Mad Max: Fury Road
The arrival ofMad Max: Fury RoadandFuriosa: A Mad Max Sagaon Netflix makes it the perfect time to revisit both of George Miller’s modern action epics.
Miller, who is the mastermind behindthe entireMad Maxfranchisethat began with Mel Gibson in the lead role back in 1979, released his first Mad Max movie since 2015’s Oscar-winning Fury Road with the 2024 prequel Furiosa.
Although it was one of themost highly anticipated films of 2024,Furiosaunderperformed at the box office,earning just under $174 million against a reported budget of $168 million.
Mad Max: Fury Road, on the other hand, was by far the most celebrated installment of Miller’s dystopian wasteland franchise,earning more than $380 million worldwide and six Academy Awards, including Best Film Editing, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Sound Mixing and Best Sound Editing.
Due to the enormous, record-setting success of the Australian-made Fury Road, expectations were sky-high forFuriosalong before the film’s 2024 release.
WhileFuriosadidn’t achieve the same critical or box office success as its predecessor, it’s still a great movie that’s well worth the watch on Netflix.
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Mad Max: Fury Road & Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga Are Both Now On Netflix - What The Two Movies Are About
Furiosa is the origin story of Charlize Theron’s Fury Road character
Mad Max: Fury Roadtakes place in a post-apocalyptic Australian landscape where water is scarce and controlled by a dictator-like warlord ruler, Immorten Joe.
Joe keeps a group of women captive in his desert castle whoFuriosa plans to rescue and return to their flourishing oasis homeland known as The Green Place.
She and Max Rockatansky, otherwise known as Mad Max, form an unlikely alliance as they embark on an epic two-way road race to end Immorten Joe’s reign.
A prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road, Furiosa is an action-adventure film that tells the origin story of the headstrong and fearless Furiosa. Set shortly after the beginning of the “end of the world,” Furiosa is kidnapped and brought before a powerful warlord, now forced to work for him. To find her way back home, Furiosa will adapt to the new harsh and arid world as she grows into the Furiosa she becomes known to be.
Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron lead the cast as Mad Max and Furiosa, respectively, and are supported by Nicholas Hoult, Zoe Kravitz, Riley Keough, and Hugh Keays-Byrne.
Despite the Oscars success of Mad Max: Fury Road, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga has been snubbed, with it not appearing on any Oscars shortlist.
Furiosais the origin story of Charlize Theron’sFury Roadcharacter, played by Anya Taylor-Joy ofThe Queen’s GambitandThe Witchacclaim.Furiosawas originally meant to be filmed back-to-back withFury Roadbut ran into financial obstacles.
However, the two projects are cut from a similar cloth and are essentially companion pieces to one another.Furiosais also portrayed by Australian actress Alyla Browne in the prequel, which takes place over the course of a decade before the events ofFury Road.Furiosawas kidnapped from The Green Place as a child by the warlord Dementus, played by Chris Hemsworth, and teams up with Praetorian Jack (Tom Burke).
Furiosa IS A Good Movie, But Circumstances Were Working Against It
Its one of several underperforming blockbusters in recent years
Furiosa: A Mad Max Sagareceived very strong reviews which resulted in a 90% Rotten Tomatoes critic score and a nearly identical audience score of 89%.
Critics applaudedFuriosain similar ways toFury Road, acknowledging itsgripping action sequences, unforgettable visual style, and intriguing story that built on the mysterious loreof Furiosa’s backstory, who was arguably the most interesting character inFury Road.
While it may not have been as exceptional as the 2015 installment, Furiosa was in no way a disappointing follow-up besides its shocking box office woes.
After Fuiosa’s disappointing box office haul, the Mad Max show that was being developed in the 90s proves the series could work on the small screen.
Furiosa was one of several great blockbusters from the early half of 2024 that failed to meet industry expectations, similar to Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt’s action comedyThe Fall Guy.
The box office has certainly shifted and lessened since the recent pandemic, which is shown by the staggering number of 2023 franchise sequels that also underperformed at the box office, such asThe Flash and Indiana Jones&The Dial of Destiny.
Still, a 90% Rotten Tomatoes score typically coincides with at least a modest box office showing, whichFuriosaremarkably did not attain.
In theory, Miller, Taylor-Joy, and Hemsworthshould have pulled in a much higher number than what they ended up with.
A prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road, Furiosa is an action-adventure film that tells the origin story of the headstrong and fearless Furiosa. Set shortly after the beginning of the “end of the world,” Furiosa is kidnapped and brought before a powerful warlord, now forced to work for him. To find her way back home, Furiosa will adapt to the new harsh and arid world as she grows into the Furiosa she becomes known to be.
Fans Should Still Watch Furiosa For Its Character Development, Action, & World-Building
It carries many of the strengths of Fury Road
Fans ofMad Max: Fury Roadshould still absolutely check outFuriosaas it has a lot of similar strengths to the 6-time Oscar winner before it.
Many viewers who were taken bythe full-throttle pace ofFury Roadwill find a similar frantic energy captured inFuriosawhile also being drawn into an intricate and expansive story with Furiosa front and center.
Reviews alone indicate thatFuriosais one of the most unique and spectacular action movies of 2024, which will probably be looked upon in hindsight with a huge question mark about its box office performance.
Regardless, viewers who never got the chance to see it on the big screen can now enjoyFuriosafrom the comfort of their homes on Netflix.
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A prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road, Furiosa is an action-adventure film that tells the origin story of the headstrong and fearless Furiosa.
Set shortly after the beginning of the “end of the world,” Furiosa is kidnapped and brought before a powerful warlord, now forced to work for him.
To find her way back home, Furiosa will adapt to the new harsh and arid world as she grows into the Furiosa she becomes known to be.
