# Mad Max: Fury Road (spoiler)



## Gryphos (May 17, 2015)

Remember recently when I made a thread about how Avengers: Age of Ultron where I said "HOLY F*CKING SHIT IT WAS SO SICK"?

Well, I just watched Mad Max: Fury Road and JESUS F*CKING HOLY MOLY MOTHERF*CKING CHRIST THAT WAS SOME OF THE SICKEST SHIT I'VE EVER SEEN!!!

I'm serious, if you don't have plans to watch this film, make them! You need to see this film because it is a landmark of action filmmaking. I mean, it's just non-stop. You got intense battles/chases, with vehicles getting blown up, flipped, anything you can imagine.

If I had to pick one word to describe this film it would be, appropriately, MAD.

You got a dude in the bad guy's raiding party whose only job is to stand on the back of a monster truck packed with amps and play a flame throwing electric guitar. There's a gang of old women on motorbikes who are crack shots. There's just so much happening on screen at any one point during the actions sequences that you just have to sit back in your seat and soak in all this awesomeness.

But also, this was actually a very smart and fascinating movie. First off, this is a truly fantastic movie when it comes to female characters. You got Charlize Theron's character Furiosa being such a badass, complex character, and then you have the Five Wives, who at first glance may seem like cliched damsels in distress, being active and useful members of the protagonist crew, and of course the aforementioned badass grannies.

And I will say, I did get the feels at a few points.



Spoiler: the feels



When Nux died, so much feels. In general he was  great character.



But seriously guys, do yourself a favour and goes this film.


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## Gryphos (May 17, 2015)

Reaver said:


> I don't watch reboots or remakes. No interest in seeing them.



Well then you're in luck, because this isn't a reboot. It's just a plain old sequel. And even then, it doesn't even reference any of the past films so it's barely even that. It's just a Mad Max film, by the same director as the other three, even.


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## Penpilot (May 17, 2015)

Gryphos said:


> Well then you're in luck, because this isn't a reboot. It's just a plain old sequel. And even then, it doesn't even reference any of the past films so it's barely even that. It's just a Mad Max film, by the same director as the other three, even.



Actually it does reference the past films. Most of it is at the beginning in the form of the quick flashbacks and voice overs. The rest is the quick flashes of his dead daughter. IMHO you get a better understanding of the movie if you've seen the previous ones, but it isn't necessary to enjoy the film. I also think these references to Max's past are the weakest part of the movie. They don't evoke enough sympathy for him on their own. 

To me this is a great example of a really good minimal plot action film. There's just enough plot and characterisation to hold everything together. All the characters are competent and don't do anything that's eye-rollingy stupid. There's very little dialogue but it's a great example of how visuals fill out the world without the need for words. This is show not tell at it's best. This is almost like a silent movie. You could watch it without the sound and wouldn't miss much, and could probably suss out what you miss without the dialogue just from the visuals.

I'm still not 100% sold on Tom Hardy as Max. In part because of the minimal plot, he didn't have much to work with, so he was just kind of generic action guy. We never really see him truely being Max. Say what you will about Mel Gibson, he has IMHO more charisma than Hardy.

To me, Max took a back seat to Furiosa, the world, and most of all the cars. This isn't a bad thing. It's just what it is. The spectacle of the cars and YES the flame throwing rock guitar player were the real stars of the show. Again not a bad thing.

Definitely a great addition to the franchise, and a thumbs up to practical effects. Apparently none of the stunts or cars were CGI. If a car blew up, it was a real car being blown up.


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## ThinkerX (May 17, 2015)

I was a big fan of the original 'Mad Max' movies. 

I have told myself that watching this movie will be my personal reward upon finishing the first draft of my current novella.  (5000+ words to go, and two weeks behind schedule - I guess novella's really do take me about six weeks to tap out).


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## Dani_Art (May 17, 2015)

I'm old school, but one thing I like to do is see these remakes or "remakes" in level of comparison, to then be able to argue with my husband about all things they invented or what they did exactly the same ...
I am making plans to go see this movie with my husband, maybe even this week. 

But I imagine the feeling that I will have, the same I had when I saw the remake of my favorite movie "Evil Dead". I was so afraid about it, but it was something totally "new" different from the original and THIS made me happy, because then I can reassure that my favorite movie in its original version is intact!


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## MineOwnKing (May 17, 2015)

The Mad Max films were such a huge part of shaping me in the early 80's. When the Road Warrior came out, I got to see it at the local drive-in theater, so cool.

Beyond Thunderdome was also awesome when it hit the theaters.

Now when I watch them, they seem dated and low budget. 

I'm glad they brought them back, can't wait to check it out.

The only thing I never liked were the shoulder pads.

The scene where Max meets the bald guy at the gates of barter town is timeless.


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## SeverinR (May 18, 2015)

Penpilot said:


> To me, Max took a back seat to Furiosa, the world, and most of all the cars. This isn't a bad thing. It's just what it is. The spectacle of the cars and YES the flame throwing rock guitar player were the real stars of the show. Again not a bad thing.
> 
> Definitely a great addition to the franchise, and a thumbs up to practical effects. Apparently none of the stunts or cars were CGI. If a car blew up, it was a real car being blown up.



