Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024)

It may seem like a long time since we had Mad Max: Fury Road, but at least we have known that this movie was coming along at some point. There was a time when we didn't expect to spend more time in this world after Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome. But the most important thing to remember before sitting down to watch Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is that this isn’t Mad Max: Fury Road. Every Mad Max movie has been surprisingly different from the one preceding it, with the action and characters allowing George Miller to continue his exploration of heroes, storytelling, and how reality is hammered into shape by those living in it long enough. This film has some great action, but it’s mostly concerned with showing us a world in which a good person is forced to become stronger and smarter as they are passed from one villain to another.

We first meet Furiosa as a child here, played brilliantly by Alyla Browne. She is snatched by bad men, ending up in the care of Dementus (Chris Hemsworth). Dementus thinks he is a grand warlord, but his perspective is changed when he comes face to face with Immortan Joe (Lachy Hulme) and his dedicated army of warboys. Furiosa is handed over to Joe, Dementus becomes the ruler of Gastown, and time ticks merrily along for all involved. Eventually getting herself a job working alongside a talented “road warrior” named Praetorian Jack (Tom Burke), Furiosa (played as an adult by Anya Taylor-Joy) develops instincts and skills that will make her a valuable asset when Dementus decides that he wants to rule over more than just the denizens of Gastown. There could be a war brewing, but Furiosa still has a personal score to settle anyway.

With Miller comfortably in the director’s chair yet again, having also co-written the script with Nick Lathouris, this is a film that fans of the franchise should be happy to support. Few people are as good at somehow both meeting and subverting expectations as Miller, and he does exactly that once again. I would say there are three action sequences here that are astonishingly good, up there with the best you will ever see on the big screen, but they are deliberately couched within a movie that spends most of the runtime showing us the harsh and crazy world that leads to the creation of such harsh and crazy characters. It laughs at the people unprepared to do whatever needs to be done for the sake of survival and prosperity, and then shows how painful the process of adaption and transition can be. What is the point of being a big fish in a small pond when that small pond is actually a barren desert?

The more I think about Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga the more I am inclined to absolutely love it. I think a rewatch or two will see me bump up my rating slightly, but it’s hard to be so unreservedly effusive about it right now. First, it does inevitably suffer slightly when compared to the non-stop juggernaut of the film that preceded it. Second, there’s so much to take in, in terms of the detailing of the world and the connective tissue throughout the franchise, that one viewing just isn’t enough to fully appreciate it. I would advise everyone, if possible, to see it on the big screen though. This is cinema.

The cast are generally great. Alyla Browne is absolutely superb as the young Furiosa, a ball of resentment and unnerving patience. As much as I like Taylor-Joy, she is the one slightly weak link here. Not bad, and she certainly doesn’t unbalance the film, but her performance just feels slightly less convincing when she isn’t ensconced within the supporting armour of a powerful vehicle. Thankfully, she is surrounded by some other people on top form. Hemsworth steals the show, the facial prosthetics somehow helping to define his character as equal parts braggart warrior and sniveling politician, and Hulme takes on the role of Joe (previously played by the late Hugh Keays-Burn) with an admirable dedication to the physicality and eye-acting required. As for Burke, he proves himself to be a surprisingly great fit for this kind of gruff hero role, and I could easily imagine a spin-off movie showing us his adventures (Praetorian Jack: A Furiosa Saga From A Mad Max Saga, or something like that). There are others worth mentioning, but I would worry about starting a list of names that would go on and on for ages. Needless to say, almost every supporting cast member does a brilliant job of playing someone who feels like a part of this world.

Despite the CGI here, despite the prosthetics, and despite the confident plotting, the major achievement here is the consistent continuation of Miller’s vision that has spanned almost five decades now. This is more than just a movie. You will feel the dry heat, smell the engines, and tense up as vehicles cause the expected amounts of carnage. This is the closest you will get to a full immersive experience without adding any gimmickry to the process. It’s long, it can be a bit tiring by the time you get to the end credits, but it’s definitely worth it. There’s a point in this film when Hemsworth asks “do you have it in you to make it epic?” I would argue that Miller can’t give us Mad Max movies any other way. And we should all be thankful for that.

9/10

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Babe (1995)

Amazingly, as I rewatched it recently, I realised that I hadn't seen Babe in about twenty five years. I'd rented it when it was a major home release, and remember it being an enjoyable, if very cutesy, time. Based on a novel (The Sheep-Pig) by Dick King-Smith, it actually holds up as one of the best live-action family movies of the past few decades.

