Mad Max is one of Hollywood's famous action franchises with over 40 years of age. The first film was released in 1979, opening up a fascinating fantasy dystopian world. Although the content was controversial because of too many violent scenes, the work was highly praised by critics for its creativity and pioneering filmmaking style. Mad Max also set a Guinness record for being the most profitable film project in world history at that time when it earned 100 million USD while the budget was only 380,000 USD.
Part 2 – The Road Warrior (1981) – is considered a classic work in the genre of films set in a dystopian world, with a series of extremely crazy fantasy details. Meanwhile, part 3 Thunderdome (1985) considered the brand's first Hollywood blockbuster-scale project, controversial in terms of quality but loved by many fans of the series.
Mad Max Just officially back from Fury Road (2015), with famous stars Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron starring. The film shocked the world thanks to its overwhelming visuals and series of eye-catching action scenes. And after nearly 9 years, this brand continues to bring a new story, this time revolving around the youth of the strong female character Furiosa.
The heroic story of Furiosa's past
The film script begins when Furiosa is just a child (the childhood version is played by Alyla Browne) living in a green area, a rare place where trees still grow and water is not too scarce. During a walk, the heroine falls into the hands of the henchmen of the tyrant Dementus (Chris Hemsworth), who then murders her mother. From here, she witnessed the battles for power between the tycoons of The Wasteland.
One day, Furiosa became an item to trade between Dementus and Immortan Joe – the villain in Fury Road. When she grew up, the girl – now incarnated by Anya Taylor-Joy – became an employee on the Citadel region's food and fuel convoy. Forged under difficult circumstances, Furiosa is now an elite and brave warrior. Fate once again pushed her to meet the tyrant Dementus, leading to a journey of revenge full of pain and loss for the female lead.
The story revolves around the coming-of-age journey of Furiosa, the beloved female warrior of the Mad Max franchise.
Still built according to the “road movie” motif like the previous film, Furiosa follows the main character on his journey from childhood to the incident of being separated from his family and having to find a way to survive in the chaotic The Wasteland. However, this time the script is built in a more traditional style, divided into many chapters to tell the background of the most formidable female warrior in the Mad Max franchise.
Through Furiosa's childhood trip, audiences also have the opportunity to explore and better understand The Wasteland, a place divided to rule by lords like Dementus or Immortan Joe. Here, individuals like Furiosa are also accidentally caught up in such wars for land and resources. In that chaotic situation, the female protagonist appeared as tenacious and indomitable as a cactus in the desert. Both versions of Furiosa by Anya Taylor-Joy and Alyla Browne partly made the audience more passionate about the famous strong female character.
A prequel worthy of Fury Road
The special attraction of the Mad Max brand is the unique and bizarre aesthetic taste of the team led by veteran director George Miller. The dystopian setting, where human civilization almost collapsed, continues to be built excellently in this part. The audience continues to be immersed in the harsh land of The Wasteland but contains countless interesting things.
Like Fury Road, Furiosa can also be considered a masterpiece in production design. Each prop, costume, and setting in the film is meticulously and beautifully invested. In this part, George Miller also used many wide-angle shots with the support of CGI technology to create more majestic scenes.
The action scenes in Furiosa also bring a lot of fresh air compared to the previous part. George Miller continues to show that he is a master in staging chase and explosion scenes. In particular, the motorbike fighting segments of the characters in Mad Max are always extremely thrilling, making it difficult for the audience to sit still in their seats. Furiosa also brings many new character motifs such as Dementus' army of large motorbike drivers, paratroopers robbing the road… enriching the world that is full of strange people in Fury Road.
The newly introduced cast also left a certain mark in this part. In particular, the two versions of Furious performed by Anya Taylor-Joy and Alyla Browne both shine brightly. If the younger version is a smart and agile girl, the adult female lead is a beautiful young woman despite going through many storms in life. Chris Hemsworth also has a role that is considered typical in his career when he plays a cruel villain, despite all tricks with a somewhat sassy personality.
Chris Hemsworth had a breakthrough role in his career.
The only unfortunate point of Furiosa is that it was born after a very successful Fury Road and it is difficult to escape that huge shadow. The film is attractive and memorable, but it is difficult to recreate the same overwhelming feeling for the audience as the previous part. However, this can still be considered a blockbuster that cannot be missed by audiences in this year's Hollywood summer movie season.
Scoring: 4/5
Overall, Furiosa is a worthy prequel to continue the resounding success of Mad Max: Fury Road, a work that won 6 Oscars. The production scale and level of appeal of the film are enough to overshadow a series of other popular Hollywood action blockbusters such as Fast & Furious nice Mission: Impossible. The uniqueness in production design and unique, novel fighting scenes are still the soul of the film brand. And director George Miller still shows that he is at his peak even at the age of 79.