Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Synopsis: The origin story of renegade warrior Furiosa before she met Mad Max and became the Imperator.
Director: George Miller
Stars: Anya Taylor-Joy, Chris Hemsworth, Tom Burke & Lachy Hulme
Runtime: 2 hours 28 mins
Genre: Sci-Fi Action Adventure
Mad Max: Fury Road which is considered by many fans and leading filmmakers to be a masterpiece in action cinema, made over $380 Million at the worldwide box office. It holds a 97% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Furiosa which opened at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this month, started as a screenplay called well, Furiosa. It was written by Miller to simply serve as a backstory to the Furiosa character for Fury Road. It was so fully formed that Charlize Theron (Who played the role in the movie) said "Please George, can we make this one first?".
However Miller decided to stick to his guns and make Fury Road, and the rest as they say is history.
This movie, (which spans 16 years and has been described as an 'odyssey' by Miller) serves as his biggest swing yet for the franchise, no Mad Max and a recast Furiosa. So does it pay off?
Let's break it down..
Story and Plot
Young Furiosa is snatched from the Green Place of Many Mothers by Dementus (Hemsworth) and his huge biker horde. Making her way across the Wasteland, as part of Dementus's crew they run into Immortan Joe at the Citadel. Soon, Furiosa finds herself in a non-stop battle to make her way home whilst serving justice on those who have captured her.
My overall thoughts...
Firstly, if you are going in expecting Fury Road you will be disappointed. This movie is more of a slow burn compared to it's predecessor. But is this movie boring? Hell to the no!
Furiosa is a high-octane fuel drenched primal slice of cinema that demands to be seen on the biggest screen possible with the best sound system (more on that later). I thoroughly enjoyed this exhilarating movie. If revenge flicks are your thing, you will love this. I was locked into Furiosa from the first frame.
The movie is split into five titled chapters with child actor Alyla Browne playing a young Furiosa. I'd say it's nearly a 50/50 split with her and Taylor-Joy for screen time.
Chris Hemsworth is fantastic as the movie's bad boy Dementus and clearly relished the opportunity to get his teeth into a meaty villainous role.
The movie looks incredible and the cinematography courtesy of DP Simon Duggan is beautifully shot. The set-pieces are edge-of-your-seat stuff which nicely propel the story along.
Furiosa is not only a great movie in it's own right, it deepens the love for Fury Road (Which you get to see extended scenes from over the end credits). With two movies in the bag (Not counting the original 80's movies), Dr George Miller is now starting work on a possible third instalment called The Wasteland.
Cast
Whilst Miller was open to using Theron again in the titular role, he was less keen on using de-aging technology, so was forced to look for an actress who could play the role a good 15-20 years younger. Enter stage left... Anya Taylor-Joy. The 28 year old actress born in Miami, Florida and classically trained in ballet (Like Theron) is perfectly cast to take over the role. Whilst it's fair to say she equally shares screentime with Browne, her Furiosa is a lady of few words, her action's speak volumes. She is a tour-de-force in this movie.
Taylor-Joy is one of those actors who fully commit to a role (she learnt to drive on the set of this movie). Having to endure four-and-a-half-hour sessions in make up to become Furiosa, she stopped short of shaving her head. Although fully prepared to, George Miller loved her hair so much he made her wear a skull cap instead.
Chris Hemsworth whilst at first blush looks fairly similar to Thor that's where the similarities end. His character Dementus is the twisted personification of evil. A f****d up father figure to Furiosa. He spent four-hours a day in make-up to get him look less, well, like Chris Hemsworth.
It has often been said that "a movie is only ever good as it's villain", therefore I am happy to say Hemsworth is fantastic as Dementus. He arguably steals the movie and has the most to say than any other character and could have very easily slipped into a cheesy portrayal of this mad man. But he manages to deftly toe the line, between equally funny and unhinged at the same time.
Acting duties for Fury Road's villain Immortan Joe fell to Lachy Hulme after Keays-Byrne passed away in 2020. He is excellent as the younger Immortan Joe.
As touched on before 15 year old Alyla Browne as child Furiosa is superb and is definitely an actor to keep an eye on in the future.
Rounding out the main cast is Tom Burke as Praetorian Jack, one of Immortan Joe's men. He is the nearest thing to Mad Max in the movie. He is very good.
Sound and Spectacle
There is more spectacle than sand in this movie. Miller was keen to work with the same crew as Fury Road in employing as many practical effects as possible, this entry feels like a seamless continuation to Fury Road. There are elements of VFX and some CGI, but it is very well done.
The movie was shot on location in Australia (Home to all Mad Max movies with the exception of Fury Road - owing to flooding).
The sound design in this movie is incredible. I urge you to see it on a cinema screen that has the best sound system possible. The cinema I saw it in shook with the cacophony of engines only to drop to a deadly silence in the same heartbeat.
On screen Action
When a movie features amongst other things 4,000 custom made motorbikes, you could say this movie has some on-screen action. The movie features a huge array of incredibly impressive heart pounding set-pieces. Whilst Fury Road was essentially one long chase movie and therefore in essence a movie length set-piece, the action in Furiosa is more interwoven into the larger narrative.
One sequence in the movie which became known as "Stairway to Nowhere" in production took 78 days to film a 15 minute on-screen sequence. This set piece is also a turning point in the movie.
Music and Score
Tom Holkenborg returns after Fury Road to compose this movie. The thunderous pulsating score helps heighten the tension throughout the movie.
A satisfying fuel-drenched slice of action cinema. If you go in thinking Fury Road 2 you'll be in for a shock, however it is a great revenge story with heart-pounding action & incredible sound. Taylor-Joy is a joy as Furiosa and Hemsworth's Dementus is truly demented. A revenge flick for the ages. Oh what a day! What a lovely day!
Verdict - MATCHED EXPECTATIONS
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