Should you stay until the end of George Miller’s latest film in the Mad Max saga?
The Big Picture
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Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
includes a post-credit stinger with Easter eggs for fans of the franchise. - The film focuses on Furiosa’s backstory, revealing a more vulnerable side of the character.
- Director George Miller hints at more Mad Max prequel films, with potential returns of main characters.
While fans of the Mad Max franchise have been waiting nearly a decade for the next installment in the series, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga contains both a credit sequence and post-credit stinger that pays homage to the saga’s legacy. Neither offers a strong indication of where the franchise is headed next, but fans of Mad Max: Fury Road in particular may be excited to see the Easter eggs that director George Miller provided. Viewers may be inclined to stay through the credits either way, as Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is a breathless action spectacle that features some truly jaw-dropping works of stunt work, including one moment that reportedly took its star Anya Taylor-Joy 78 days to complete filming.
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is the first Mad Max film with any post-credit stinger, but it’s certainly a satisfying reward considering the hectic history that the franchise has had up until this point. Mad Max: Fury Road was stuck in development hell for decades after Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome hit theaters, and suffered many on-set feuds that made filming more challenging. Thankfully, the positive reviews thus far have indicated that Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is more than worth the wait.
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
The origin story of renegade warrior Furiosa before her encounter and teamup with Mad Max.
- Release Date
- May 24, 2024
- Director
- George Miller
- Cast
- Anya Taylor-Joy , Chris Hemsworth , Tom Burke , Alyla Browne , Nathan Jones , Angus Sampson , Daniel Webber , Lachy Hulme
‘Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga’ Is a Revenge Epic
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is a very different film than the other installments in the Mad Max franchise. It isn’t as much a chase film as it is a spiritual epic that chronicles Furiosa’s entire backstory leading up to the climatic events of Mad Max: Fury Road. Taylor-Joy shows a more vulnerable, sensitive side to the character than Charlize Theron had been able to. That being said, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga certainly does not skimp when it comes to spectacle. As she grows in agency, Furiosa finds herself locked in a bitter feud between the warlords Dementus (Chris Hemsworth) and Immortan Joe (Lachy Hulme).
While it provides some interesting context about the origins of the Mad Max franchise, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga introduces some new faces to the series. The Souvenir and Mank star Tom Burke delivered a memorable turn as Praetorian Jake, a commander who works under Immortan Joe. Charlee Fraser also delivers an emotionally charged performance as Furiosa’s mother, Mary Jo Bassa.
Where Does the ‘Mad Max’ Franchise Go Next?
It’s unclear if Taylor-Joy will reprise her role in a future installment, but Miller has hinted that he has ideas about another Mad Max prequel film. Miller stated that prior to the production of Mad Max: Fury Road, he developed “not only the backstory of every character, but every prop, every vehicle, every gesture.” The fate of Tom Hardy’s Max Rockatansky is left ambiguous at the end of Mad Max: Fury Road, suggesting that he could reprise his role in another adventure. Hardy is slated to return as Eddie Brock in Venom: The Last Dance later this year, but his performance as Max is still cited as one of the best of his career.
Regardless of where the series goes next, Miller’s attention to detail was certainly beneficial to Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.Even with minimal dialogue, the film contains more impressive world-building than most summer blockbusters would ever attempt. Considering that Mad Max: Fury Road became one of the rare action movies that cracked the Academy Awards’ Best Picture lineup, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga could very well be in contention for next year’s major critical prizes.
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is in theaters on May 24th.
This article was originally published on collider.com