Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (Just The Review)
Added 2024-05-24 20:45:43 +0000 UTCExclusive to Patrons: We're bringing you our review of Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga early! David, Devindra, and Jeff discuss George Miller's prequel to Max Max: Fury Road. Is the journey back to Furiosa's past worth the trip?
Spoilers begin at around ~24:42 into this audio.
Note: This is just the review segment of next week's podcast episode. The Furiosa podcast episode will air as usual, with this exact same segment at the end of it.
Comments
Was the title just “Furiosa” for anyone else? When I saw it, it was the complete “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” on screen.
Goodspeed
2024-05-30 09:56:36 +0000 UTCMiller said he considered de-aging visual effects but thought it would be too distracting for the audience. I agree, when I saw Dial of Destiny, instead of being immersed in the film I kept thinking about Harrison Ford de-aging and being taken out of the movie (also it wasn’t very good)
Peter Tribe
2024-05-28 20:22:30 +0000 UTCI agree that Fury Road gives a lot more plot(!) with not much story to mull over, but I disagree on your assessment about what constitutes as surface level in film
Hahmstrung
2024-05-28 16:50:40 +0000 UTCI agree that Furiosa gives a lot more surface(!) level dialogue and plot to give reason, but disagree on your interpretation about what is surface level in Fury Road
Mountain of Conflict
2024-05-28 07:21:43 +0000 UTCI think she said she would play her again
Mountain of Conflict
2024-05-28 07:20:02 +0000 UTCI've seen Fury Road many times and love that movie, and for me Furiosa just adds to it. Rather than get caught up in which was better or worse, I just think they're awesome companions for one another. I loved seeing a lot of the world of Fury Road fleshed out here, with the characters and locations and whatnot. Also, I just love these crazy societies that George Miller has created and simply enjoyed diving back into this world. On Red Letter Media's review of this, Jay had what I thought was a great comparison, in saying these two movies are like Kill Bill Vols. 1 & 2, where the first movie was loaded with most of the action, and where the second movie slowed down a bit to explain things before finishing with a more conversational showdown at the end as opposed to an epic battle. I couldn't agree more, and forsee myself going forward watching these movies back to back as two parts of the same story.
Stranger2Reality
2024-05-28 00:53:12 +0000 UTCFury Road came out 9 years ago, but otherwise what you're saying is true. Charlize Theron is 48 years old, so it might have been difficult to pull off a prequel version of a character she played in her 30s. Also, supposedly she didn't really enjoy the making of Fury Road, so I imagine that's a big part of why she didn't come back for more.
Stranger2Reality
2024-05-28 00:47:24 +0000 UTCHemsworth reminded me a bit of his performance in Bad Times at the El Royale, as this charismatic cult leader who's not quite as smart as he thinks he, but who is still an incredibly cruel and vicious person. I thought he was great in this, and didn't have an issue with his silliness, because if he didn't have that, it might have been less believable that Immortan Joe defeated him.
Stranger2Reality
2024-05-28 00:43:56 +0000 UTCYeah exactly what I wanted to mention. I know the meaning has changed in the US so Jeff is totally right to call it out. But as an Icelander "saga" is basically "a story" so A Mad Max Saga works perfectly.
Atli Þór Einarsson
2024-05-28 00:43:28 +0000 UTCThey’re not really references to the game in the way you’re thinking - when the game was being developed, Miller approved the game studio being given all of the scripts/treatments/assets that had been created for Fury Road, Furiosa and The Wasteland (the as-yet unmade Max-focused sequel) as inspiration/reference. Some names and concepts from these assets were used in the game - so the game is really drawing from stuff created for the movies, rather than this movie taking inspiration from the game. Miller was also ultimately not very happy with how the game turned out so I don’t think he cares enough to want to acknowledge it.
Cameron Stewart
2024-05-27 23:30:41 +0000 UTCThis is my *least* favorite Hemsworth performance, but I respect your opinion and only point that out because ain't it wild how different opinions can be.
Don Wood
2024-05-27 23:21:59 +0000 UTCSPOILERS: I just left Furiosa after rewatching Fury Road last night and while I think I enjoyed it more than you did, I agree with all of your criticisms. This movie looks far, far less convincing than Fury Road. As the guys said, there is a lot of what looks like The Volume stuff. Am I seeing differences because this was a huge Dolby Vision screen and not my 48" TV? Very possible. I also found the prosthetics distracting, and agree that Hemsworth, who I am a big fan of, seems to be in a different movie. I think his character is a bit of "What if the character Max had gone a different direction back in Mad Max?" but his comedic touches don't fit with what little humor we see in these films. As far as the action, I thought there was some stuff that would have blown me away had I not just watched Fury Road last night. I absolutely agree about the scenes feeling less visceral this time around. Fury Road had the advantage of telling some of the story of the War Boys, so it felt less like Bike Stunt Guys vs Acrobatic Stunt Guys. I had a good time, but I would actually advise folks against rewatching Fury Road before they see it.
