A busy weekend for Toronto gearheads as Demaras Racing hosted the eight installment of the Fast Film Fest in the west end, and car clubs Dusk_Rid3rs and Shift.Faced.Society held a pre-season car meet in the east end. It was a lot of driving, but totally worth it.
Once again, Film.ca Cinemas were the only movie theater in the Greater Toronto Area playing ‘Fast & Furious‘ flicks. This time, it was the 2017 epic ‘Fate of the Furious‘ directed by F. Gary Gray, the first black director to have a film top $1 Billion at the box office with this blockbuster. By this point in the series the movies have drifted away from their street-racing origins. But this director knew the formula. The opening scene of Dom in Cuba street racing American muscle cars is a classic.
The original F&F movie was set in Los Angeles and is forever linked to California car culture. What makes F8 special is the fast family finally goes to NYC. The crux of the movie is Dom has betrayed the family and turned evil, so of course he’s driving a sinister black 1971 Plymouth GTX, one of the most beautiful ‘fuselage’ styled cars of the era. Seeing the reflection of the Brooklyn Bridge on the rear windowof the GTX when Toretto tears into town is a highlight.
Like the drift scene through Shibuya Crossing in F&F3 or the chase around Piccadilly Circus in F&F6 this chapter delivers its own signature pursuit; this time through Times Square. The crew hunts Dom with relentless intensity, even resorting to harpooning his car like prey, turning one of the world’s busiest intersections into an automotive hunting ground..
It’s become tradition at the Fast Film Fest to line up cars beneath the theatre marquee afterward, turning the entrance into a mini car show. Occasionally the 4×4 crowd gets creative with the stairs, but this time the crowd—and the cold—kept things in check. Most people retreated quickly to heated seats and warm cabins, though a dedicated few stuck around, lighting up the lot with underglow and LEDs. Spring can’t come soon enough, especially with the final event on the horizon, when the parking lot will be filled with cool cars revving their engines, and playing music through their booming systems until midnight.
From there, the night rolled into a second location as pop-up meets continue to gain traction. Despite the cold, and even a bit of snow, east-end car club Dusk_Rid3rs pushed ahead with their gathering, teaming up with local ice cream spot Holy Shakes. It’s a mutually beneficial setup: the business gets exposure, and the cars get a place to gather, to rev their engines, and play music through their booming systems until midnight, without the police shushing them.. Not bad for a late-winter night.
The shift in the Canadian car scene is obvious: from big-block V8s to smaller, turbocharged imports. Performance still matters, but many young gearheads were inspired by what they saw on screen. Brightly colored paint jobs, flickering neon underglow, and suspension slammed on the ground. It’s part tuner culture, part Hollywood fantasy. The cinematic influence on car culture cannot be denied; it’s helped define the modern hot rod.
All the flashy summer rides are still in storage, so the most popular car at late winter shows is always the Subaru. Turbocharged power, a variety of body styles, and all-wheel-drive that keeps these rides n the road through all four seasons. It was kind of cool to see a white 3rd gen STI hatch, 5th gen WRX sedan, a BRZ on snow tires, and the blue Bugeye all gathered together, shivering in the cold—while drinking milkshakes.
BTW big thanks to Ian Gilbert who shot the incredible photo above. Everyone with a iPhone thinks they’re a ‘pro’ now, but this cropped and colour corrected image shows what real photographic skill looks like. Thanks, bro!
Great post!
Fun post. As you might have figured out, I’m in Germany right now. It’s still cold here. I was thinking about you because my daughter’s roommate is looking for a new car. She would like an automatic transmission, but automatic transmission cars are hard to come by in Germany. I think that is great. Subarus are not popular in this part of Germany. I’ve seen one or two on the road here. Otherwise, there is a large variety of cars from Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Poland, Russia, etc.