Nine years have passed since George Miller slapped Hollywood around the face with the epic Mad Max: Fury Road. A continuation of the cult 80s movies, it featured no superheroes and very few computer effects, famously preferring the real thing.
It was loud, it was crazy, it was a classic that broke all the rules. A follow-up seemed inevitable, but a lawsuit over earnings, Miller’s 2022 film Three Thousand Years of Longing, and The pandemic slowed progress. Finally, we get to return to The Wasteland with the origin story of Imperator Furiosa.
Anya Taylor-Joy takes over from Charlize Theron, charting 15 years of Furiosa’s life over five episodic chapters as she fights for freedom and revenge, after being torn from her home by a biker gang led by the villainous Dementus (Chris Hemsworth).
Fury Road was a race, throwing you head-first into a world already in progress, leaving you straining against the madness like Tom Hardy’s Max in his metal mask. In Furiosa, Miller makes things bigger, bolder, and more character-driven. It is recognisably the same world, but the director takes a little more time opening up the various locations, characters, and lore. It’s about half an hour longer than Fury Road, but makes the most of that extra breathing room.
Longer doesn’t mean slower, however, with the action in Furiosa as jaw-dropping as ever. At one point, Dementus cockily asks “do you have it in you to make it epic?” The film certainly does, taking the world Miller revived in the last film and building upon it in every aspect. The chases are astounding, the speeches memorable.
Taylor-Joy follows the long line of action heroes who act rather than talk, with a reported 30 lines of dialogue spoken by Furiosa. Yet, it’s an incredible performance, echoing her predecessor by infusing emotion into her body language and expressions. Hemsworth, on the other hand, has plenty to say. The former Avenger clearly loves being within the grubby delirium of this world, providing a wonderfully colourful counter to Taylor-Joy’s intense hero.
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga will be remembered as one of the best prequels ever made, which isn’t a huge compliment given the competition. However, what is high praise is that the return to the world of Fury Road lives up to the hype. This is a follow up that presses you down in your seat and doesn’t relent, reminding everyone that the franchise, and its creator, is far from finished.