I could not imagine taking a beautiful woman and shaving her head and missing a forearm. But she wasn't suppose to be just another pretty face.

My jaw dropped when I read there was no CG no green screen, all the action was live.
Car blowing up and rolling with other cars around were real.
The mass of cars driving through the desert at high speeds is all real. One mistake, one mechanical failure and the accidents would be real, not faked.

The lift for the vehicles and all the mechanical marvels of the set were pretty convincing.  

Isn't Max's desert mirage what most men would dream of? Scantly clad women splashing water all over themselves in the desert. (Who cares if it was extremely wasteful in a society that depends on the limited water supply so much.)


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## Nimue (May 23, 2015)

This movie was amazing... like the world-building?? The gorgeous shots?  The post-apolcalyptic atmosphere was almost palpable.  I normally don't care much for pure action movies but this one had variety and interest and emotional stakes alongside the explosions?  I want to see this again.  Also I want more sci-fi/spec fic action movies pls.


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## ThinkerX (May 25, 2015)

Just got back from this movie.  I didn't finish the first draft of the WIP, but got close enough to treat myself to a flick.

As advertised, one long car chase.  Decent characterization, and good special effects.  

A number of things bugged me, though - like just how old is Max?  At one point Furiosa talks about being away from the 'Green Place' for 7000+ days or about 19 years, and the society was tribal then.  And the 'War Boy' didn't even know what a tree was, and he must have been at least sixteen.  Plus, some of his siblings had to be in their 20's...all of which puts Max in his mid forties, bare minimum.  

Which brings up another point - where did Max get a second V8 Interceptor from?  Timeline wise, this has to take place after 'Thunderdome'. (first was totaled in Road Warrior)

Plot wise, the most annoying part was when they decided to turn around and go back instead of crossing the salt flats.  I mean, at that point, they were effectively home free.  As somebody who used to ride bikes in my younger days, I don't really buy putting 160 days worth of fuel on the back of the bikes.  Even at a measly 2 gallons a day, that's still better than six hundred gallons per bike, or six 55 gallon drums.  (This also assumes 50 miles a day, give or take).  50 x 160 = 8000 miles or something on the order of Europe + Asia.  The distances don't work out.   

While entertaining, Fury Road is not as good as Road Warrior.


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## SeverinR (May 26, 2015)

They should have evolved the V8 interceptor, since over the years it would have been modified.  Still could be great, but wouldn't be a "mistake" in the series.

I didn't like the turning point in the movie either. You fought to be free, so you turn around and take on the whole army again.
Also it seems like no one knows where anything is. Max travelled, it seems he should have some better idea on where to go. One civilization in 5 months travel?

The woman on the tower, they set a trap in the middle of a desert where they know there is only one civilization in months of travel in any direction?

But this is an action movie, you're not suppose to overthink it.


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## Gryphos (May 26, 2015)

ThinkerX said:
			
		

> A number of things bugged me, though - like just how old is Max? At one point Furiosa talks about being away from the 'Green Place' for 7000+ days or about 19 years, and the society was tribal then. And the 'War Boy' didn't even know what a tree was, and he must have been at least sixteen. Plus, some of his siblings had to be in their 20's...all of which puts Max in his mid forties, bare minimum.



Yeah, that makes sense. I thought Max looked in his forties, about. Also, I don't think Nux didn't know what a tree was. He calls it 'that tree thing', which implies he does know, at least in theory, what a tree is. He's heard of them, but probably never seen one up close.



> Plot wise, the most annoying part was when they decided to turn around and go back instead of crossing the salt flats. I mean, at that point, they were effectively home free. As somebody who used to ride bikes in my younger days, I don't really buy putting 160 days worth of fuel on the back of the bikes. Even at a measly 2 gallons a day, that's still better than six hundred gallons per bike, or six 55 gallon drums. (This also assumes 50 miles a day, give or take). 50 x 160 = 8000 miles or something on the order of Europe + Asia. The distances don't work out.



Well, while it's true that they would have come across something in 160 days of travel across the salts, they don't know that. In this post-apocalyptic world, all knowledge of global geography would have vanished, and all people would know was their stretch of seemingly endless desert. Max isn't convinced there's anything beyond the salts, so he argues for the others to go where he know's there's a chance to build something new, the Citadel. This, I think has something of a thematic meaning to it, that it's better to work with what you have and make something better of it than search for a holy grail. Max even says "Hope is a mistake. If you can't fix what's broken, you'll go insane."

As to the fuel storage on the bikes *shrug* yeah, but that's a little bit of handwaviness I can buy.



			
				SeverinR said:
			
		

> I didn't like the turning point in the movie either. You fought to be free, so you turn around and take on the whole army again.
> Also it seems like no one knows where anything is. Max travelled, it seems he should have some better idea on where to go. One civilization in 5 months travel?
> 
> The woman on the tower, they set a trap in the middle of a desert where they know there is only one civilization in months of travel in any direction?