Don Wood
2024-05-27 23:19:30 +0000 UTCDid anyone else think they saw a few straight up references to the game? I thought the scene where she gets the car with the stick as a wheel looked familiar. Been several years since I loaded that up.
Don Wood
2024-05-27 23:02:23 +0000 UTCIt's been 15 years, man! I am certain Theron could still do a great Furiosa, but what your asking is for her to play herself at least ten years previous to Fury Road, so 25 years younger.
Don Wood
2024-05-27 23:00:56 +0000 UTCOn the “saga” stuff- the word “saga” comes from old Norse prose. Typically an epic story of a hero, which I feel applies here.
Josh Erales
2024-05-27 20:13:50 +0000 UTCI did not know that that’s pretty damn cool because I didn’t even notice.
Omar Jacobs
2024-05-27 18:29:15 +0000 UTCLike I said, all pretty surface level stuff, which is fine! I love the movie, too, it just doesn't have much to get me invested in the characters or their struggle. Furiosa just did that part way better, for me.
Hahmstrung
2024-05-27 17:28:45 +0000 UTCIt happens multiple times in THIS FILM. The actor playing Immortan Joe this time is also the one-eyed guy. Hemsworth’s wife plays both one of the Vuvalini (the blonde at the beginning) and Dementus’ lieutenant with the scarred up face.
Cameron Stewart
2024-05-27 17:27:37 +0000 UTCThe series illustrates that it says quite a lot about gender, patriarchy and motherhood without using a lot of words and that's why people love Fury Road.
Mountain of Conflict
2024-05-27 12:45:29 +0000 UTCI'm loving devindra stepping all over david's outro lmao
Alejandro G
2024-05-26 20:08:44 +0000 UTCI walked away from the film with my own specific headcanon about Dementus' backstory. I'm thinking that before the war he was a billionaire tech bro who was travelling in a private jet with his family when the nukes fell. As the plane went down, instead of making sure his wife and children made it out safely, he frantically grabbed the nearest parachute and bailed. Then he found the wreckage and the teddy bear was the only thing that wasn't burnt to a crisp. So he snapped and proceeded to wear the parachute cloth as a cape and carry around the teddy bear as a reminder of his shame. Later on in the Bullet Farm, when he sees the selfless devotion Furiosa and Jack have towards each other, it triggers his self-loathing and sends him into a blind rage to the point that he needlessly pursues them across the desert so he can torture one to death while the other watches. And when we get to the final scene in the desert where Dementus is goading Furiosa into killing him, when he says that he also wants revenge on the the person responsible for the death of his loved ones, he's talking about himself and he's secretly begging Furiosa to get it over with and put him out of his misery. I'm not sure why my mind went so quickly to him being a tech bro. Maybe it's just because Dementus:Gastown::Musk:Twitter.
Shane Driscoll
2024-05-26 18:09:35 +0000 UTCI hate when movies and TV shows change the actor who plays a character. I love Charlize Theron. Did that not bother anyone?
David Esposito
2024-05-26 17:25:34 +0000 UTCJeff, next time just look up the word “saga.”
Anthony Ryan
2024-05-26 16:13:11 +0000 UTCYeah, I'd say everything this guy brings up in his series is pretty surface level stuff. I love that the film plays with gender dynamics and the like, but it doesn't really have much to say past, for example, "women can be badass!," which I love but is not exactly that interesting on its own.
Hahmstrung
2024-05-26 16:08:52 +0000 UTCI thought hemsworth as dementis was amazing, his best performance I’ve seen him do
Maxaveli
2024-05-26 15:01:04 +0000 UTCThere's a lot under the surface of Fury Road if you look https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmR8A1a8shk
Mountain of Conflict
2024-05-26 09:22:08 +0000 UTCBruce Spence looks like Bruce Spence in Road Warrior and Beyond Thunderdome and it's still weirdly two different characters
Mountain of Conflict
2024-05-26 07:41:04 +0000 UTCAnd it's a pretty good and fun game to boot.
