SISU: Road to Revenge Review - Balls out, glorious, Bloody mayhem

Chase Gifford
34 minutes ago
3 min read

“May God have mercy for my enemies because I won’t.” - George S. Patton

Who needs a plot when you have The Man Who Refuses to Die as your hero? I’m being facetious of course but not as much as you might think. The first time we met Aatami he was just trying to live his solitary life. His dog by his side and riches in his satchel, he was content. Of course as life would have it, there’s often people who can’t mind their own damn business. The people in this particular story just happened to be Nazis. Too bad for them. Here was a man they perceived as alone and an all too easy target for their cruelty. Little did they know who they were fucking with. If you’ve seen what transpires you know it didn’t end well for the dicks in swastika regalia and rightfully so.

And if you thought that would be the end of it then you aren’t alone in thinking so. But here we are in 2025 and the man, the myth, the legend himself has returned for some much needed vengeance at its most brutal and undiscerning. He is a quiet spirit but a genuine demon if crossed. And who is dumb enough to ruin this man’s day this time? The Soviet Union of course. A commander of the Red Army to be specific. What we discover is this is the man that is widely considered the person that created what would ultimately become the myth of The Man Who Refuses to Die. By killing his entire family during wartime, an insatiable fire was lit within Aatami that will likely never burn out.

Recently released from prison on the grounds that he will finish the job and kill Aatami, Yeagor Dragunov is the culprit of this man’s greatest agony. But all Aatami wants is to dismantle the home his family lived in and rebuild it elsewhere and to live the rest of his life in peace. The Russians have other plans and they’ll wish they didn’t. It starts out small, a toe in the water so-to-speak before diving all the way in. Yeagor learns quickly not everything changes. The man that doesn’t speak has not grown any less formidable or any less cold-blooded. After their initial reunion, Yeagor opens the floodgates. First, on wheels is a unit of armored motorcycle soldiers who realize way too late that a truck is every bit a weapon as a pistol. It’s all in how you yield it. Then comes an attack from the air and for a time they get the better of him. But he is never out for long.

Their past connects them but his vengeance will sever that thread with extreme prejudice. This is the Road to Revenge.

There is a lot of influence throughout this movie’s DNA. Spaghetti Westerns from Sergio Leone, First Blood and the resulting sequels of John Rambo’s journey. It’s a spiritual successor of Mad Max, Inglourious Basterds, and perhaps most obvious, John Wick. It calls on the inspiration of these stories to build what is simple in premise but never lacking in intensity and pacing. This is pure fan service and so often this is seen in a negative light. Sometimes it can be a bad thing but in this case, it’s a beautiful thing. The very subtitle suggests nothing but bloodlust and it delivers tenfold.

This movie is ridiculous and it thrives because of it. It plays into the absurdity of a single human being taking on an army and living to tell the tale. Rather than try to ground this story it denies the very laws of physics to give us flying tanks and rocket propelled train cars. It is the Finnish Die Hard, less alcohol abuse and somehow a sunnier disposition but yeah, John McClane with a Bedlington Terrier.

SISU: Road to Revenge isn’t what you might call a masterpiece but it does exactly what it promises to do and then some. If that’s alright with you, SISU and its sequel are for the bloodthirsty action aficionados. SISU is destined for more carnage I’m sure and I think the best thing any movie can accomplish is leave you wanting more. I love the place we leave Aatami, survived and once again content, but if he wants some more hapless jokers to dispose of, I am in for the next ride and beyond. If you have a thirst for relentless carnage, this will certainly quench it.