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Sisu 2: Road to Revenge is the sequel to the first Sisu film from 2022. This follow-up is directed and written by Jalmari Helander, who also directed the first installment.
After the war, Finland is forced to cede territory to Russia, including the area where Aatami Korpi (Jorma Tommila) lives. Aatami decides to take back his belongings, but by doing so he risks becoming a target of the Russian army, which is eager to take revenge on him after their last confrontation.
The Russians therefore send Igor Draganov (Stephen Lang) after Aatami, who, with his own army, tries to take him out before he can reach the Finnish border again.
This second Sisu film is once again an entertaining action movie. Aside from the fun action scenes, however, this sequel does not offer a particularly strong or unique story. Due to its events, the film sometimes feels reminiscent of other action films such as John Wick, Mad Max, or Top Gun. Compared to these titles, Sisu 2 lacks real character development, making it harder to empathize with Aatami beyond the fact that he's the hero fighting bad Soviet soldiers.
The film does, however, offer an interesting angle on the historical context of Finland having to cede land to the Soviet Union after World War II. A similar scenario now seems possible again in the war between Russia and Ukraine under the American peace plan.
Aside from the entertainment value of the action scenes, most of them remain predictable, allowing you to roughly guess what will happen. Not all explosions look entirely realistic either. Fortunately, the injuries that the characters sustain in the fights do look convincing.
Jorma Tommila performs well in the action scenes and feels almost like a Finnish John Wick, though with less background information, making it harder to truly connect with him. Stephen Lang makes for an enjoyable villain, although he mostly sends Russian pawns after Aatami while he watches from the sidelines-until the final confrontation.
After the war, Finland is forced to cede territory to Russia, including the area where Aatami Korpi (Jorma Tommila) lives. Aatami decides to take back his belongings, but by doing so he risks becoming a target of the Russian army, which is eager to take revenge on him after their last confrontation.
The Russians therefore send Igor Draganov (Stephen Lang) after Aatami, who, with his own army, tries to take him out before he can reach the Finnish border again.
This second Sisu film is once again an entertaining action movie. Aside from the fun action scenes, however, this sequel does not offer a particularly strong or unique story. Due to its events, the film sometimes feels reminiscent of other action films such as John Wick, Mad Max, or Top Gun. Compared to these titles, Sisu 2 lacks real character development, making it harder to empathize with Aatami beyond the fact that he's the hero fighting bad Soviet soldiers.
The film does, however, offer an interesting angle on the historical context of Finland having to cede land to the Soviet Union after World War II. A similar scenario now seems possible again in the war between Russia and Ukraine under the American peace plan.
Aside from the entertainment value of the action scenes, most of them remain predictable, allowing you to roughly guess what will happen. Not all explosions look entirely realistic either. Fortunately, the injuries that the characters sustain in the fights do look convincing.
Jorma Tommila performs well in the action scenes and feels almost like a Finnish John Wick, though with less background information, making it harder to truly connect with him. Stephen Lang makes for an enjoyable villain, although he mostly sends Russian pawns after Aatami while he watches from the sidelines-until the final confrontation.
Wicked: For Good is the sequel to the first Wicked film from 2024. This follow-up is directed by Jon M. Chu, who also directed the first installment.
After Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) exposes The Wizard of Oz (Jeff Goldblum) by revealing his lies, he turns the people against her. He also declares Glinda (Ariana Grande) the Good Witch, the symbol of goodness, to give the people hope. But that hope is false, built entirely on lies.
Elphaba now lives in exile in the forests and is known as the Wicked Witch of the West. Despite this, she still tries to fight The Wizard's deception and convince the people of the truth. The two witches must come together and decide: do they continue the lie of false hope, or do they reveal the truth and risk the people losing all hope?
The first Wicked film mainly told the backstory of Glinda the Good Witch and Elphaba, the Wicked Witch, and how The Wizard of Oz manipulated their friendship for his own benefit.
