Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024) – 8/10 – Edge of the Seat Post-apocalyptic Experience
‘Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga’ is an action prequel to ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ covering Imperator Furiosa’s childhood to the beginning of Fury Road. The world falls into post-apocalyptic chaos, and a young Furiosa gets taken from her home, Green Place, by a few raiders to their leader, Dementus (Chris Hemsworth). Furiosa’s mother chases after them on a motorcycle with a sniper rifle to rescue young Furiosa in a badass chase scene. I will skip the rest of the plot to prevent spoilers. Furiosa (Anya Taylor-Joy) grows older, learns how to fight, and becomes a badass herself in her fight against Dementus.
Director George Miller has a history of doing everything big, loud, and violent to the max, which he lives up to here. This film never left you disappointed. Each fight, chase scene, and overall thrilling feel left you on the edge of your seat. The cinematography, CGI, background score, and visuals stood out to me in developing a believable post-apocalyptic atmosphere. The sounds of motorbikes, monster truck, and other background noises were remarkable. I thought the casting was great, including the leads, Anya Taylor-Joy, Hemsworth, and Tom Burke as Praetorian Jack. Taylor-Joy has only a limited line of dialogue, but her facial expressions and sensational acting were incredible. Miller said he had the script for Furiosa ready before they filmed Fury Road in 2014, which I found impressive. It speaks to attention to detail to have the background and backstory all planned out and finished for years. The only criticism I have is there were a few unnecessary moments that could have sharper editing.
Would I recommend it? I don’t think this film is a must-watch, but if you enjoyed Fury Road, this is a film worth watching. While it wasn’t as good, I often got the same feeling watching it as Fury Road.
