Mad Max (1979), The Road Warrior (1981), and even Mad Max: Beyond The Thunderdome (1985) were all intense films back in their days. They portrayed a post apocalyptic wasteland of a planet that consisted of thugs, lunatics, and lemmings who would follow their leader to their death if given the order to do so.
These films also had a hero. Albeit a man who didn’t want to be a hero. There was always Max… Mad Max.
Over the years these films developed a cult following. Partly because of the writer/director’s vivid imagination (George Miller), and partly because of the fierce acting of a young, rugged, and fiery Mel Gibson.
These films propelled Mel into super-stardom. It wasn’t long after these movies when Mel really took off. I mean, who could forget him as Detective Martin Riggs in Lethal Weapon, William Wallace in Braveheart, or (what I may think was his best role ever) Hamlet in Hamlet. Gibson nailed it as Hamlet. Move over Daniel Day-Lewis, Sir Ian McKellan, and Keano Reeves, Mel Gibson was the best Hamlet I’ve ever seen. Period.
But Mel Gibson may be a nazi, so I’m going to review the new, updated, non-nazi, re-imagining of these George Miller classic Mad Max films. I’m going to review Mad Max: Fury Road.
Once again George Miller is at the helm. He’s credited for writing and directing this masterpiece.
The story is roughly the same as “The Road Warrior” in the sense that someone needs something precious delivered and someone needs to deliver something precious. But that’s where the stories similarities end… but yet, stay the same. It’s different, but similar.
All I know is that it’s explosive… but it’s not a bomb… But it is “da bomb,”… but it doesn’t blow.
Hmm, let me put this simply: It’s friggin’ great.
In this updated version, the heroes are trying to save humanity. The world has been flushed down the toilet and the human race is so far out of whack that you think the entire world has gone insane.
Has the entire world gone insane?
Well, with heroes like Max (Tom Hardy) and Furiosa (Charlize Theron), you see glimpses of hope that the entire planet has in fact, NOT gone insane.
For me, the reason this film is an instant classic is because of the director. George Miller had a wonderfully dark film back in the 80’s with “The Road Warrior.” He seemed to follow the same template he produced back then and updated it to 2015. The story was short on dialogue and long on action. And what’s wrong with minuscule dialogue? Nothing. Sometimes it’s fun to watch a film where you understand what’s going on just by following the acting.
And speaking of acting… Sure, Theron and Hardy may be the hottest actress and actor in Hollywood right now, but they were COMPLETELY overshadowed by another actor in this film. You may think I’m joking, but I’m not.
Now, I don’t know the actor’s name, BUT……..
The guy who played the electric guitar while chained to the grill of a monster truck going 120 miles an hour through the barren desert wasteland… well, he, BY FAR was the most interesting character in this film. This guy could rock! He never stopped playing that ax! He was head-banging while people were getting mutilated around him! I saw like, 35 people get run over by HIS truck, but he kept jamming that banjo! He didn’t care whatsoever. Nothing was stopping him from strumming his six-string. HE was the most insane character in a film that was overloaded with insane characters. This character needs his own “stand-alone” film. I need to know more about him. Who is he? Where did he come from? How did he get fire to blast out of his guitar? How did he get this incredible gig? What makes this man tick?
This is another reason I thought this film was fantastic. Who besides George Miller could come up with such a unique scene? And the scene lasts forever. The film is called “Fury Road” for a reason. Practically the entire film is shot on this badlands blvd. Fury Road takes you through the desert and back again with an abundance of high octane action. Some of the best stunts I’ve ever scene are performed in this film. It’s not too often in a film you see four nut-jobs strapped to 30 foot long fishing poles, flinging from one side of the street to the other (all the while moving at over 100 mph).
One more reason I liked this film… People die. And the director doesn’t care who it is. Men, women, children, babies, two-headed lizards. No-one is discriminated against. It’s just a straight up blood bath.
Sure, some people may not like this film for its over-the-top graphic violence, but not me. I loved it. I loved where George Miller’s imagination went. It went to a dark place where insanity rules the roost. And why not, it’s only a movie. You want to be entertained, right?
And for entertainment value alone?
I give it the Matty W. Kelley 5 Giant Nose review.
Perfection.
Matty W. Kelley, reporting.
mattywkelley.com
Fun (possible) Fact: I THINK the name of the guitar playing maniac is Stephen Dunlevy, but I can’t be sure. I looked it up on IMDb and there’s a character in the film named “The Rock Rider Chief.” This may be him. But with characters with names like The Bullet Farmer, The People Eater, Toast the Knowing, Slit, Cheedo the Fragile, The Organic Mechanic, and Rictus Erectus, I can’t be totally sure.
Fun Matty Fact: In the original “The Road Warrior,” the character who was named “The Gyro Captain” reminded me of a white version of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.