This action-adventure film is the fifth instalment in the “Mad Max” franchise, and tells the story of Furiosa trying to find her way back home after being forcibly abducted from her family.
FURIOSA – A MAD MAX SAGA. Starring: Anya Taylor-Joy, Chris Hemsworth, Tom Burke, Alyla Browne, and Lachy Hulme. Directed by George Miller. Rated MA 15+. Restricted (Strong violence and injury detail). 148 min.
Review by Peter Sheehan, Associate of Jesuit Media Australia
This science-fiction, adventure-action film is written by Director, George Miller and Nico Lathouris, and is both a spin-off and prequel to the movie, “Mad Max: Fury Road” (2015). The plotline of the movie is set some 15-20 years before the events of “Mad Max: Fury Road”, and filming took place in Australia. Heavy with violence and high-octane, graphic action, the film depicts female warrior, Furiosa (Anya Taylor-Joy), before she teamed up with Mad Max, and it focuses on the origins of Furiosa as a woman trying to survive among warring males, while taking vengeance on the man who abducted her.
Anya Taylor-Joy takes over the role originated by Charlize Theron in “Fury road”, and the film’s plotline runs directly into “Fury Road”. In this movie, Furiosa is taken forcibly from the “Green Place of Many Mothers”, and delivered into the hands of the great Biker Horde led by the film’s chief Warlord villain, Dr. Dementus (Chris Hemsworth), who kidnapped and then adopted her. The film is focused on Furiosa spending the rest of her life trying to return.
Furiosa has to endure dangerous and life-threatening situations to stay alive. Crossing the barren Wasteland, she comes across the Citadel presided over by The Immortant Joe (Lachy Hulme), who is at war with Warlord Dementus – both men savagely want to preserve their dominance. Many of the actors in Fury Road (2015) have returned to lend their talents to the prequel, and new actors, like Anya Taylor-Joy, have been introduced to take lead roles. Although not seen (or heard), it is easy to imagine Mad Max out there somewhere in the sands of Wasteland watching.
In “Fury Road”, Mad Max helped captive women escape, who were vital to the continuation of the human race, and who were concubines of the dictator, Immortant Joe. This film, like the 2015 film, relies heavily on furious, savagely delivered action. One chase scene has over 50 characters, 200 stunt performers, and lasts for a quarter of an hour – like “Fury Road”, it contains minimal dialogue and gives scant recognition to the significance of hope, redemption, and the search for a better self. Character development in the film takes place mostly through the action, and the film uses elaborate, eye-catching set designs to highlight its effects. There is not a lot of humanity to define the characters in this movie (as was the case in the 2015 film). However, Anya Taylor-Joy impressively acts Furiosa with enthusiasm and zest, and George Miller, as Director, keeps action constantly alive with the help of a fertile imagination that he keeps vigorously earnest. However, the film grimly endorses vengeance and hate. Furiosa is victorious, but she wears the cost.
Peter W. Sheehan is an Associate of Jesuit Media