I don't know where you're getting the five months from. I don't know exactly, but I think the distance between the Citadel and the tower was no more than a couple days travel, and in the film I counted five major factions (War Boys, Gastown, Bullet Farm, spiky car dudes, and mountain bike dudes). There are probably a bunch of similar civilisations  all over the place, so the trap would catch the occasional traveller.

And yeah, I love this film so much I did see it for a second time, and I will say, I think it's a lot deeper a film than it may seem at first sight, and that's what I love about it. On the surface it's a sick blood-pumping action film, but on a deeper level it also has a lot of interesting themes. For example, it could be argued the film is a critique of hyper-masculine society and the effect it can have on young boys, shown by the character of Nux and the culture of the War Boys. People are already calling this film a modern feminist classic.


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## Penpilot (May 27, 2015)

ThinkerX said:


> A number of things bugged me, though - like just how old is Max?  At one point Furiosa talks about being away from the 'Green Place' for 7000+ days or about 19 years, and the society was tribal then.  And the 'War Boy' didn't even know what a tree was, and he must have been at least sixteen.  Plus, some of his siblings had to be in their 20's...all of which puts Max in his mid forties, bare minimum.
> 
> Which brings up another point - where did Max get a second V8 Interceptor from?  Timeline wise, this has to take place after 'Thunderdome'. (first was totaled in Road Warrior)



All these plot inconsistencies between movies are totally valid. But I remember seen an interview/article where Miller says that he's not to worried about consistency between movies. The reasons he gives for that, or someone gave, was that all the stories from the last three movies, Road Warrior, Thunderdome, and Fury Road aren't necessarily his stories so to speak and aren't necessarily told from his POV.

In Road Warrior, it's about the origins of the great northern tribes.

In Thunderdome, it's about the lost children in the desert and how they escape to Tomorrow-morrow Land.

In Fury Road, it's about Furiosa and the wives and how they freed the people of the Citadel from Immortan Joe.

In Road Warrior and Thunderdome, there are voice overs at the end that make it seem like the tale is a legend/myth of their origins told by the camp fire. So like any other legend/myth, it gets embellished and grows grander with details that get added that don't necessarily jive between stories.

The way I'm starting to see things is that Max is a legendary hero of the wastelands, kind of like the gunslingers of the wild west. People tell tales of him and and nobody knows what's fact and what's fiction. Some of the deeds attributed to Max may not be him at all. 

If you think about it, the story about Furiosa and the Citadel may only have a guy similar to Max, and through the passage of time people just start assuming it's Max and start calling the character that and all of sudden Max is part of the tale in spite of the ages of the characters not matching up. Which would be a cool explanation for the change in Max's features when they changed actors.


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## Ophiucha (May 27, 2015)

I've seen it three times now, and I've loved it each time. The effects and the post-production colouring are lovely to look at, the soundtrack is great (both the war drums/electric guitar bits, and the inclusion of Verdi's Dies Irae), I actually liked Tom Hardy's Max quite a bit more than I like Mel Gibson's (not that he was bad), and Furiosa... if I didn't _already _have the biggest crush on Charlize Theron, I'd say I was swept away. She was gorgeous, bad*ss, and had a few moments of fantastic acting (pretty much everything in the final third or so). I also loved the wives, it's rare to see a film have so many female characters (particularly a sci-fi/action film) and still give them each enough character development to make them distinguishable.

Also, I saw it once in D-Box, which is like a chair that pivots and rolls and vibrates, and it was _really _cool for this film.


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## SeverinR (May 27, 2015)

Penpilot:
160days divided by 30=5months(5 and a 1/3 to be exact.)

5 sounds right, so there is nothing in the direction they are heading for 5 months that they know of, but they aren't going to chance going to any of the groups around. Granted with the most beautiful women around, you would probably jump out of the frying pan and into the fire if you enter another group.  But food and water are very scarce, even with a truck load of water and fuel, it would run out.

It is a great action movie, it also does have problems in the story.
The legend of Max could explain a lot. This could be Max, but a different Max then the legendary Mad Max. Easy to confuse when he's driving a similar car as the legend.


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## MineOwnKing (May 29, 2015)

I just came back from this movie.

I don't think I've ever gone to a 1:00 movie before. It felt a little odd to sit next to the blue hairs. I'm always strangely embarrassed to enjoy a film with octogenarians present, it makes me want to avert my eyes to sexy females.

Having said that,

Seeing the Breeders standing together and washing with the hose....well, I really enjoyed it.

I think this is one film that should not be picked apart or critiqued.

The movie is its own animal and I am happy to have seen it.

I wish the movie screen I saw it on would have been bigger, I really got jipped watching it on a smaller screen.

Seeing this movie is like going on a date with a really beautiful and classy lady. Sure she might have daddy issues or a god complex...but guess what, she is with me for the moment, so I'll take it for what it is.


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