Sisu: Road to Revenge, 2025.
Written and Directed by Jalmari Helander.
Starring Jorma Tommila, Richard Brake, and Stephen Lang.
SYNOPSIS:
A man returns to dismantle his family’s house, where they were murdered in war, to rebuild it elsewhere. When the killer, a Red Army commander, tracks him down, a brutal cross-country pursuit begins.
Early in Sisu: Road to Revenge, disgraced Soviet Officer Igor Draganov (Stephen Lang) warns his army of generic henchmen that the titular former Finnish Commander Aatami Korpi (Jorma Tommila), once again a silent badass) is a crafty [expletive]. So is the film. For returning writer/director Jalmari Helander, it comes across as both a mission statement regarding the gloriously brutal and sometimes comical violence on display but also a way in for anyone who hasn’t even heard of the first entry in this series (also a confidently made blast that knows exactly what it wants to be, although never really found an audience with Lionsgate distributing, which is not to say that new owner Screen Gems, a subsidiary of Sony, is doing any better).
The film even begins with the same quote explaining the finish meaning of Sisu: the gist is that it means this grizzled, mute, and surprisingly mellow when not being hunted, lone wolf can be badly beaten and tortured in unimaginable ways to within an inch of his life, like a pro wrestler who has been dumped onto thumbtacks and through flaming tables, is never out of the battle and will activate his fighting spirit. Similar to the first film, this does become a little too excessive and absurd at times, but the sheer ingenuity of the action and clarity in framing (cinematographer Mika Orasmaa knows when to go for a close-up of Aatami in the truck and went to capture the chase laterally in a wide shot) and propulsive nature don’t bring the experience down too much. With that said, the film succeeds in finding tension and urgency even with a protagonist who feels superhuman.
As for the plot, that is also simple to explain: with parts of Finland now occupied by the Soviets, Aatami has crossed that border to tear down his generational home and load all the wood on his truck-like war rig that demolishes anything in its path like it’s a Twisted Metal game, quite literally bringing his past and origins with him to start life anew and what’s left of Finland. Discussed in certain circles like a bogeyman for slaughtering several Nazis in the first film, the Soviets have let Igor out of incarceration to finish the job he started, killing this man’s family and giving birth to this living legend who is essentially old man John Wick (he even brings his dog along for the perilous journey). The result is essentially that fused with aspects similar to the structure of Mad Max: Fury Road.
Sometimes, a concept is so strong that almost nothing can prevent it from succeeding in execution. Jalmari Helander delivers on ultraviolent, vengeance-forward action, and doesn’t let up on jumping from one distinct erosion of chaos to the next, typically while switching up where and how the goons are coming for Aatami. Each chapter also represents this, with one centered on a group of enemies on motorbikes and another on the henchmen dropping bombs from airplanes. As for the finale, that gleeful carnage takes place inside and on top of a moving train.
It also wouldn’t be fair to label the film mindless, as Jorma Tommila’s performance, which is heavy on internalized pain and a desire for peace and solitude, offers nuanced expressions that have stories for days. Even the concept of being forced out of one’s own country, but trying to lug the parts of a generational home that is now in enemy territory across the border, stirs thoughts and emotions of family history, what we leave behind, and the resilience to hold onto what has been stolen.
For a film that’s about 75 minutes of watching generic henchmen inventively get blown up or shot at, that is simultaneously shocking and hilarious, the prologue and epilogue (each roughly 3 minutes) are moderately moving, which is no easy accomplishment given where the priorities lie for Sisu: Road to Revenge. That road is paved with a string of elaborate kills and immensely entertaining wanton destruction.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★ ★
Robert Kojder