Jesper
2024-05-26 07:22:23 +0000 UTCScrotus (the Googins lookalike) Dies in the Mad max video game that’s like 8yrs old
Jeff H
2024-05-25 23:36:51 +0000 UTCI actually think I prefer Furiosa to Fury Road. I love Fury Road, think the stunts are incredible and the visuals are dazzling, but the thing that keeps me from calling it an all-time favorite is, at the end of the day, it's an extended action scene. One of the best action scenes ever filmed, but there's not much of a story or reason, for me, to care much about what's going on past the visual splender of it all. Furiosa tells, IMO, a truly compelling story that has something to say about the human condition. The stunts may not be as daring or inventive (arguably, though I admit I do prefer the guitarists on bungie cords style of Fury Road), but the rest of the film more than makes up for that, for me. Tom Hardy was a bland Mad Max, whereas every single co-star in this is brilliant! Alyla Brown as Young Furiosa, Tom Burke as Jack, Charlee Frasier as Furiosa's mom, and yeah, even Hemsworth, whose character (which, having now seen the earlier Mad Maxes, I think fits way better in this world than people are giving credit) is delightfully psychotic and ends up meaning something for Furiosa in the end. Sorry for the rant, loved the film, loved the episode!
Hahmstrung
2024-05-25 22:03:59 +0000 UTCGood point. It was pretty distracting for me still, but that is true. Maybe it’s Josh Helman’s unique look that made it a distraction. Hugh Keays-Byrne at least had half his face covered in Fury Road. Helman’s face had prosthetics in both but it was still so obvious to me.
Omar Jacobs
2024-05-25 19:25:42 +0000 UTCMiller reusing actors for different characters has happened before multiple times in the franchise.
Mountain of Conflict
2024-05-25 18:54:45 +0000 UTCThe Actor that plays Scrotus is the same guy that plays Slit in Fury road. It’s kind of a baffling decision TBH. It distracted me every time he was on screen. Should’ve been Goggins.
Omar Jacobs
2024-05-25 17:49:47 +0000 UTCAlso based on interviews it seems like Miller only has an idea for Max that is taking place before Fury Road. Hence his cameo. I think Fury Road is the end of the Max-verse.
Mountain of Conflict
2024-05-25 14:43:45 +0000 UTCSPOILERS IN THIS POST As I am typing this I am watching the credits of the movie. My initial response is that I am disappointed. For me the movie never really got me invested or excited. It was Mad Max Fury Road The Prolog. It didn't provide that interesting information and has a few plot holes. For example she escaped the vault but no one missed here or went looking for her? I loved Fury Road so this movie being able to match up to that was a tall order but I expected something more than this. Fury Road had a lot of intensity and energy while this was very muted and limp in comparison. The soundtrack, which was a huge component that adds to the success of Fury Road, is almost completely absent. I will definitely have to see it again. It's not a bad movie but as Immortan Joe would put it: Mediocre. Should mention that I went into this movie, like with Fury Road, unsullied having not seen a frame of the movie or knowing what it was about what you can infer from the title. Edit: Having listen to your review I agree with your criticisms where the movie definitely doesn't look as good as Fury Road (not even close in my opinion) and the visual effects were definitely worse. Watching behind the scenes for Fury Road I was awe struck how good they integrated some of the visual effects. In this movie I thought they were painfully obvious all the time, even minute stuff. Lastly I don't know what I really think about Hemsworth performance. It didn't sit completely right with me. The prosthetics was also weird. They changed his nose and gums which made him look really different even though they are subtle changes. It was just weird. Overall I am obviously more down it than you guys. I hope it will grow on me with subsequent viewings. Edit 2: Re-watching Fury Road I think I nailed why the action didn't really speak to me in Furiosa. In Fury Road the movie is shot in a way such that I feel like I am IN the action while also making it Epic. In Furiosa I am WATCHING the action. The intimacy that was present in Fury Road isn't there which makes me feel detached. It might be a deliberate choice where as you move through Furiosa into Fury Road the "camera" moves in more and more into the action as it gets more personal, dire and intense as the story progresses. Or it just might be that the Director of Photography on Furiosa wasn't as good and/or talented as the one on Fury Road.
Jesper
2024-05-24 22:23:39 +0000 UTCMy most anticipated movie of the year!!
Tina Shin
2024-05-24 21:53:14 +0000 UTCOh man I LOVED Hemsworth in this, I think it’s his best performance.
Cameron Stewart
2024-05-24 21:42:46 +0000 UTCIt says A Mad Max Saga as a subtitle on the title screen at the beginning
Mountain of Conflict
2024-05-24 21:04:11 +0000 UTC