In this sequel, the two witches must face the consequences of their choices, though this may strain their friendship if they refuse to stand up to The Wizard. The first Wicked film is only five minutes shorter than the musical it's based on. Still, director Jon M. Chu chose to split the story into two films so that nothing from the musical had to be left out.
Because of that choice, the two films combined have a longer runtime than the stage musical. They had plenty of space, but at times it feels like they gave themselves too much space, filling the extra time with hints and references that heavily lean into the Wizard of Oz story. This provides some additional background on characters from that film, but not enough to truly get to know them. Fans of The Wizard of Oz can fill in these gaps themselves thanks to their familiarity with the characters from previous stories or adaptations.
For viewers unfamiliar with the other Wizard of Oz characters, these roles may feel underdeveloped, as if they're suddenly watching new characters who aren't fully explored. Although Wicked and The Wizard of Oz are essentially two separate narratives, they are merged here in a messy, rushed, and sometimes forced way.
The extra runtime across the two films did allow for every song from the musical to be included. There was even room for new, original songs that fit the films but aren't part of the stage production. As a result, more emphasis is placed on both the classic and newly added songs, rather than on fleshing out the Wizard of Oz characters, who end up feeling like added side characters, especially for viewers who don't know the story or earlier films.
Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande deliver strong performances and impressive vocals. Their characters do feel different from how they were portrayed in the first film, as the story pushes them to act in new ways. However, because the Wicked and Wizard of Oz storylines are combined so forcefully, it's sometimes unclear why certain characters make the choices they do.
The returning cast also performs well, but not all characters are given enough development due to the rushed pace created by blending the two narratives.
After Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) exposes The Wizard of Oz (Jeff Goldblum) by revealing his lies, he turns the people against her. He also declares Glinda (Ariana Grande) the Good Witch, the symbol of goodness, to give the people hope. But that hope is false, built entirely on lies.
Elphaba now lives in exile in the forests and is known as the Wicked Witch of the West. Despite this, she still tries to fight The Wizard's deception and convince the people of the truth. The two witches must come together and decide: do they continue the lie of false hope, or do they reveal the truth and risk the people losing all hope?
The first Wicked film mainly told the backstory of Glinda the Good Witch and Elphaba, the Wicked Witch, and how The Wizard of Oz manipulated their friendship for his own benefit.
In this sequel, the two witches must face the consequences of their choices, though this may strain their friendship if they refuse to stand up to The Wizard. The first Wicked film is only five minutes shorter than the musical it's based on. Still, director Jon M. Chu chose to split the story into two films so that nothing from the musical had to be left out.
Because of that choice, the two films combined have a longer runtime than the stage musical. They had plenty of space, but at times it feels like they gave themselves too much space, filling the extra time with hints and references that heavily lean into the Wizard of Oz story. This provides some additional background on characters from that film, but not enough to truly get to know them. Fans of The Wizard of Oz can fill in these gaps themselves thanks to their familiarity with the characters from previous stories or adaptations.
For viewers unfamiliar with the other Wizard of Oz characters, these roles may feel underdeveloped, as if they're suddenly watching new characters who aren't fully explored. Although Wicked and The Wizard of Oz are essentially two separate narratives, they are merged here in a messy, rushed, and sometimes forced way.
The extra runtime across the two films did allow for every song from the musical to be included. There was even room for new, original songs that fit the films but aren't part of the stage production. As a result, more emphasis is placed on both the classic and newly added songs, rather than on fleshing out the Wizard of Oz characters, who end up feeling like added side characters, especially for viewers who don't know the story or earlier films.
Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande deliver strong performances and impressive vocals. Their characters do feel different from how they were portrayed in the first film, as the story pushes them to act in new ways. However, because the Wicked and Wizard of Oz storylines are combined so forcefully, it's sometimes unclear why certain characters make the choices they do.
The returning cast also performs well, but not all characters are given enough development due to the rushed pace created by blending the two narratives.
The Running Man is a reboot of the 1987 film of the same name. This reboot is directed, co-written, and produced by Edgar Wright, the director of Baby Driver and Last Night in Soho.
