in a single weekend with a bulk of it coming from China. Around $22.6 million came from IMAX screens which is Universal's second-biggest behind only Jurassic World. It topped the international charts for a second consecutive term, adding another $158.1 million after which it was surpassed by Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, another film starring Diesel and Russell, in its third weekend. In IMAX, the film has grossed north of $58 million. On May 28, the film officially passed the $1 billion threshold to become the second film in the franchise, following Furious 7, and the sixth film to pass the said mark.It set the record for the biggest opening day of 2017 in every territory it has been released at, the biggest opening day of all time in 16 markets, Universal's biggest opening day ever in 22 territories and the biggest opening in the franchise in 38 markets. Moreover, it recorded the biggest paid previews of all time in Malaysia, Singapore, Venezuela, and Vietnam. In terms of opening weekend, the film debuted at No. 1 in all markets where it set the biggest opening weekend of all time in 20 markets; Universal's biggest opening weekend ever in 28 markets; and the biggest opening in the franchise in 40 markets. The top openings were recorded in China, Mexico, the UK and Ireland, Russia, Germany, Brazil, India, Korea, Middle East combined, Taiwan, France, Australia, Argentina, Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, Spain, Colombia, Thailand, Panama, Pakistan, and Romania. Comparing market-to-market performance, Furious 7 had an opening worth $250 million without China and Russia while The Fate of the Furious delivered $228.2 million debut, sans the two aforementioned markets. In Japan, the film debuted with $7.5 million. Although that's a new record for the franchise, the film debuted at number three behind Disney's Beauty and the Beast and local film '—their robust second-weekend earnings blocked the former from taking the top spot, making Japan one of the few markets where the film didn't open at No. 1.
Expectations were high for the film's performance in China, as its predecessor set notable records and went on to become the biggest film release there. The film was rebranded in Chinese as The Fast and the Furious 8 to make clear its connection to Furious 7. After ticket sales began on April 2, the film pre-sold more than RMB 125 million worth of tickets before its release, breaking the previous record held by local film ' three months prior. Moreover, it also set a record for the fastest IMAX advance sales, with RMB 16.5 million, breaking the previous record held by ', according to leading local movie site Mtime. In total, it pre-sold around $43.5 million tickets two hours before previews began, the biggest ever in the country. It earned a record-breaking RMB 59.8 million from Thursday paid previews, breaking its predecessor's former record of RMB 52.5 million. On Friday, the film was screened in approximately 158,000 screens, a new record for any film, breaking Warcrafts former 122,000 screen counts, and almost double the estimated 80,700 screen count of its predecessor. By Friday noon, it had already grossed $30 million. Buoyed by positive word-of-mouth—9.4/10 user rating on mobile ticketing platform Maoyan, and 7.4/10 from reviews aggregator Douban—and effective marketing campaign, it set a new record for the biggest single-day ever at the Chinese box office, including previews. This was achieved at 7 p.m. local time. In total, the film grossed an estimated RMB 452.8 million on its opening day, inclusive of previews and online ticketing surcharges, compared to the RMB 398 million posted by its predecessor. It is the first film in Chinese history to register above RMB 400 million in a single day. Earning a total of RMB 1.323 billion, according to Chinese sources and RMB 190 million, according to Universal, in its debut weekend, it set a new milestone for three-day opening weekend and overall the second-best debut ever behind only local pic The Mermaid, which had the benefit of four days of previews over the New Year period in February 2016. An estimated $14 million came from 395 IMAX screens, the second-biggest-ever in the country, behind Warcraft. Its three-day debut alone made it the biggest Hollywood release of 2017 and the third-biggest overall. Factoring out online ticketing surcharges, the total comes to a slightly less-hefty RMB 1.245 billion. In just nine days, the film passed the historic RMB 2 billion and thereby became the biggest release of the year. The film fell precipitously by 71.4% in its second weekend, earning RMB 374 million for a massive 10-day total of RMB 2.19 billion. On April 30, it became the biggest Hollywood/foreign release of all time with RMB 2.44 billion, surpassing its prequels former record of 2.41 billion. However, in terms of US currency, The Fate of the Furious is still behind Furious 7. After three consecutive weeks of topping the charts, it slipped to fourth place after being dethroned by Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 from the top spot. It has so far grossed a total of RMB 2.671 billion and is the country's second-biggest grosser ever, behind only The Mermaid at the time of its release.
