The Furious (2026) – Review

Quick thoughts:

• 9.5 Ice Blocks out of 10.
• The Furious is creative, exhilarating, and ambitious.
• It’s the best action film since 2018’s The Night Comes for Us (which also stars Joe Taslim). 
• Watch it in theaters.
• Miao Xie is a legend. Watch the Eye for an Eye films. 
• Joe Taslim is a legend. Watch The Raid, Fast & Furious 6, and The Night Comes for Us. 
• Brian Le is a legend. Watch Gladiator Underground and The Paper Tigers.
• Yayan Ruhian is a legend. Watch The Raid, The Raid 2, Boy Kills World, Lone Samurai, Beyond Skyline, and John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum.
• Joey Iwanaga is a legend. Watch Baby Assassins 2. 
• Between Baby Assassins 1-3, Ghost Killer, Scarlet, and The Furious, Kensuke Sonomura might be my favorite action director. It’s been fun watching his career progress. 
• Director Kenji Tanikaki deserves an incredible amount of respect for crafting such a thrilling and energetic experience. Watch Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In. 
• My five favorite action films of the 2020s are Fist of the Condor, Baby Assassins 3, The Furious, One-Percent Warrior, and John Wick: Chapter 4. 

Featuring a multinational cast of actors who’ve appeared in dozens of action films I adore (The Raid, The Night Comes for Us, Baby Assassins 2, Paper Tigers, Eye for an Eye), The Furious is a technically accomplished and thrilling example of what happens when creatives from around the world team up to create one of the best action films of recent memory. A lot of credit goes to director Kenji Tanikaki and action director Kensuke Sonomura (and all the actors and stunt performers), for bringing together a collection of legends and blending their skills into a cohesive vision. It helps that the plot is straightforward (dad needs to rescue his daughter), because it allows Maio Xie and Joe Taslim (who did all their own stunts) to go to war with the best stunt performers and action stars on the planet. 

The movie focuses on a seemingly invincible mute repairman named Wang (Miao Xie) who goes on an odyssey of violence while searching for his kidnapped daughter Rainy (Yang Enyou). The young girl was taken by two maniacs named Ho (Brian Le) and Donkey Head (Winai Wiangyangkung), who work for Mr. Song (Sahajak Boonthanakit), a trafficker who works for Paklung (Joey Iwanaga), a rich kid who works for a mysterious group of richer people. During his rampage, he meets Navin (Joe Taslim), who is also on an odyssey of violence as he tries to find his kidnapped journalist wife Matia (Jeeja Yanin – Watch Chocolate and Triple Threat). Together, they obliterate goons in clubs, warehouses, seedy buildings, and alleyways. What’s nice is that Wang and Navin have completely different fighting styles, as Wang is proficient at Kung Fu, while Navin prefers close-contact combat judo that’s raw and brutal. 

During the final fight, the combatants have their own fighting styles (kung fu, wushu, taekwondo, full-contact karate, pencak silat, tricking), and they create a glorious variation of strikes. Kensuke Sonomura’s action direction relies on momentum and clearly defined spaces (shout-out to production designer Pongnarin Jonghawklang) to craft rollicking brawls that flow violently throughout dingy corridors and warehouses. During the screening, the audience lost their minds as hammers, chains, machetes, fists, knees, heads, metal plates, sledgehammers, bicycles, and trash bags were used to hurt combatants during the multitude of set pieces. A neat thing about the action scenes is that they all tell a story and feel necessary to the plot. Whether it’s a frantic chase scene, a club fight, or a warehouse brawl, each fight furthers the story and leads to a brawl in a police station that feels earned, as all the pieces have been maneuvered into place. 

Kenji Tanigaki and Kensuke Sonomura come from the same action school in Japan, and their relationship works wonders as they have an understanding of what they both want to see on screen (they want to see awesome stuff). Tanigaki has called the production a “miracle” because the crew members left their egos at the door to unselfishly create something great. It’s also neat to know that Tanigaki collaborated with Taslim, Ruhian, Xie, Le, and Iwanga, and sought out their opinions to make their characters more defined and unique.

Final Thoughts – The Furious is wonderful, go watch it in theaters.