By Chris “Boogie” Brown
“Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” is the direct prequel to the 2015 motion traditional, “Mad Max: Fury Highway.” That is the fifth movie within the Mad Max franchise, and just like the earlier entries, it’s directed by the legendary George Miller.
As you’ll be able to surmise from the movie’s trailers and synopsis, this prequel units up the origin story of protagonist Furiosa, the fierce warrior featured within the aforementioned “Fury Highway.” Masking 15 years of her life, Furiosa examines the place she got here from, her upbringing, how she arrived on the Citadel, and what drives her to the enraged state of redemption that we witness on this movie and in “Fury Highway.”
I assumed “Furiosa” was an unimaginable prequel that additional fleshed out the “Mad Max” universe that director George Miller has constructed. Whereas “Fury Highway” was finally a kinetic chase movie that moved at a frantic tempo, “Furiosa” is extra nuanced, taking its time to inform a sprawling story that spans a number of years and 5 chapters. Because the movie takes viewers on a deep dive into this dystopian wasteland, we not solely see the origins of Furiosa however are additionally launched to acquainted characters, places, and story arcs established in 2015’s “Fury Highway.”
Though “Furiosa” doesn’t have the identical pacing and cadence as “Fury Highway,” it by no means loses the spirit of that movie, as we’re supplied with a number of high-octane motion sequences all through. The creative motion in “Furiosa” combines sensible stunt work and visible results, consists of prolonged one-take photographs, and is totally immersed in thrills and suspense. Whereas “Furiosa” doesn’t comprise the sustained quantity of motion as its 2015 predecessor, the vehicular motion, spectacular stunts, and riveting camerawork on show are excellent. One prolonged set piece particularly throughout the movie’s second act is solely superb and rivals what got here earlier than it in “Fury Highway.”
When it comes to performances, standouts embody Alyla Browne and Anya Taylor-Pleasure, who each excel of their portrayals of the lead character, “Furiosa.” Whereas the previous performs Furiosa throughout the youthful years of her backstory, the latter performs the grownup model and completely captures the spirit and fierceness of Charlize Theron’s portrayal in “Fury Highway.” Though Anya’s “Furiosa” doesn’t have numerous dialogue within the movie, she successfully emotes via her eyes, physique language, and motion prowess all through. Moreover, Tom Burke does an incredible job as Praetorian Jack, a grizzled commander of a Citadel battle rig.
Nevertheless, of all of the performances, the show-stealer in “Furiosa” might very properly be Chris Hemsworth’s Dementus. As the primary villain of the movie, Hemsworth provides a charismatic efficiency incorporating shades of wit, energy, maniacal ruthlessness, and desperation, delivering a number of memorable monologues all through. If I’m being sincere, this may increasingly presumably be my favourite Chris Hemsworth function thus far—he’s merely that commanding and heightens each single scene he is part of.
In terms of the movie’s course, George Miller remains to be a grasp of his craft and exhibits no indicators of slowing down. Miller orchestrates this sprawling epic with nuance, visible storytelling, and pulls out spirited performances from his proficient forged. As well as, the movie seems to be beautiful due to the wonderful cinematography by Simon Duggan, who provides the movie a saturated and stylized look that’s each aesthetically vibrant and interesting. Lastly, the manufacturing design, costume design, technical deserves, and memorable rating by composer Junkie XL are all unimaginable and left me very impressed.
Total, I discovered this movie to be an exhilarating cinematic expertise that actually deserves to be seen in a premium theatrical format. For my part, “Furiosa” is correct on par with “Fury Highway” by way of high quality and leisure. Whereas “Fury Highway” contained extra entertaining motion unfold throughout its whole runtime, I personally discovered the detailed storytelling, world-building, character work, Easter eggs, and intelligent callbacks in “Furiosa” to be equally spectacular and a pleasing shock.
“Furiosa” is likely one of the greatest prequels I’ve ever seen. It not solely enhances “Fury Highway” completely however will even change the best way you watch “Fury Highway” going ahead. The proverbial handoff from movie to movie is seamless and can go away die-hard followers of “Fury Highway” grinning from ear to ear. Ought to George Miller select to offer us a sixth chapter of this legendary 45-year-old franchise, I’m utterly right here for it!
“Furiosa: A Mad Max Story” is presently taking part in in theatres in all places and is likely one of the easiest movies I’ve seen to date in 2024. This one comes HIGHLY really useful—get pleasure from!