MovieChat Forums > F9 (2021) Discussion > Is it just me or was the plot very messy...

Is it just me or was the plot very messy?

posted 4 years ago by PrimeMinisterX (8859)
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The plot, I thought, had the weird distinction of being rote and derivative while also being overly complicated. Furthermore, unless I missed something there were several plot holes.

Did I just miss important lines of dialogue because I was already zoning out early on? Because it felt like characters would just appear in convenient locations without any sufficient explanation and the characters would always know what to do next without actually having the necessary information to know to do it.

Furthermore, there was also just straight up laziness, like basically explaining that Han is still alive because Kurt Russell is a wizard.

There are a lot of pros with these films, but the writing isn't one of them, and bad scripts have been holding the last few entries back. Say what you will about 2 Fast 2 Furious, but at least I knew what the fuck was going on when I watched that one.

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[–] elcamino (15540) 4 years ago

It isn't a movie for yuppie's

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[–] PrimeMinisterX (8859) 4 years ago

As far as I can tell, it's not a film for anyone who knows anything about screenwriting either.

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[–] acidraindrop (3055) 4 years ago

There weren't any plot holes. It wasn't complicated at all actually. You not knowing what the fuck was going on was a you thing.

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[–] PrimeMinisterX (8859) 4 years ago

Okay, explain the deal with the girls who were friendly with Dom being the Interpol agents who arrested him.

How did that happen? Seemed to me to be incredibly random, as if they were conjured up by magic.

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[–] acidraindrop (3055) 4 years ago

Honestly, design wise, that WAS fucking random and magic, and just a way for them to shove in Cardi B so she can be in the next movies.

But strictly speaking, she was sent there by the Shaw mom to help, which totally makes sense. Shaw mom didn't just leave Vin Diesel there without having a backup plan. That seems fair.

The movie also implies that Dom and Cardi B know each other, but I don't really think that's a plot hole. Dom knows a lot of ppl. Like how he randomly had that random cousin of his at the beginning of Fast 8. So this again just a heavy handed away of shoving her into the story as an old friend. But this is more or less in consequential to the plot, so I don't consider it "complicating".

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[–] PrimeMinisterX (8859) 4 years ago

Here's the question I would naturally ask: How did Shaw mom know that Otto was going to call Interpol, and furthermore, how did she arrange it that when he contacted Interpol the call was intercepted and this fake Interpol team was sent out instead of the real shit?

To me, it just felt like a lot of important scenes were missing to tie the story together. Think of these scenes as connective tissue; the film lacked a lot of connective tissue. It's as if, somewhere, there's a director's cut laying around that would make the story more coherent and what we saw was the chopped up studio version. I am reminded of the Batman v Superman theatrical cut and how much better, and more narratively understandable, the Ultimate Edition was.

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[–] acidraindrop (3055) 4 years ago

Hmm...I see what you're getting at, especially with the allusion to BvS theatrical, which for me is, like the poster child of missing connective tissue.

I guess maybe I have different standards of what I accept to be passable when I watch these films, and perhaps I'm unconsciously lowering the bar.

Kinda like when I watch the TV Show Leverage. It does not succeed in passing criteria that I would hold other films to usually. Leaps in logic, quick resolutions, etc.

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[–] PrimeMinisterX (8859) 4 years ago

I can tolerate the complete disregard for the laws of physics, but I must insist on a story that is logical and feels complete. Shit like characters just randomly appearing in convenient locations and the laughable explanation we're given for Han's survival are the kinds of things that make me lose interest quickly.

You can compare it with Fast Five, which also had a lot of silly, unbelievable shit, but still felt more grounded and had a script that actually felt complete.

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[–] acidraindrop (3055) 4 years ago

Yeah, I definitely agree with that. Narrative flow is an entirely different matter from the consistent disregard for physics. I didn't quite realize how jumpy F9 may have been, relative to the films that preceded it.

Han's explanation was laughable? You didn't believe he had a hologram-generating machine in the car? XDDD

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[–] PrimeMinisterX (8859) 4 years ago

LOL, when I was watching that scene I was like, "Hey bro, I saw Tokyo Drift, Han didn't make it out of that car. You can't fool me!"

The explanation is basically just, "Kurt Russell is a wizard." He's just so incredible that he can do the impossible. You'll notice that there's no explanation of the mechanics of how this magic trick was pulled off. We're just told that it happens and are expected to accept it, more or less on faith.

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[–] millsey72 (10947) 4 years ago

Nah, other than the Hans still is alive plot hole, everything else was well written story wise. I liked the fact that this installment added more realism to the franchise compared with the previous ones

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[–] Burk48917 (11536) 4 years ago

I think it was full of shitty writing more than plot holes.

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