Makin’ It Epic — FURIOSA: A MAD MAX SAGA
By Danny Mendes, TheCinebuff.com
Seven years after his action opus Mad Max: Fury Road, director George Miller transports us back to the Wasteland in this epic odyssey about the origins of Imperator Furiosa. Set years before the events of Fury Road, Furiosa tells the legend of Furiosa from her early childhood to her eventual ascent as the iconic action heroine of the past decade. Told in a series of self-contained “chapters,” each story builds upon the mythology that was set up in Miller’s previous film. While not quite as insane as its predecessor, Furiosa is still a modern epic that packs a punch.
Anya Taylor-Joy had two big tasks preceding her: doing justice to Charlize Theron’s performance and expressing emotion with little dialogue. She happily succeeds on both fronts. Taylor-Joy does an impressive job replicating Theron’s voice, but her strongest asset lies in the words she doesn’t say. With only a handful of dialogue throughout the movie, She relies heavily on her eyes to convey emotion, which manage to speak louder than any dialogue they could have given her. She’s able to switch from vulnerable to intense and focused when she needs to, which is not an easy task. Her emotional performance is equally matched by her physical performance, which is an absolute requirement for a film filled to the brim with taxing stunt work.
Even with Anya Taylor-Joy starring in the titular role, Chris Hemsworth manages to make a full-course meal out of Dementus, the primary antagonist of the film. Hemsworth eschews his movie-star good looks to deliver a villain who makes Immortan Joe look quaint by comparison. Hemsworth takes all of his best features, such as his charisma, charm, and humor, and molds them into a downright frightening portrayal that will no doubt go down as one of his most memorable performances for years to come.
George Miller once again proves that he’s still the crowned king of action filmmaking. Furiosa doesn’t have the nonstop ferocity of Fury Road, but ferocious it remains. Miller carefully builds up to his action set pieces and delivers a spectacle that nearly rivals that of Fury Road. Even with a noticeable use of CGI, there’s an equal blend of practical stunt work that immerses the audience into the madness. Miller knows what the audience wants and he delivers that need with a delicious concoction of high-octane mayhem.
Furiosa is an absolute epic in scope, scale, and runtime. At 2 hours and 28 minutes, the film does unfortunately feel its length. Miller relishes in immersing the audience into Furiosa’s world, but it’s too lofty and ambitious at times and can feel like a chore to get through. Certain sequences could have been cut shorter for a quicker pace. As it stands, this is one minor issue to a film that is largely entertaining.
One again, George Miller delivers the goods with yet another unique entry in the Mad Max franchise. Any expectations for another Fury Road should be left at the door, because Miller is going for something different while still connecting to the larger mythology. This is an epic unlike anything we’ve seen from modern-day films. This is a story about a hero’s search for hope and meaning in a world that’s gone mad.
Originally published at http://behindtherabbitproductions.wordpress.com on May 25, 2024.
