Sisu: Road to Revenge

If Indiana Jones and Mad Max had a cinematic offspring, it's surely the fantastic SISU: ROAD TO REVENGE. The leanest, coolest and funniest action thriller I've seen since the first film "Sisu" three years ago, it's a tribute to great action film making with a heavy dose of Coyote/Roadrunner mayhem.

Our silent hero Aatami is back, perfectly played once again by Jorma Tomilla. It's 1946 and WWII is over. Aatami lost his wife and children to a Soviet madman in the war and he begins a quest to return across the new Soviet border and take apart his house, log by log. His loyal dog watches in fascination as Aatami takes out every nail and piece of the home and loads it on a large truck, ready to transport it to his new homestead in Finland.

Soviet leaders find out that Aatami has crossed their borders. The man has grown into a Sisu legend for the number of enemy he killed in the last film's events and they are anxious to put him down. Who better than the mad Red Army Commander Dragunov that created this mess, to track down Aatami and put him down.

Dragunov is perfectly cast in the form of Stephen Lang (Avatar, Manhunter) a brutal psychotic who's been languishing in prison for war crimes and is thrilled to get out and hunt.

Everything we loved about the first film is back, bigger and better.

The story is split into seven chapters, bold titles announcing each one and building your anticipation for the absolute madness that is about to ensue.

I laughed out loud more than once as the aging Aatami took on bad guys, bomber jets, armored motorcycles and fighter planes in George Miller like scenes that seamlessly blend creativity with homages to everything from "Raiders of the Lost Ark" and "The Road Warrior".

Writer/Director Jelmari Helander takes his larger budget this time out and spends every dollar on screen. He has said he was inspired to create something that Steven Spielberg would be proud of in the final twenty minute train sequence.

That train is packed with soldiers, Dragunov and a gaggle of senior Soviet military leaders. Every car is loaded with ammunition and opposition. How will Aatami get through the entire train to his prey in the front car?

One incredibly staged fist fight, knife battle, ax throw, pistol, gun and rocket at a time. My face hurt from smiling and laughing in this final sequence as Helander and team blew me away again and again...and again. Relentlessly.

It's a tribute to Tomilla and Lang that two guys in their 60's and 70's can battle this brutally for this long and make it believable. Incredibly well staged.

Film lovers will appreciate the Sergio Leone style photography and the sheer momentum of this 89 minute action masterpiece. Helander has said that he wanted to create a film in the spirit of Indiana Jones, James Bond and Buster Keaton with his sequel. Mission accomplished.

One of the biggest surprises in the film is it's heartfelt coda. Our hero may not mutter a single word, but in the end, you realize he doesn't need to. Only fitting since SISU: ROAD TO REVENGE left me speechless, not earning an A like its predecessor, surpassing it to an A+ with bigger action, a better villain and just a touch of heart.

If you haven't seen the first film, see it now and then run to a big screen and buckle up for the Road to Revenge, the best eighties action movie made in four decades.

Unleash hell, indeed....

Check out the R rated trailer below for a taste of the madness and let's hope it doesn't take three years for Part 3!