In the near future, society is ruled by a corrupt entertainment corporation led by Dan Killian (Josh Brolin) and his show host Bobby T. (Colman Domingo). They run dangerous game shows in which contestants can win large sums of money.
Ben Richards (Glen Powell) is an overworked father struggling to keep a job. To financially support his sick daughter, he decides to participate in the show The Running Man. In this show, he must survive for 30 days while being hunted by professional hunters. He has to share his survival strategies with the world, gaining fans along the way so the entertainment corporation can profit from the attention. As Ben's fanbase keeps growing, he and his supporters might form a resistance group against the corporation.
With this second adaptation of Stephen King's novel, director Edgar Wright aims to keep the film closer to the original story. The story is given a modern twist: just like today, everything is captured with (mobile) cameras and shared on social media.
In the 1987 film, contestants had to face opponents who each had their own weapons and fighting styles. In this new version, contestants mainly try to hide for 30 days to increase their chances of winning the money. Compared to the 1987 version, this results in less action, making the film feel more like a game of hide-and-seek. This may come across as less exciting or entertaining.
Compared to the 1987 film, this reboot also has a runtime that is nearly 30 minutes longer, but due to the lack of real action, this longer runtime only makes the film feel more drawn-out.
The film also comments on modern issues such as politics and social media manipulating the public through fake news and deepfakes-tricking people for profit and entertainment with half-truths or outright lies. This is portrayed using modern film techniques, but the story itself conveys the same message: you shouldn't believe everything you see online.
Glen Powell delivers a strong performance in the lead role. He has a few entertaining action moments, complemented by some humor. However, unlike Arnold Schwarzenegger, he has fewer action scenes. In the original film, the villain Killian was played by Richard Dawson, who convincingly portrayed a corrupt game show host. In this reboot, the villain role is unnecessarily split between Josh Brolin and Colman Domingo. Both are charismatic actors, but by dividing the role, they each come across as less impactful. The antagonists that Glen Powell faces also have less personality compared to those in Schwarzenegger's version.
In the near future, society is ruled by a corrupt entertainment corporation led by Dan Killian (Josh Brolin) and his show host Bobby T. (Colman Domingo). They run dangerous game shows in which contestants can win large sums of money.
Ben Richards (Glen Powell) is an overworked father struggling to keep a job. To financially support his sick daughter, he decides to participate in the show The Running Man. In this show, he must survive for 30 days while being hunted by professional hunters. He has to share his survival strategies with the world, gaining fans along the way so the entertainment corporation can profit from the attention. As Ben's fanbase keeps growing, he and his supporters might form a resistance group against the corporation.
With this second adaptation of Stephen King's novel, director Edgar Wright aims to keep the film closer to the original story. The story is given a modern twist: just like today, everything is captured with (mobile) cameras and shared on social media.
In the 1987 film, contestants had to face opponents who each had their own weapons and fighting styles. In this new version, contestants mainly try to hide for 30 days to increase their chances of winning the money. Compared to the 1987 version, this results in less action, making the film feel more like a game of hide-and-seek. This may come across as less exciting or entertaining.
Compared to the 1987 film, this reboot also has a runtime that is nearly 30 minutes longer, but due to the lack of real action, this longer runtime only makes the film feel more drawn-out.
The film also comments on modern issues such as politics and social media manipulating the public through fake news and deepfakes-tricking people for profit and entertainment with half-truths or outright lies. This is portrayed using modern film techniques, but the story itself conveys the same message: you shouldn't believe everything you see online.
Glen Powell delivers a strong performance in the lead role. He has a few entertaining action moments, complemented by some humor. However, unlike Arnold Schwarzenegger, he has fewer action scenes. In the original film, the villain Killian was played by Richard Dawson, who convincingly portrayed a corrupt game show host. In this reboot, the villain role is unnecessarily split between Josh Brolin and Colman Domingo. Both are charismatic actors, but by dividing the role, they each come across as less impactful. The antagonists that Glen Powell faces also have less personality compared to those in Schwarzenegger's version.
