No movie you’ve ever seen before looks and feels like Mad Max: Fury Road. It’s always satisfying when you have high hopes for a movie and the movie-going experience not only delivers but exceeds your expectations. I know people complain about reboots/sequels/prequels but when these projects result in movies as awesome Mad Max: Fury Road…who cares?! Keep ’em coming, we are in a golden age for Fantasy/Sci-fi film. Here are 5 reasons I LOVED it:
5.) Entertainment/Wow factor
If you can make what is essentially a 2 hour car chase continually engaging and entertaining, then I think you’ve accomplished something pretty special in filmmaking. The George Miller directed action flick is a non-stop thrill ride from start to finish and I was holding onto my Diet Coke for dear life the whole time. It is visually stunning, the stunts and acrobatics are jaw-dropping and it still manages to engage your emotions. Viewers will have only have to wait a couple minutes after the movie begins for the first car chase–dialogue is sparse but the little dialogue that is spoken carries significant weight. No romantic storyline, no unnecessary plot devices. It’s just a fast-paced, twisted action ride that will have you fist-pumping on the inside.
2.) Groundbreaking CG
First of all, see this in 3D and 3D IMAX if possible. There is so much amazing CG work on Mad Max it is hard to fathom. It is a veritable feast for the senses. In the theater, when I saw the wall of the sand storm approach, all I could do was just shake my head in awe. That whole scene in storm is sure to go down as one of the greatest action sequences of all time. When CG is done on a scale as tremendous as that and executed so well…you can’t help but get lost in it. I’ve honestly never seen anything like it, so cool.
3.) Feminism
A violent and seemingly lawless patriarchy presides over this futuristic wasteland, led by the ruthless Immortan Joe. He not only controls scarce resources but controls women by pumping the older women for their nourishing milk and impregnating the younger ones to make further offspring. Furiosa (Charlize Theron), a female truck-driver and warrior, escapes with Immortan Joe’s “breeders” who are essentially female sex slaves. When we catch our first glimpse of these women onscreen, they are decked out in muslin dresses in light neutral colors giving them an almost virginal and ethereal aura. Furiosa is every bit as capable as any male protagonist and her character has been likened to Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley from Alien.
4. Badass Characters
Mad Max’s world is fire and blood where his only motive is to survive. He can’t comprehend hope but he wants to eradicate the demons of his past that haunt him by seeking redemption. For him, redemption means “a selfless act that stops the unbidden memories.” He is ferocious and unpredictable. Furiosa on the other hand, has a purpose and a plan–to reach the “Green Place”. They are both equally as badass but they need each other to survive their trek. Immortan Joe is an epic villain that will go down in the history books and I also highly enjoyed Nux, the feisty but ill-fated warboy. Plenty of skilled and courageous characters to go around in this film, many of whom blur the line between hero/anti-hero.
1. The dude playing the flame-thrower guitar in Immortan Joe’s war car entourage. ‘Nuff said:
cinemeow 