‘The Furious’ Producer Bill Kong Guarantees Sequel Will Be “Better Than the First” [Exclusive]
Kenji Tanigaki’s The Furious hits theaters soon. Even with all the buzz, I’m not sure fans are ready for what they’re about to see. Because “hits” barely even begins to describe it. Tanigaki’s film lives up to the title and then some. The sort of movie that grabs you by the face with bloody hands, screams at you with the fury of one thousand suns, and then kicks you through the wall. Action-packed, intense, and loaded with gory fight scenes that rip and tear through bodies like nothing more than meat, it’s one of the greatest martial arts films in years. If that wasn’t exciting enough, it sounds like a sequel could very well be on the way.
Recently, I had the immense pleasure of sitting down with executive producer Bill Kong. For those who may be unfamiliar with him, you almost certainly know of his work. Kong was a producer on one of the most influential martial arts movies of all time, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. He also produced bangers such as House of Flying Daggers and Hero. He knows a thing or two about how to deliver an effective action movie. Namely, keep it simple, with a heavy focus on the primal emotions at the heart of it all.
“We were looking for a good story that addressed the world,” said Kong. “You don’t need to use your brain too much. All you need is your eyes and your heart, you know, all we need is to get the emotion of the character into the audience, and get that in quickly, and then start the ride. That’s the idea of making a film…That’s what we aim for, is something where it will touch as many people as possible around the world.”
The Furious has more than enough potential to do exactly that. Though the story is a good one, it’s not all that complex. A little girl is kidnapped, and her mute father, Wang Wei, is god damn furious. That’s it. Played by Miao Xie, he and eventual partner in ass-kicking, Navin (Joe Taslim), embark on a mission to get the girl back and take out anyone involved along the way. It’s brutal. It’s angry. And it’s a film raging at the injustices around the world that anyone in any country can understand, language barrier be damned.
Despite the violence of it all—and it is plenty violent—that’s not all there is to the film. The filmmakers put a lot of care into delivering scenes that leave your jaw on the floor, and oh, do they ever.
Kong shared, “When I first looked at the film, I saw that there are moments in it that look like a dance. It looks like a ballet…It’s more than violence, you know? The way that Kenji directed, how he choreographed it, there’s more to it than that. We did shoot it in a way that it has more blood. And I think that you need to get across that rage, because it’s called The Furious…You want to get that emotion. So, when the bad guy gets beaten up, you feel you can beat him up five more times.”
You can say that again, Kong. The Furious is full of villains you love to hate, and the filmmakers relish giving them the beating fans crave. And, like any great martial arts movie, the fight scenes are all beautifully choreographed. I had a similar thought to Kong during my first watch: it looked as if the actors were performing in one of the most visceral and entrancing ballets I had ever seen. The experienced cast are all masters of their craft, bringing various fighting styles that blend together beautifully. Between that and chaotic camerawork that hammers home the intensity, I found myself sitting in awe at what I was witnessing. To the point that I couldn’t even imagine how near-impossible moments like that must be to shoot.
“One of my favorite scenes, actually, is the scene in the nightclub,” says Kong. “I saw it as very difficult to shoot, because there’s so many people that need to work together, and it’s difficult to get it right. I don’t think there’s anything like that that’s been shot before.”
The scene in question arrives at a pivotal moment in the film. In it, we watch Wang Wei and Navin pummel their way through bad guys before colliding into a rage-fueled encounter before realizing they’re on the same side. You’ll have to decide for yourselves whether anything like it has been shot before, but I can say this. There’s only one The Raid (a film that The Furious has drawn comparisons to many times, including by me). There’s only one Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. The Furious has its influences, sure, but there’s only one The Furious. And it kicks so much fucking ass as its own unique beast.
Enough that the film is already tracking to do pretty well…possibly paving the way for a sequel. The other good news? That’s already being discussed by Kong and the others.
“I would be lying if I told you that’s not on our mind. Every time that we sit down together, we’re always thinking about that. I can promise you one thing, that if there’s going to be a sequel, it will be a better film than the first one. I think people like this movie because it is different, it is out of your expectations, you know? So, how can we, on our next movie…how do we do what you don’t expect? We have no idea how we do that. We are thinking about it a lot, but we have no idea how we can outdo ourselves yet. But there’s still time.”
If you’ve seen The Furious, then you understand what it means for Kong to not just say that a sequel would be better than the first, but that they plan to outdo themselves altogether. That’s why Kong has some hesitation, because that may be the plan, but it’s a mighty tall task. Still, it seems clear that a sequel won’t move forward unless the filmmakers can find ways to top themselves and unleash an even more thrilling ride. I know this…if they can crack it, audiences are going to be in for one of the most insane martial arts films of all time.
For now, you all will just have to settle for, well, one of the most insane martial arts films of all time with The Furious when it rages into theaters on June 12th via Lionsgate.
Categorized:Exclusive Interviews