Where I Watched It: iTunes (VOD)

English Audio Description provided By Deluxe

Narrated By Jedidiah Barton

I can’t fully credit John Wick with the existence of this type of film, since absurd action films have long been the staple in our film diet. It often used to just be a really thin plot that gave an action star reason to kick ass, but now that we have all these stunt crews and elaborate visual effects, a film like Sisu, which takes place in WWII era Finland has all the blessings to send its audience to the proverbial brink. And i freaking loved it.

I actually enjoyed Sisu more than the already impressive john Wick Chapter 4, because Sisu is so simplistic in nature, but over the top in execution. A man, with a very particular set of skills, is retired now and is out mining for gold when the Nazi’s roll through his area on a path of total destruction. At first, he’s willing to keep his head down, and not be pulled back in, but just like Al Pacino in The Godfather, just when he thought he was out…

And once that happens, it’s like letting a honey badger loose in a day care and locking the doors. Those kids aren’t even ready for what’s next. We find out that this nameless figure was once called The Immortal by Russians, with at least 300 known confirmed kills. And by the end of this film, you will believe, he is truly immortal. The stuff he survives is so over the top, no one could possibly, except him. And all because they wanted his gold. Yes, there’s a dog, but this film isn’t as predictable as you might think, and is not a carbon copy of John Wick.

There are things that happen in Sisu that I can honestly say, with the thousands of films I’ve seen, and hours upon hours of TV shows, I have never seen this thing done. That is so rare nowadays, for someone to be creative to have a conversation that starts “But what if he…” and everyone is immediately on that page. It was a little gross, but truly, I don’t think it’s been done before. I also think scientifically it’s not possible, but you could say that about a lot of things in this movie.

Don’t turn your brain off, leave it on. Your brain needs this. There’s so much crap in our world, so many things to be angry about, or depressed over, that seeing a guy just terrorize Nazi’s is exactly what your brain needs.

I remarked about how john Wick Chapter 4 might be the most audio description ever, but Sisu is running right behind. There’s almost no dialogue. The lead doesn’t talk until the very end of the film. Most of this is dubbed and then audio described. Non verbal animals like a horse and dog are present, and the audio description is specific in the various looks of each character, because no one really cares what their name is, but you’re waiting to see when the guy with the goggles gets it. Every action sequence is so utterly absurd and over the top, I’m surprised jedidiah didn’t giggle his way through the film.

Sisu is the kind of film when someone asks me what my favorite film of 2023 is, it might be this. Will it be the technical best? No, I can’t claim that. It’s intentionally over the top, and that’s what makes it a delight. I’d be happy to see a sequel, as long as the same team is involved. I’m excited to see what the director does next.

An absolute blast for anyone who likes action films.

Final Grade: A