Visionary director George Miller is back with Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, the fifth installment in the Mad Max series, and the highly anticipated follow up to 2015’s Mad Max: Fury Road. This story follows a young Furiosa and the events that lead up to her being the badass character audiences saw in Mad Max: Fury Road.

Sometime after a global devastation that lead to the Wasteland, a young Furiosa (played by Alyla Browne) is kidnapped by bike raiders and brought back to their leader named Dementus (Chris Hemsworth). Dementus wants Furiosa to lead him to her home that is a land of abundance known as The Green Place. It’s full of trees, fruit, and fresh water. When Furiosa won’t give up the location, Dementus and his crew travel the Wasteland in search of water, gas, and other resources.

Dementus and his crew stumble upon the Citadel, a post run by Immortan Joe (Lachy Hulme). After Dementus’ failed attempt to take the Citadel, he takes over Gastown and bargains with Immortan Joe for food and water. Immortan Joe agrees but asks for a young Furiosa as one of his wives as part of the deal.

As Furiosa grows up in the Citadel, she disguises herself as a young man and works as mechanic. This is where Furiosa (played by Anya Taylor-Joy) learns all the skills she needs to drive the War Rig and survive in the Wasteland.

After nearly ruining Gastown, Dementus sets his sights on the Citadel once more. This leads to a showdown for the Citadel – Immortan Joe, Furiosa, and the War Boys versus Dementus and his insane Biker Horde.

Like most Mad Max films, the opening is a wild ride that introduces all the major players. Alyla Browne is amazing as Young Furiosa and lays the groundwork in the films first 45-60 minutes for the character Anya Taylor-Joy would embody for rest of the film – and that’s when the film starts to feel a lot like Mad Max. Once Anya graces the screen, you’re introduced the War Rig, Praetorian Jack (Tom Burke), and how insane and violent Dementus is.

George Miller broke the film down into chapters to tell this story. The chapter titled “The Stowaway” is the start of Furiosa’s hero’s quest. It’s also when you get to blood and chrome, white knuckle driving, and heart-pounding chase sequences. Miller and his team did not disappoint. There are some amazing chase sequences that include parachutes, buggies, bikes, and plenty of flamethrowers. The action delivers everything you’d expect while watching a Mad Max film.

Anya Taylor-Joy is fantastic as Furiosa. Like most protagonist in a Mad Max film, her character isn’t given a lot of dialogue. It’s mostly her eyes and facial expression reacting to the tornado of chaos around her. Chris Hemsworth is having all the fun as Dementus. He plays a nightmarish apocalyptic cult figure that’s drunk on his own power very well. His motivation feels like survival but as the film goes along, it’s unclear what moves him besides absolute chaos. Hopefully this leads to Hemsworth taking more chances playing out of the box characters. He’s very good at it.

The highlight of Furiosa is its action. The characters may not be as interesting or engaging as ones in previous films, but the action doesn’t disappoint and delivers a few sequences fans of the film series will love.

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is the perfect film for the summer. It has big stars, action, comedy, and an engaging story. More than a Furiosa origin story, the film operates best as a world building saga that other films can build on.  The film does a great job showing how everything works in this crazy world. George Miller created a world that feels terrifying and believable. Let’s pray we get to see more of it.

Grade: B+