On paper, The Furious sounds familiar: after his daughter (Yang Enyou) is kidnapped by human traffickers, a father (Xie Miao) seeks to rescue her and exact revenge. The plot may sound cliché, but make no mistake – this hard-hitting action film is packed with crazy martial arts action and stunts, reminiscent of the Golden Age of Hong Kong action films.
The dramatic scenes in The Furious are ultimately perfunctory, acting as the scaffolding upon which can be hung a glorious tapestry of violence and action. After all, who is worried about plot details when Xie Miao is literally building a tower of bodies within a UFC-style octagon, raining down hammer blows a la Oldboy as he climbs higher and higher up their unconscious forms?
The Furious is the third film directed by Japanese action choreographer Kenji Tanigaki, who got his start working with Donnie Yen and brings his long career as an action coordinator and director to The Furious. The film was primarily funded by Hong Kong’s Edko Films, filmed in Thailand, with a Japanese director, and a pan-Asian cast of actors from China, Indonesia, Thailand, and more, but it turns out that action is a universal language.
The film brings together action all-stars from movies like The Raid, The Raid 2, The Night Comes For Us, John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum, and Everything Everywhere All At Once. With this amount of martial arts talent in front of the camera, action fans may come in with high expectations, and The Furious delivers.
Led by Tanigaki and action choreographer Kensuke Nomura, the choreography on display is unbelievable, a propulsive blend of grappling and hand-to-hand combat that continues to constantly escalate. Each character has their own fighting style: Xie Miao’s wushu intensity, Joe Taslim’s judo acrobatics, Joey Iwanaga’s high-flying kicks, Brian Le’s seemingly indestructible brute force and athleticism, and Indonesian action legend Yayan Ruhian as a deadly archer / knife wielder. All five performers delight with their incredible athleticism and showstopping stunts, but Brian Le is a standout, with a combination of size, speed, and humor reminiscent of Hong Kong action legend Sammo Hung.
The Furious is the type of movie that was made to be watched with a rowdy crowd, and it will have fans cheering at the balletic athleticism on screen. By the time the film reaches its climactic five-way fight, with multiple fighters weaving in between one another, you’ll be hard-pressed to argue that these aren’t the greatest action fight scenes of 2025.
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The Furious (Chinese: 火遮眼)—Hong Kong, China. Dialog in English, Mandarin Chinese, Thai. Directed by Kenji Tanigaki. Running time 1 hour 53 min. First released Sept 7, 2025 at the Toronto International Film Festival. Starring Xie Miao, Yang Enyou, Joe Taslim, Yayan Ruhian, Jeeja Yanin, Brian Je, Joey Iwanaga.
This article is part of Cinema Escapist’s dedicated coverage of the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival.