Set in a timeline after the events in the first film, we catch up with Aatami Korpi (Jorma Tommila) as he returns to his home in Finland, driving a big transport truck. The area his home is located in is now part of Russia, and he has to cross the border and venture deep into USSR territory. He reduces the home to timber logs and starts to cart the logs back across the border.
At the same time, the Russian soldier who killed his entire family, Yeagor Dragunov (Stephen Lang), is tasked with finding Korpi and putting an end to both his legend and life. The Soviet troops soon catch up with the lumbering truck, and the skirmish begins. Showing the undiminished desire to start his post-war life, Aatami is not easily apprehended, and things soon spiral out of control in the most gratuitous manner.
The first film was a surprise success and seemingly came out of nowhere. With the character now almost fully established, Finish writer/director Jalmari Helander stays fairly true to the formula, and this has its pluses and minuses. The minimalism of both dialogue and set design is kept, but in an effort to ramp things up, it does strain believability and makes Korpi’s force of will seem even more supernatural.
Now, your ability to live in this world and to buy into that expanded set of circumstances will have a large impact on your enjoyment of Sisu: Road to Revenge. It’s not that the cast and crew have exactly gone Hollywood, but by expanding the tortures endured and increasing the action, it does strain the suspension of disbelief a bit more than necessary.
Rob Hudson
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