The sequel to the cult-hit, Sisu: Road to Revenge, was made for action film fanatics of all generations. There were references and feelings audiences will resonate with, as it will spark memories from movies like Mad Max, Mission: Impossible, and John Wick. Director Jalmari Helander brought more world lore and bigger, more explosive set pieces in this second entry.
After returning in 1946 to Soviet-occupied Karelia, where his family was brutally murdered during the Second World War, Aatami Korpi (Jorma Tomila), “the man who refuses to die,” dismantles his old family house, loads it on a truck and is determined to rebuild it somewhere safe in their honour. When the Red Army discovers Korpi’s arrival on their soil, Igor Draganov (Stephen Lang), the man who killed his family, comes back, intent on finishing the job: killing the legendary ex-soldier by any means necessary.
If you enjoyed the over-the-top hyper-violence of the first Sisu film, prepare for an even more zany experience. From wooden logs used as projectiles to landing headshots with old military rifles, the action was all gift-wrapped in one. The storyline was simple: Aatami wanted to take the building materials of his old home and rebuild it on Finnish soil after the border displaced the home following the war with the Soviet Union. However, Igor wanted none of that, determined to settle an old score.
“Sisu: Road to Revenge was made for action film fanatics of all generations.”
In a strange way, the plot set this up as a race to the border, pitting the protagonist against the antagonist in a high-octane ride. To sell this kind of story, it needed strong physical actors. Tomila already showed his grit in the first film, but he also brought sorrow. Something about Tomila’s face presented an older man who just wanted to find peace. The Soviet Union soldiers were merely twigs in his way.
The only person who was not a twig in this killing machine’s way was Lang’s Igor. Lang’s tall and muscular build sold the idea of a worthy adversary to Tomila. But I enjoyed that Igor was not just a big, brainless brute; he had strategy and tactics. When Lang plays all his military/ex-military roles, whether his character from the Don’t Breathe or the Avatar films, he always gives off a cunning, smug look to his characters—like he also does in Sisu Road to Revenge.
The final fight on the train was where both Tomila and Lang’s strength was tested. Helander did not disappoint in creating a great ending set piece and fight choreography between the two men. The aura amongst them was like watching any iconic video game boss fight, whether that was Link facing off against Ganon/Ganondorf or Mario versus Bowser. As a common trope, the villain is always bigger than the hero.
The overall editing of the fight featured numerous cuts, which could be attributed to the two actors giving their all in the performance, but they are also physically past their prime. It was not as noticeable as some of the Taken 3 or The Bourne Ultimatum. Helander and his team did a much better job, and it was most likely because the film did not have the shaky cam approach to the fights.
The cinematography in Sisu: Road to Revenge was like watching an epic Ford F-150 commercial. The emotional beats at the beginning and end of this film were framed with specific natural lighting—probably colour-graded to really make the sunshine pop. The way these shots were filmed felt like an upgrade from the first movie.
The stunt team on Sisu: Road to Revenge did a phenomenal job on the motorcycle chase scene as well. The whole hot pursuit felt like something out of George Miller’s Mad Max films. Whenever the protagonists manoeuvre and mount trucks in the Mad Max films, there is always a tense edge to people running or jumping on a moving vehicle. Sisu: Road to Revenge carried that same anxiety-inducing feeling.
“Sisu: Road to Revenge was a worthwhile watch on the big screen for action fans and one-man-army hero enthusiasts.”
While the plane sequence felt a bit more CGI-heavy, the practical crashes and explosions sold it for me. Another strong use of practical effects appeared in the torture scene. For viewers who get queasy from body horror, there was a five- to 10-minute sequence that could shake people up. The same could be said about a glass scene.
Sisu: Road to Revenge was a worthwhile watch on the big screen for action fans and one-man-army hero enthusiasts. The runtime increased the pace of this locomotive story as Aatami races to the Finnish–Soviet Union border. While the CGI and VFX looked a little cartoon-like at times, it fit the tone of the wild chaos happening on-screen. Tomila and Lang stood as two action giants, and they will keep you enthralled until the end of this bloody, fun ride.
