Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga review - "George Miller has done it again with a prequel that finds new ways to surprise"

GamesRadar+ VerdictThis action franchise set in sun-blasted sandscapes is evergreen. A special place in Valhalla awaits George Miller. GamesRadar+ Verdict GamesRadar+ Verdict This action franchise set in sun-blasted sandscapes is evergreen. A special place in Valhalla awaits George Miller. This action franchise set in sun-blasted sandscapes is evergreen. A special place in Valhalla awaits George Miller. Why you can trust GamesRadar+Our experts review games, movies and tech over countless hours, so you can choose the best for you.Find out more about our reviews policy. Why you can trust GamesRadar+Our experts review games, movies and tech over countless hours, so you can choose the best for you.Find out more about our reviews policy. “Do you have it in you to make it epic?” asks crazed antagonist Dementus (Chris Hemsworth buried under a prosthetic nose, riotous beard, and pejazzled codpiece) of heroine Furiosa (Anya Taylor-Joy) as their fury roads intersect in a blaze of flames. No need to ask such a question of director George Miller, whose prequel toMad Max: Fury Roadnot only soups up the iconic War Rig but supersizes the story, mythology, scorching desert-scapes, and, yes, action set pieces in an attempt to dwarf that 2015 masterpiece. Fury Road, the fourth instalment in Miller’s franchise (which dates back to 1979’s DIY Ozploitation classic Mad Max), had a lean-machine plot threading its outrageous vehicular mayhem. This fifth outing goes deeper and wider to give us the coming-of-rage origin story of Fury Road’s Furiosa. The journey includes Furiosa’s revved-up, hatred-fuelled rampage of revenge against Dementus, and takes in Gastown, the Bullet Farm, and the Citadel, three fortresses that rise up amid the dust and dirt of the post-apocalyptic Wasteland. (Image credit: Warner Bros.) Is Furiosa as magnificent as Fury Road? No, though not because it’s the first Mad Max movie without Max, whose absence barely registers. At 140 minutes minus credits, it’s a touch unwieldy, while its lament for the inevitability of war and the emptiness of revenge feels hollow given the giddy excitement it stirs from just these things. But what can’t be disputed is that Miller, the Mad genius, has done it again, once more refusing to simply repeat himself and instead choosing to kick up dust rather than gather it as he forges a new path through the Wasteland in often spectacular fashion. Oh, what a day. What a lovely day. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is in UK cinemas and US theaters on May 24. 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