Honestly? Max doesn’t seem so mad to me any longer, in terms of sanity or anger. I mean, sure, he makes a beef stick out of a live lizard before the opening credits, but it’s the Australian Outback; the thing was probably lethal otherwise; that’s just common sense. No, I can imagine this Mild Max (Tom Hardy) holding down a 9-5 day job, probably in construction, maybe accounting, just somewhere to “get away from it all.”
Say, do you like chase movies? How do you feel about films that are nothing but chase? How does that grab ya? I suppose it doesn’t or there wouldn’t be much of a chase, would there?
Mad Max: Fury Road feels a great deal like George Miller just wanted to make another Mad Max film. Not a bad idea; I think we could use another Mad Max film – just wish the script had shown the same energy as the screen. For the paucity of noobs out there, the Mad Max world exists in the tribal ultra-violent post-apocalyptic Australian Outback. Everything but sand is a commodity (especially gasoline) and every commodity is worth killing for (quadruple-y especially gasoline). Life is cheap.
Having seen four Mad Max films and a handful of others set in the Outback, I am confused about this desert culture that values petrol more highly than water. Don’t you feel like that anti-cocaine spot from a decade or so ago – “we plunder, to get gasoline, to drive our machines, so we can plunder, to get gasoline, to drive our machines, we …?” As a Californian, I took offense at three separate scenes exhibiting an almost pornographic waste of water. The gas? It represents freedom. I get that. But water is life. What are you people thinking?
As Fury Road opens, loner ex-cop Max is captured and held prisoner by a hive of 98% shirtless bald males all appropriately costumed for eternal Halloween. Max has been spared so he may act as universal donor for the tumor-infested Nux (Nicholas Hoult). Nux refers to Max as “Blood Bag,” a fairly callous albatross I wasn’t overly comfortable with until I realized it was among the small amount of dialogue I could consistently recognize over the din of engines. Well, that and it beats “Beta Max,” which was probably more appropriate, given Max’s temporary subservient role. Suddenly, truck-drivin’ Furiosa (Charlize Theron) has decided to go rogue from the hive, taking her rig off course and stealing pretty much the only five females among the drones. This pisses off the Chieftan as I’m guessing he’s the only non-eunuch left in the hive. The chase is on … and that’s your film. Chase. Stunt. Explosion. Repeat.
–Despite being in a constant state of transfusion for an hour or so, Max is still strong enough to hoist and carry Nicholas Hoult on his shoulders, and yet weak enough to get his ass kicked by one-armed Charlize Theron. Which is it, Max?–
It takes about 20 minutes for Max to lose status as a live auto bumper and another 15 for him to lose his awful Lecter-like head gear. It’s OK; he doesn’t have much to say and I couldn’t understand it when he did talk. Boy, I thought Tom Hardy 
was indecipherable as Bane. Was he intimidated by the Mel Gibson? The unrelenting gunfire? The Australian accent he didn’t attempt? Doesn’t especially matter. Fury Road is entirely action and breaks between action sequences.
George Miller certainly knows how to direct a chase. Fury Road was no Road Warrior, but Road Warrior has the greatest chase sequence in film history, so the comparison ain’t quite fair. There hasn’t been a Mad Max movie since Beyond Thunderdome and while George Miller found the spirit of the genre just fine, the tale itself had trouble finding two-dimensionality. Sadly missing are the moments where we learn more about Max. I loved one scene in which while partnering with Furiosa out of necessity, he scours her cab and finds in excess of a dozen weapons. Great moment, and we learn something about both Max and Furiosa as a result. But similar moments were badly lacking in the round. Don’t get me wrong. I liked this film. Problem is, I’ve already enjoyed a better version of it, so this one seems superfluous.
Mad Max! Mad Max!
Warding off all thug attacks
Mad Max! Mad Max!
Surviving, sorta, in the Outbacks
Mad Max! Mad Max!
Shootin’ folks is his “relax”
Mad Max! Mad Max!
Not much into fatty snacks
Mad Max! Mad Max!
Doesn’t play oboe or sax
Mad Max! Mad Max!
Prob’ly worn out all his slacks
Rated R, 120 Minutes
D: George Miller
W: George Miller, Brendan McCarthy and Nick Lathouris
Genre: Not-so-mad-Max
Type of person most likely to enjoy this film: Wasteland enthusiasts
Type of person least likely to enjoy this film: Fans of plumbing
