No other franchise is like Mad Max and that always works in its favour. The Wasteland, the vehicular mayhem and the nature of survival are all elements that link each film of the series. Mel Gibson’s trilogy was very different from most post-apocalyptic stories and it had influences from the western genre and the action genre. Mad Max: Fury Road then came along and it upgraded the style and tone of the series to something more bonkers, mad and berserk. The result was a critically acclaimed behemoth that won an assortment of awards. Instead of crafting a true sequel filmmaker George Miller instead decided to dig into the backstory of one of the most interesting characters from Fury Road - Furiosa. The result is Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga chronicles Furiosa’s journey from an innocent child to a crusade of vengeance. When the story kicks in it just doesn’t stop. From the opening moments to the final car chase the action just doesn’t know how to stop which gives the film its biggest strength. The film is a feast for the eyes with everything coming together nicely like domino’s falling into place. The emphasis is on what you see instead of the dialogue shared between characters. The result is an immersive experience in almost exactly the same way as its predecessor film, Fury Road. Despite Max not being in this film it has all the hallmarks and tropes you’d expect from the film that redefined the franchise.
Anya-Taylor Joy perfectly inhabits the role of Furiosa. Charlize Theron gave us a very strong, independent and resilient character in Fury Road and all of those qualities have remained in this one and we finally find out why she is the way she is. The Wasteland is a harsh place and we get to see how it mentally affects Furiosa, from the brutality of Immortan Joe to the manipulative Dementus. Chris Hemsworth brings out a performance unlike anything he’s done before. He really digs into the bottom of disparity when it comes to Dementus. He is a survivalist and is seeking for control by any means necessary. He is violent, conniving and strategic in how he attempts to overthrow Immortan Joe’s empire. Despite Immortan Joe being played by a different actor here we do get a very similar performance from Fury Road, further linking them and maintaining a sense of continuity. Another important character from the film is Tom Burke’s Praetorian Jack, the only positive role model for Furiosa and the two share the only positive relationship on screen in this harsh world.
The momentum just never stops. The visuals are dazzling with bright orange dunes mixed with the bright blue skies. The vehicles match the absurdity and monstrosities of Fury Road while also bringing out some more insane designs. The set-pieces are action-heavy and capture a sense of scope and scale that can also be found in Fury Road. There are times however where the narrative has to support the follow-up film Fury Road. With Furiosa being more or a less a direct prequel meant there was bound to be similarities in both characters, plot decisions and set design. This does limit the amount of freshness the film offers with some repeated tricks and locations from the Fury Road. What does help is that it is still just as good as Fury Road.
★★★★☆
4/5
Final Verdict:
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is incredibly ambitious and it offers an odyssey style quest for the lead character. Furiosa seeks revenge and retribution and the story is split into chapters to show how she achieves her goal. George Miller has crafted another visual feast with the visuals doing the majority of the storytelling. The cinematography, sound design and carnage that is on display all helps to create another truly immersive. Told together with Mad Max: Fury Road, it appears we have seen the true Magnum Opus of George Miller’s career.
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Alex Murray, the Head of Eyesight Productions
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