A great new war action thriller movie has just been added to streaming
It’s an exciting, hard-hitting action film with shades of Mad Max: Fury Road and Rambo.
Sisu: Road to Revenge, the much-anticipated sequel to 2022’s hit war action thriller Sisu, has just been added to streaming.
The original Sisu was set in 1944 Finland during World War II. The story followed Aatami (Jorma Tommila), a legendary ex-commando turned solidary gold prospector who crossed paths with a platoon of Nazis on a scorched-earth retreat.
When these Nazi soldiers tried to steal from him, Aatami decided to fight back, revealing himself to be a “one-man death squad”.
Accessible to watch on the streaming service NOW, Sisu: Road to Revenge takes place two years later, with Aatami returning to Karelia, a formerly Finnish province now under Soviet control.
The ex-commando had lived there with his family before they were brutally murdered during the war.
Planning to dismantle the family’s old home, load it on a truck, and rebuild it somewhere safe in their honour, Aatami’s arrival into the Soviet Union, however, tips off the authorities.
The Soviets subsequently send Igor (Stephen Lang – Avatar, Don’t Breathe), the Red Army commander who killed Aatami’s family and tried to kill him, to finish the job.
They are worried that Aatami’s continued survival and his take-down of the Nazis from the first film have made him a legend.
If you enjoyed the first Sisu (which we here at JOE have recommended many times), chances are you’ll get a huge kick out of Road to Revenge, which is a hard-hitting, worthy sequel.
It’s still a blast to watch Tommila’s near-silent, super stoic yet still immensely likeable ex-commando wipe out hordes of very bad guys in inventively convoluted and gory ways.
Lang proves to be a great big bad for Aatami to face off against. He is imposing during the intensely physical fight scenes, but also has fun chewing the scenery as he delivers moustache-twirling villainous monologues.
Writer-director Jalmari Helander (the upcoming Rambo prequel) makes sure the action is epic, and the pacing is brisk throughout, with the movie essentially becoming one long chase sequence à la Mad Max: Fury Road.
But also, just when you think you might be becoming slightly deadened emotionally by all the violent carnage, Helander closes out the action flick with a surprisingly beautiful and humane closing scene.
It’s a denouement that puts the underlying themes of the film to the fore and might even bring a tear to your eye.
JOE had the pleasure of speaking to Sisu and Sisu: Road to Revenge writer-director Jalmari Helander about the action sequel ahead of its release.
You can read our conversation with the filmmaker in full below:
JOE – Congratulations on Sisu: Road to Revenge. I thought it was amazing. I didn’t think it was possible to top the crazy action from the first movie, but you definitely succeeded.
How do you go about planning those crazy action set pieces? Is it something you’re doing in the writing process, or is it something that you’re more working out with your special effects and stunt teams?
Jalmari Helander – It’s all in the writing, so I’m just trying to figure out impossible challenges that Aatami could have and then trying to figure out how to survive those.
Usually, it’s easy to invent the difficult situations, but it’s not that easy to figure out how to survive those moments.
That’s a lot of sitting by the computer [he says, laughing].
JOE – Sisu 2 is obviously drawing on Finnish history, but I also thought its story felt very timely. It’s about war, it’s about the aftermath of war, the division of territory. Borders and passports are a big part of the story. Can you talk about some of the ideas and themes that you were most eager to explore in this new movie?
JH – Well, basically the idea that Aatami goes to get his home back. [That] was a really big idea… After that idea, I was sure that this film would work, and that I had a good enough reason to do a second part.
So, that’s a pretty emotional thing, and at the same time, it creates action itself. Because you have to think: ‘How can you move that house?’ It’s hard to move through the hostile territory, and, at the same time, it’s emotional. So I think it’s really important to have that kind of idea to make it work.
JOE – Obviously, Stephen Lang is the new big bad in Sisu: Road to Revenge. He’s awesome in the movie. He’s an actor I’ve long admired. Were you a fan of his before Sisu? If so, what movies of his did you like? And what do you think made him such a good villain for Aatami?
JH: I like the first Don’t Breathe film, and of course, Avatar, the first one. He’s pretty badass in that.
When I first met him on Zoom, I was sure that he would be the right guy.
He has some of the same qualities as Jorma, that kind of silent charisma that it’s easy to watch and yeah, I think it worked really well.
JOE – You’re in Bangkok right now. Is that anything to do with John Rambo [the upcoming prequel to the Rambo action franchise starring Noah Centineo]?
JOE – I know that franchise is very important to you. You can really see its influence in both the Sisu films.
I was curious what your approach to a Rambo prequel will be. Because obviously First Blood is so emotional and grounded compared to the later movies in that franchise, which are very bombastic, but they are very fun. Do you think your take will be more First Blood or more like Rambo 2 and 3?
JH – It’s a process. I’m not sure yet. It will reveal itself later on [he says, laughing].
But it’s going to look like something that I have made, that’s for sure. But let’s see.
JOE – You’ve got a lot of projects lined up because I saw you’re attached to Fairytale in New York, which is a New York Christmas action movie. But I was wondering, are you thinking about a Sisu 3, completing a trilogy? Because I thought this movie ended in a perfect place, but I would be curious to see if there was more.
JH – Yeah, that’s what everyone keeps asking. I don’t know.
Like you said, it ends pretty nicely now, but I don’t know, maybe trouble finds Aatami again. Let’s see.