Babe (voiced by Christine Cavanaugh) is a pig won at a market fair by Farmer Hoggett (James Cromwell). Destined to be a centrepiece of the Christmas dinner table, Babe instead finds itself helping out around the farm, helping to look after the sheep alongside, and sometimes in place of, the sheepdogs. Developing quite the talent, thanks to some special knowledge delivered by a caring sheep, Babe is seen by Farmer Hoggett as a chance to excel at the upcoming Sheepdog Trials.

There's no place here for grouchy cynics, Babe is a film of absolute sweetness and joy throughout, and it feels all the more refreshing for it. We're more used to modern family movies having sly gags for adults, moments of darkness to make the lighter scenes shine brighter, and a scattering of little details that have become part of the fabric of modern cinema. Babe is very old-fashioned in many ways, absolutely earnest and optimistic throughout, and that heart complemented by the excellent film-making techniques on display (the animatronics, the trained animals, the voice cast) make it a rewarding viewing experience.

Cromwell is a kindly adult figure, almost the lone main character, despite others having some screentime with him, but he's secondary to the animal stars, all of them feeling like very real characters. Babe itself is a curious and polite child, even in the middle of some sequences that are set up to make the poor piglet look like a trouble-maker, and Cavanaugh has a great voice for the role (as does E. G. Daily, who voiced the character in the strange, darker, sequel). Hugo Weaving voices a god, Russi Taylor is a scheming cat, Danny Mann has fun as a mischievous duck named Ferdinand, and you have solid turns from Miriam Margolyes, Miriam Flynn, narration by Roscoe Lee Browne, and some people providing the voices of three little mice who pop up to introduce each main segment of the story.

Director Chris Noonan, who also co-wrote the script with George Miller, hasn't done many other movies that I have felt the urge to seek out, but he can happily hold on to this as the shining star in his filmography. It's hard to think of anyone really hating it, and I can only assume that it's the hardest and coldest hearts that stay that way by the time the end credits roll.

Truly delightful, and an easy one to stick on whenever you want to feel a bit better about the world, Babe is a film that deserves your time. Watch it with kids, watch it with elderly family members, watch it with anyone you can make sit down and watch it with you, watch it on your own. Just watch it, and let it put a big grin on your face.

9/10

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Prime Time: The Witches Of Eastwick (1987)

The more I think about it, the harder it is to think of a more bizarre mainstream hit (I believe it was a hit, it certainly seemed to be known and seen by enough people) than this movie.

It's essentially the tale of three women who would like a perfect man. You have Alex (Cher), Jane (Susan Sarandon), and Sukie (Michelle Pfeiffer). And it looks like their wish may come true when the mysterious Daryl Van Horn (Jack Nicholson) comes into town. He's devilish, direct, and deemed to be just what the women need. For now.

If you haven't seen The Witches Of Eastwick in many years, here are some things you may have forgotten. First of all, it is directed by George Miller. Yes, the George Miller who only seems to be remembered for the Mad Max movies or films about dancing penguins. Second, Veronica Cartwright is REALLY good in her role. She plays Felicia Alden, a woman afflicted by the presence of Van Horn as soon as he comes to town. You may remember her most memorable scene - spewing out a lot of cherry stones - but she does great work in every scene she is in.

If you haven't seen the film at all then just know that it has a great script by Michael Cristofer (based on a novel by John Updike), unfussy direction from Miller that keeps the focus on the dialogue and characters, and great performances from the leads, as well as that fantastic turn from Cartwright, who is given equally fine support from Richard Jenkins, as her husband.

Cher, Sarandon, and Pfeiffer are all excellent, portraying three very different women who want the same thing. Each one starts off as very different from the other, although the journey they go on together sees them discovering themselves in ways that bring them closer and closer together, as well as growing more similar in their outlook. Nicholson doesn't so much attempt to be all things to all women, but rather knows just how far he can push things and how much his charm and bluntness will make up for any perceived failings.

It's very interesting to rewatch this movie, and perhaps more satisfying than any first viewing. Knowing how things end, and I'll try not to give any spoilers, helps to put up with some of the more infuriating moments that take place in the middle section. It's a witty and insightful battle of the sexes that seems quite patronising at times before revealing its true colours.

There are issues. This is one of many films that have Jack Nicholson feeling very much like he's playing Jack Nicholson, the transformation of the female characters is quite clumsily handled, and there's one main special effect in the final act that may well have been best left offscreen, or created in a different way.

Those minor niggles aside, this is great entertainment. Smart, sexy, funny, and you'll never look at cherry stones the same way again.

8/10

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