Newlyweds Mary (Jamie Bernadette) and Matt surprise their family at Christmas when their passion for running turns into a honeymoon in Africa. “It’s a 150-mile footrace through the biggest animal reserve in the world–called The Furnace,” explains Mary. Stunned, her mother poses the seemingly obvious question: “You couldn’t find something more suitable for your honeymoon–like Venice or Paris?”
Undaunted, Mary and Matt remain determined to enter the race. But their wide-eyed excitement turns to tragedy when a car crash flips Mary’s world upside down.
A year later, Mary’s injuries have left her struggling to breathe with an oxygen tank. At the ‘bottom of her soul’ as the narrator so eloquently advises, Mary still holds on to an indomitable spirit, an inner drive that can’t be squelched. In a hoodie with an oxygen mask over her face, she reacts to the pitiful stare of a young boy at a park by racing after him, her breathing tank bouncing in tow. It’s too much too soon and she collapses, sending her back to the hospital.
Days later, we find Mary at a gravesite screaming at God, whom she blames for taking her husband. Standing nearby, a man named Coffin (Luthuli Dlamini) reacts to her suffering and shares his own tragic story. Once a doctor in Africa, he fled to America when civil war annihilated his town. Unable to practice due to America’s licensing standards and requirement that he attend medical school, he ekes out a living, digging graves.
Coffin urges Mary to believe in God, to push through and recover. He decides to help Mary as both doctor and friend. In the weeks that pass, Coffin’s support and intense training help Mary regain her strength and the will to run again. But when she enters a local race, we see she’s not ready and collapses, sending her once again, back to the hospital. Her parents blame Coffin and hand him a ticket to return to his village in Africa.
But Mary is the embodiment of the little engine that could. She surprises Coffin by showing up at his medical practice in Africa. “I want you to prepare me to run The Furnace,” says a now completely recovered Mary.
At this point, we see what Mary is truly made of as she confronts The Furnace’s gauntlet of life-threatening challenges: brutal 110-degree heat, confrontations with Africa’s lethal wildlife, and disorienting exhaustion. Helping her along the way is Raphaella (Laura Linn), a mysterious runner who provides emotional and spiritual support when she’s ‘hit the wall.’ Injured and exhausted, Mary presses on even after Coffin urges her to quit at various pit stops.
“The Furnace” is a truly inspirational film for both runners and anyone struggling to overcome adversity. The cinematography captures the awesome beauty and unforgiving landscape of Africa. Lending a beatific solemnity to Mary’s journey is the deep and wonderfully resonant narration of Luthuli Dlamini. “They say, for all humans to come to Africa is for them to come home.” Or “Strength isn’t measured by how much you can take before you break, it’s how much you take after you’re broken.” The film’s reverential music score dovetails beautifully with Dlamini’s narration, which highlights Mary’s journey.
Helmed by OSCAR nominated director Darrell Roodt and penned by Roodt and P.G. de Jonge, “The Furnace” was nominated for Best Feature Film at the Nice International Film Festival.
Alex A. Kecskes is a published author of "Healer a Novel" and "The Search for Dr. Noble"—both now available on Amazon. He has written hundreds of film reviews and celebrity interviews for a wide variety of online and print outlets. He has covered red carpet premieres and Comic-Con events for major films and independent releases.
