Having previously starred in Furie, Ngô Thanh Vân (Veronica Ngô), takes the directorial reigns with the film’s prequel, Furies.
Set 15 years before Furie, we follow Bi (Dong Anh Quynh), a girl who goes through a violent sexual assault that leads her to being orphaned. While living a life on the streets, Jacqueline (Ngô) adopts her. Once she is taken to her new home, she is introduced to her new “sisters”, playful and girly, Hong (Rima Thanh Vy) and stand-offish, Thanh (Toc Tien).
After being introduced to the girls, Bi has a different experience with each. Hong is immediately excited, wanting to dress-up Bi and share her love for makeup. On the other hand, Thanh is a bit cold, with one of their first interactions being a head-to-head battle. Despite her coldness, Thanh is a protector and opens up to Bi. All three girls emphasize that they are sisters, bonded over their past trauma and their shared goal of saving girls. Following intense training, Jacqueline sends the girls on missions against criminal gangs who abuse women.
On their missions, the girls are brutal and don’t ever hold back and are intensely set on their mission. The action sequences were filled with martial arts, stabbing, and shooting and are masterfully shot. Each scene transitioned smoothly, and I love how the film had almost a graphic novel look. However, I do think that the motorcycle sequence had a bit too much CGI, but it was still really cool. Also, the film does not shy away from displaying sexual violence, so just a fair warning.
I give Furies a 4/5.
Furies will debut on Netflix March 23.
