When I heard that Sisu: Road to Revenge was in the works, I was both surprised and excited. However, I was also a little worried, as I didn’t want the original film to be undermined by an unworthy sequel. It’s quite a common thing among directors or producers to ruin a great movie with a disappointing follow-up.
I saw this movie a couple of days ago and I can say I wasn't disappointed in any way. It was a deserving sequel and I was impressed. My experience is going to be hard to forget because the ending of this movie made me so emotional.
Sisu: Road to Revenge is an action, thriller and war film. It is also a good and satisfying revenge film. It was written and directed by Jalmari Helander with Jorma Tommila reprising his role as the main character alongside Richard Brake, Stephen Lang with other supporting characters.
This movie was set to continue from the initial sequel and enriched with a little bit of backstory. In 1946, in the aftermath of World War II, Finland surrendered the lands of Karelia to the Soviet Union as part of the peace treaty. Nearly five hundred thousand people were displaced from their homes and to never return ever again.
Aatami Korpi, Finnish ex-commando, ”The man who refuse to die” decided to cross the border into Karelia to visit his past where his family were brutally murdered during the war. Seeing his home looking abandoned brought back painful memories to him. Then he dismantled it and loaded every piece of his home into his truck with the intention of rebuilding it somewhere safe to honour the memories of his lovely family.
However, the Soviet authorities got to know about Aatami crossing the border to their territory. So a Nazi commander released the man who brutally butchered Aatami’s family, Yeagor Draganov from a prison in Siberia. This Commander promised Yeagor riches if only he could kill Aatami for the revenge of the Red Army troops in the Winter War he slaughtered. Will Yeagor succeed?
My Review And Rating
Helander did a fantastic job with this sequel and I was quite impressed with it. The writing was excellent and intriguing. I love how the plot was written which gave more insight on Aatami’s character and why he is particular about revenge. The narrative technique was engaging and captivating. I wasn't bored throughout the run time of the movie, instead I was on the edge of my seat, concerned about the main character dying.
The directorial style was amazing. I love how every scene was well arranged and it gave the movie a relentless pacing and good escalation. Every scene had tension because of the brutal ambush, the aircraft chase, the dog close to danger, the old banged up truck, and the survival moments of the main character. Also, the movie was divided into chapters that came with its own unique gore and violence. With each chapter, it keeps getting better.
The cinematography was so good that it made me feel nostalgic. It was a simple yet a vintage depiction of violence. I like that CGI was not depended on to portray all the violent and action parts. It was all made like the classic 80s and 90s action. Right from the start, the movie feels like it was done with a high budget. Is the impact it had on me, the gory scenes where it was convincing and realistic.
Tommila is an amazing actor even without a single word being said by him throughout the movie, his performance is one of the best I have ever seen. His performance was solid, his mannerism, facial expression and grunts tell you everything you need to know. Stephen Lang as the antagonist was amazing! I loved and enjoyed his performance. The way he carried himself all through the movie was thrilling. Every single word he said, further aggravated the protagonist into his beast mode.
This movie basically depicts how grief can change one, war and its aftermath, revenge, why justice needs to be served always and how the human spirit can be resilient.
Rating this movie, I will give it 9 out of 10 stars. It was a wonderful movie. I enjoyed every bit of it and it was a deserving sequel to the initial installment. If you like the “one-man army” kind of movie, I'd encourage you to watch this movie and you won't be disappointed.
All images above are from the movie screenshots
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