Film Review – The Furious (2025)

      The Furious, 2025.

      Directed by Kenji Tanigaki.

      Featuring Xie Miao, Joe Taslim, Yang Enyou, Yayan Ruhian, JeeJa Yanin, Brian Le, Joey Iwanaga, Sahajak Boonthanakit, Manatsanun Panlertwongskul, Kittiphoom Wongpentak, Winai Wiangyangkung, Guo Junqing, Marut Charoensub, Sonny Chatwiriyachai, Chayanith Riddhimat, Tanapol Chuksrida, and Kittiphoom Wongpentak.

      SYNOPSIS:

      When Wang Wei's daughter is taken by a criminal organization and he gets no support from the corrupt police, he embarks on a quest to rescue her on his own. His only companion is Navin, a dogged journalist whose wife has mysteriously vanished. Driven by furious anger, the unorthodox duo fiercely battles the kidnappers in this high-octane martial arts confrontation.

      In a location somewhere in Southeast Asia, Navin (Joe Taslim) is undercover, pretending to be interested in buying children from traffickers, trying to progressively climb the hierarchy while seeking information about the whereabouts of his missing reporter wife Matia (JeeJa Yanin), who disappeared after months of relentless research at a critical moment in her investigation (as revealed in the prologue). At the same time, mute Wang Wei (Xie Miao) is actively pursuing the same group for abducting his daughter Rainy (Yang Enyou) in broad daylight, after a disagreement with her father regarding her life, presence, and plans to return to China, having been lured to a vulnerable area by a child (regularly abused and used by the traffickers as bait) asking for help. In Kenji Tanigaki's The Furious (based on a screenplay by Shum Kwan-Sin, Frank Hui, Mak Tin-Shu, and Lei Zhilong), their paths are set to intersect and unite against this criminal entity.

      Yes, this is a conventional storyline, and those who aren't major characters often appear as if they have never acted before. It is also unrelenting in its display of acrobatic martial arts violence, yet it skillfully alters villain dynamics to rationalize each subsequent action sequence that propels the story forward. The Furious is an exhilarating experience, ranking among the best action films of the last 15 years.

      The film takes its subject matter seriously, fearlessly placing children in danger (with Rainy once shown dangling upside down from a moving truck early in the film) but is astute enough not to devolve into exploitation; the children eventually join the chaos in resourceful and sometimes violent manners, with the story ensuring they are fully realized characters and touching upon themes of forgiveness, empathy, and chosen family. The implication is that no one is safe here, which heightens the already intense adrenaline, as if every ticket should come with a warning about the potential for a heart attack.

      Naturally, most of the action features Wang Wei and Navin, who move from place to place, delivering brutal beat-downs to henchmen as they ascend the criminal hierarchy, resulting in a series of dynamic, chaotic fights that consistently defy logic and physicality, even though it features real people performing real stunts. As a fight choreographer and seasoned director of action films, Kenji Tanigaki understands that desperation is the strongest weapon for emotional impact in combat, whether facing one antagonist or a hundred.

      This film exudes so much tenacity and determination from its characters to achieve their goal that the only way it finds to punctuate one of those multi-layered, spectacular scenes is to have one of them hit by a car, only to carry on. There is urgency, and then there is The Furious, which keeps viewers engaged and prepared to rush through obstacles alongside these characters to rescue their loved ones (this isn’t a spoiler, although it wouldn't have shocked me if it did occur).

      Stunningly photographed by cinematographer Meteor Cheung, each of these fights is utterly exhilarating, featuring typical MMA-style takedowns, submission attempts, roll-throughs, kicks, resets, and more, as characters physically batter one another. As Wang Wei or Navin throw punches and kicks, swarms of henchmen transform into makeshift towers, serving as platforms and punching bags. The environments are exploited to the fullest, with wooden planks and ladders used either to knock opponents back or as weapons in battle. Thunder repeatedly crashes at timely points during the frenetic climax, which includes several characters. Cameras are mounted on a motorcycle driver, mowing down henchmen in an alley, colliding with a stuntman, while a child swings a weapon. At one point, a psychopathic villain is introduced, not only shooting at good guys with a bow and