‘Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga’ is a relentless, mesmerizing descent into hell and the lengths one woman will go to to crawl back out

It wasn’t enough that George Miller created an action epic with 2015’s “Mad Max: Fury Road,” a master class of what the genre can be — he had to do again with its prequel, “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.”

There’s an argument to be made that an origin story for Furiosa was unnecessary. In this 45-year-old franchise of a dying world barely stitched together with bullets and gasoline — and a curiously intense obsession with vehicles — is there really enough roadway to take a drive back to explore one person’s past? Even someone as fascinating as the warrior-savior Furiosa? Across its 148-minute runtime, “Furiosa” proves again and again that any minute spent with the savage, steely eyed heart of “Fury Road” is a minute well spent.

---

Read more: ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ review: What a lovely day! (2015)

---

For “Fury Road,” Miller, who’s directed all of the “Mad Max” films and co-wrote “Furiosa” along with Nick Lathouris, leaned into intense physicality, tight cinematography, breakneck pacing and jaw-dropping violence, all intertwined in a story of bloody revenge and cleansing redemption. He does much the same with the prequel, along with filling in the titular character’s backstory. (The end of “Furiosa” syncs up with the beginning of “Fury Road,” linking the two with images and clips from the latter.)

Keeping with Miller’s theme of duality, it’s not the barren vista of the desert that first greets us. Rather, it’s the Green Place, verdant and abundant, seemingly unaffected by the ravages of the world outside — and Furiosa’s home, the one she so desperately sought in “Fury Road.” But before we can really get a sense of this place, the young Furiosa (Alyla Browne, whose pitch-perfect glare belies her age) is kidnapped by biker marauders led by the teddy bear-carrying warlord Dementus (Chris Hemsworth, who’s clearly having fun as a speechifying psychopath).

What starts as idyllic swiftly morphs into cruelty and hardship. There’s little hope to be found in the seemingly endless Wasteland (stunningly detailed by Simon Duggan’s cinematography), especially as the warlords who control the region’s main production hubs slowly turn on each other. (Those who watched “Fury Road” will recognize the Citadel, run by Immortan Joe, this time played by Lachy Hulme.) The chaos that ensues is frenetic and demands attention: It’s loud, in-your-face — and brilliantly choreographed. Watching the vehicles clash and clang as pyrotechnics explode all around and the drivers and riders never stop moving is nothing short of cinematic joy. (Composer Tom Holkenborg’s music adds striking touches of silence throughout, a much-needed contrast to the noise that permeates so much of the film.)

But all of that — Dementus’ destructive flamboyance, Joe’s perverse desire to sire an heir, the decaying planet (we get a quick breakdown of what happened to cause such an ecological collapse), all of it — plays second fiddle to Furiosa’s 15-year quest to return home. Taking over the role originated by Charlize Theron, Anya Taylor-Joy’s Furiosa doesn’t possess quite the same gravitas, but you can see where one grows into the other. Theron captivated with an imposing stare; Taylor-Joy’s eyes, enormous and warring between hope for the future and rage for the present, convey a different sense of power, but it will hold gaze all the same.

In the end, “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” is a relentless, mesmerizing descent into hell and the lengths one woman will go to to fulfill a lifelong promise. Revving with pulse-pounding action throughout and anchored by Taylor-Joy’s measured performance, “Furiosa’s” brutality — and the film is drenched in it — speaks to the savagery of man, of that age-old adage about power and corruption. But it also speaks to hope and redemption and leaving your mark on the world. Furiosa asks, “Remember me?” You won’t be able to forget her.

Five “How does one drive a motorcycle chariot?” stars out of five, and a critic’s pick.