The Furious storms into the UK

I was very excited to catch the UK premiere of The Furious at the iconic Prince Charles Cinema in London, one of my favourite cinemas, and the perfect environment for a film like this. The packed house had a fantastic night as we collectively experienced one of the most eagerly awaited martial arts movies of the year.

Despite all the impossible hype to live up to, the great news is that director Kenji Tanigaki and his crew have knocked it out of the park. Longtime Donnie Yen collaborator, and now choreographer-turned-filmmaker, Tanigaki (best known for work like SPL, Flash Point and Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In) has conceived a gritty, gripping action spectacle which feels akin to a 90’s throwback, the kind so many of us grew up on. The passion and excitement is present throughout.

The story offers up a simple but poignant premise, serving a platform for this man-on-a-mission outing with elevating tension and a high body count. After his daughter is kidnapped by traffickers, a mysterious mute father (Xie Miao), highly skilled in martial arts, tracks down clues and rips apart the underworld to find her. He soon makes an ally in Navin (Joe Taslim), a tough journalist with his own personal agenda, after his wife disappears tracking the same criminals. Their journey taking them head-to-head with corrupt law enforcement and ruthless gangsters, can this pair of underdogs find their loved ones and survive?

With the added kudos of being produced by Bill Kong (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Hero, Fearless) The Furious boasts some of the most dynamic, varied, technical and visceral action I’ve seen in years. Having Tanigaki at the helm, the role of lead action director this time goes to Kensuke Sonomura, an action veteran and filmmaker in his own right, whose own credits include Baby Assassins, Ghost Killer and Hydra. Clearly a tight-knit unit, they have crafted highlight-reel worthy action, extravagant and highly entertaining, which still feels believable within the universe of the film and each character’s skillset.

As a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu practitioner, I enjoyed the emphasis on grappling, sweeps and throws in many of the close-quarters bouts. But don’t worry, there’s plenty of varied hand-to-hand styles, weapons and varied set pieces. While the fights and general aesthetic is colourful and pacy, several surprisingly brutal moments puncture the fights, bringing a heaviness and consequence to the physical carnage.

At a time when we’ve essentially seen everything before, action design-wise, I’m positive this team has managed to summon fresh and never-before-seen beats, while blending these with hat tips to old school kung fu cinema. I’m sure I saw nods to Bruce Lee’s The Big Boss, Jackie Chan’s First Strike and even Fatal Termination, among others.

Former child star, Xie Miao, best remembered from My Father Is a Hero and The New Legend of Shaolin, takes on the highly demanding lead role with effortless style. Though he’s enjoyed a successful later career with highlights like The Thousand Faces of Dunjia and the titular role in Ip Man: The Awakening, this is undoubtedly his best work so far. Playing the role unspoken is an interesting script choice, and allows him several moments of reflection and compassion, alongside his tireless and exhausting physical performance.

Xie Miao makes a strong double team with Joe Taslim (The Raid, Mortal Kombat) who more familiarly, to most audiences at least, brings his signature screen fighting versatility, plus his well-documented background as a professional judoka. The action cast is rounded off by Brian Le (Everything Everywhere All at Once), Joey Iwanaga (Rurouni Kenshin: The Final), Yayan Ruhian (The Raid) and even a cameo from JeeJa Yanin (Chocolate), all of whom bring a different style and flavour to their characters. The feeling in the room was that everyone wanted more JeeJa Yanin, but that will always be the case!

There are some minor shortcomings, but these may be subjective. The film is largely shot in English (clearly made with an International audience in mind, fine, English dubbing less so). However, it’s still a film where, quite literally, actions speak louder than words. With wall-to-wall, jaw-dropping fight scenes and so many soon-to-be-iconic set pieces which ratchet up the intensity, The Furious feels like a love-letter to classic East Action cinema. The difference is that these passionate kids who were fans, renting the videos and studying the moves, are now running the show! It demonstrates the genre is alive and well, and in very good hands. There can be no doubt that this is one to experience on the biggest screen possible.