Review: Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga

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Official synopsis: The origin story of renegade warrior Furiosa (Anya Taylor-Joy) before her encounter and team up with Mad Max.

I never cared for the Mad Max films until 2015's Mad Max: Fury Road came bursting on the scene. That ended up being one of my favorite films of that year. When a prequel was announced with Anya Taylor-Joy taking over for Charlize Theron, I was immediately intrigued, but I kept my expectations low. How do you top a stunning film like Fury Road?

Well, you don't. But Furiosa is still a fun time at the movies. The stunt and VFX teams are the standout here. All of the fight scenes on the rigs were very well done and exciting to watch. Anya Taylor Joy spends the majority of the film silent, her glare is doing most of the work here. And I have to shout out Alyla Browne who played the younger version of her. They looked so much alike. You'd think they were sisters. Chris Hemsworth is the standout as the villain Dementus. He's both corny and brutal, and it was fun to see him let loose here.

While I enjoyed the film overall, it does suffer from a bit of prequel pacing. Because we know where Furiosa ends up, I found myself very aware of the runtime. My mental check list of "Okay, she still needs to grow up, lose her arm, shave her head, etc" kept flashing through my mind as the film dragged through certain scenes. The story lacked a bit for me, which was always going to be an uphill battle for the film.

Still, it's worth seeing on the big screen and is a great way to kick off summer blockbusters.

Grade: B-


Comments

  1. thevoid99May 28, 2024 at 3:49 PM

    I think I'd like this more than you did as I had a blast watching this. Yes, it's not Fury Road but it still kicked fucking ass. Anya Taylor-Joy is fucking great in this as they need to give her all of the good parts from now on although she's definitely chosen her projects quite well.

    I know it's probably doubtful that there will be a sequel in Mad Max: The Wasteland due to the poor box office showing but I would love for Charlize, Anya, and Alyla Browne to play Furiosa in different stages in her life. If it does happen, let's hope Charlize and Tom Hardy get along this time around. I don't want anymore stories of conflict. I want my fave actors to get along.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamMay 29, 2024 at 8:41 AM

      It sounds like Anya had a really tough time filming this one too, but she didn't elaborate on it. These must be taxing. I still need to read that book about all the drama that unfolded on Fury Road. I never did.

      Delete
  2. AnonymousMay 29, 2024 at 9:58 AM

    yeah, the story felt a tad thin. but i do think it's a spectacular theatrical experience

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousMay 29, 2024 at 9:33 PM

    This is Birgit….i just don’t have much of a desire to see this. It looks a bit too much CGI to me. I had read Tom and Charlize did not get along with Charlize being the bigger jerk. I heard she is a bit of an ass.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamMay 30, 2024 at 4:18 PM

      There's an entire book about the making of that film. I have yet to read it.

      Delete
  4. AnonymousMay 30, 2024 at 1:28 PM

    Definitely not as propulsive as Fury Road but I REALLY enjoyed it. Hope to catch it again before it leaves theaters.

    ReplyDelete
  5. SJHoneywellJune 1, 2024 at 6:18 PM

    As much as I don't want to agree with the B-, I think it's the right grade. Furiosa is fine, but it also feels much smaller than Fury Road, and also kind of unnecessary. There's too much that we know going in. We know Furiosa is going to live, so there's no tension. Also, we know what characters don't show up in the other movie, so we're waiting for them to die, just like we're waiting for Furiosa to lose her arm. The prequel pacing that you mention is a killer.

    Also, it feels smaller than Fury Road in so many ways, and yet is 28 minutes longer. As much as I wanted to love it, I'd have rather had a continuation of Furiosa's story, not the start of it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamJune 3, 2024 at 9:20 AM

      Exactly. I think more of Furiosa *after* Fury Road would've been more interesting.

      Delete
  6. ruthJune 4, 2024 at 6:59 PM

    I never cared for Mad Max until Fury Road either but what a phenomenal movie! I like this one but no, it didn't top Fury Road.

    ReplyDelete

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