Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga was once again directed by George Miller, who directed all the Mad Max movies and stars Anya Taylor-Joy as Furiosa and Chris Hemsworth as Dementus in this prequel about Furiosa. Here we see how Furiosa was taken from her home by Dementus, brought to the Citadel and into the hands of Immortan Joe, and how she learned to survive. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga comes out nearly ten years after Mad Max: Fury Road, where Furiosa first appeared, portrayed by Charlize Theron. Mad Max: Fury Road was bonkers incredible and was considered not just the best Mad Max movie, but one of the best movies to come out in the last decade with its incredible action, visuals, and story, with Furiosa being the standout of that movie. How will Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga hold up in comparison?
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga has what anyone would expect in a Mad Max movie, which is awesome-looking cars, bikes, and trucks driving in a post-apocalyptic wasteland with the characters wearing bonkers-looking costumes and crazy action happening. The action scenes in this movie are some of the best since Mad Max: Fury Road. It’s amazing how George Miller in his late seventies can pull off filming a movie this big. The costume designs looked great, as well as some of the settings and vehicles. Like the previous movies, the action is much more brutal than audiences are used to in action movies. The sound design is some of the best I’ve heard, and the cinematography rivals Dune Part II as the best cinematography of 2024 so far.
What makes this movie so great though is what makes it different from the previous movies in this franchise. George Miller is always able to add a unique flavor to his Mad Max movies. Instead of being a repeat of Mad Max: Fury Road, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is a much more personal story about the lead character being separated from her home, losing everything, and trying to survive while getting her revenge. Each part of the movie is split into chapters, with each chapter focusing on a certain segment of Furiosa’s life. This movie is the longest in the Mad Max series at two hours and twenty-eight minutes, but it never feels like it’s dragging. This is the best-paced movie of 2024 so far. Lately, I’ve had issues with the pacing of some of the movies that came out this year, but Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga never feels too quick or too slow.
As mentioned earlier, Anya Taylor-Joy takes over the role of Furiosa this time. She doesn’t have a lot of lines, similar to Mad Max in his movies. Still, it’s Taylor-Joy's facial expressions that show how great she is as Furiosa. She does so well in showing Furiosa’s anger, rage, and other emotions, even when she has a face covering and only shows her eyes. For the first act of the movie, another young actress named Alyla Browne played Furiosa as a child and did well portraying her as well. The best performance of the movie is Chris Hemsworth as warlord Dementus of the Biker Horde. He takes Furiosa from her home, trying to make her his daughter. Dementus will be compared to other previous villains like Lord Humungus from The Road Warrior, but unlike those villains, he has a much more tragic backstory and isn’t as well respected and feared. Hemsworth gives the best performance of his career and looks like he is having a blast playing Dementus.
The special effects are still great and better than most of the movies that have come out in the last few years, but there are a few moments where the effects pale in comparison to Mad Max: Fury Road. The musical score from Tom Holkenborg works well. One thing I wish Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga did more was show more interactions between Furiosa and Immortan Joe. We know in Mad Max: Fury Road that Furiosa saves the slave wives of Immortan Joe from the warlord and hates him. There was one scene when Furiosa was a child that showed Furiosa witnessing Immortan Joe’s methods, but there was barely any interaction between the two characters when Furiosa was an adult. I understand the focus of the movie is Furiosa getting her revenge on Dementus but a scene or two of Furiosa hating Immortan Joe as an adult could have added more to build up that eventual betrayal.
Overall, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is one of the best prequels to ever come out. The story is great and well-paced. George Miller shows he is one of the best directors. The performances are strong, with Chris Hemsworth giving the best one. My final grade for Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is an A. It’s a great action movie that is meant to be seen on the big screen. It’s disappointing to hear that the movie isn’t making a lot of money at the box office, but hopefully more people will see it. If you are a fan of Mad Max movies, I highly recommend you check this movie out. What are your thoughts on Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga? Let us know in the comments below.
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