In India, the film secured a release across approximately 1,600–1,800 screens. Like other Hollywood releases, it was released in both 2K projections and normal projections, and dubbed in local languages such as Hindi, Tamil and Telugu. It is the first international film to be dubbed into the Kannada language. Despite clashing with local film Begum Jaan, analysts believe the two films will not affect each other's performance, as they appeal to distinct moviegoers. Universal had high hopes in the territory, after Furious 7 grossed an unprecedented $24.9 million in 2015, and became the biggest foreign release ever in the country at the time of its release. The Central Board of Film Certification gave the film a UA rating, rather than an A for adults, after the studio agreed to cut several profanities. It earned around net from Wednesday paid previews. The following day it grossed, including previews. On its official opening day, it grossed for a three-day total of. Earning a total of $10.7 million, it set a new record for the biggest-ever foreign opening in the country, toppling its prequel's former record. As such, it is the first foreign film to open north of $10 million. Following its record breaking opening, it fell about 58% on its second weekend excluding previews, earning another $4 million for a two-weekend total of over $17.4 million, With over $19.2 million it is currently the biggest foreign release of the year. However, in terms of net earnings—which is the base for box office calculations in India—the film was unable to break past the mark, stalling at around. Despite a record breaking opening, it lost significant amount of screen counts and audiences thereafter, partly due to the release of .
The biggest-earning markets are China, followed by Brazil, the UK and Ireland, Mexico, and Germany. In Peru, it has become Universal's highest-grossing film ever. With over $1 billion in international receipts and representing a boffo 82% of the film's total worldwide gross, it is currently the seventh-biggest overseas earner behind Avatar, Titanic, Furious 7, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and Jurassic World''.
Critical response
The Fate of the Furious received mixed reviews. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 67% based on 301 reviews, and an average rating of 6.13/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "The Fate of the Furious opens a new chapter in the franchise, fueled by the same infectious cast chemistry and over-the-top action fans have come to expect." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score 56 out of 100, based on 45 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale, while PostTrak reported filmgoers gave it an 88% overall positive score and a 71% "definite recommend."Mike Ryan of Uproxx gave the film a positive review, writing: "This isn't my favorite of the series—that's still Furious 7. These movies know what they are. These movies know they are fun. These are fun movies!" Owen Gleiberman of Variety, in his positive review of the film, wrote: "Most franchises, after eight films, are feeling a twinge of exhaustion, but this one has achieved a level of success—and perpetual kinetic creative energy—that's a testament to its commercial/cultural/demographic resonance." He also wrote, "If this series, over the last 16 years, has taught us anything, it's that just when you think it's about to run out of gas, it gets outfitted with an even more elaborate fuel-injection system."
David Ehrlich of IndieWire gave the film a C− and called it the worst entry of the franchise, saying: "As much a mess of conflicting tones and styles as it is of locations, this setpiece—like the rest of Gray's movie—feels like a heap of random parts that were thrown together in the hopes that fate might somehow weld them into a roadworthy vehicle. But it's not all groundbreaking." J. R. Kinnard of PopMatters magazine gave a lukewarm review, writing: "It's unlikely that devotees will consider The Fate of the Furious one of the stronger entries in the series. Still, the filmmakers and actors are clearly dedicated to making a quality product, avoiding the complacency that often plagues action sequels." Richard Roeper of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film 2 out of 4 stars, saying: "Moments after Dom has gone rogue and apparently wants to kill them, they're making jokes. As they're racing through the streets of New York City or skidding along the ice in Russia, killing bad guys and narrowly avoiding getting killed themselves, they're crackin' wise. Even within this ludicrous universe, it's jarring to hear these supposedly smart folks, who refer to themselves as 'family,' acting like idiots who don't seem to care if they live or die, or if their friends survive."
Professor of international political economy Richard E. Feinberg has commented on the political significance of the film's opening setting of Havana in the context of shifting U.S.–Cuban relations, calling the eighth instalment, "Hollywood's love letter to Havana". He writes, "In the Cuban sequence's dramatic climax, Dom wins his hard-fought one-mile race against a tough local competitor, by a nose. The loser is gracious: 'You won my car and you earned my respect,' he admits to the FF hero. Dom's response is equally magnanimous: 'Keep your car, your respect is good enough for me.' In this instance, FF8 captures the essence of the relations between the United States and Cuba: it's all about mutual respect."