Theme and Format — The Journey of Mad Max

Spoilers for the Mad Max films. But not Furiosa.

So I finally got round to watching all four of the currently released Mad Max films in anticipation for the upcoming Furiosa film. I initially wanted to watch them in release order but the weirdos I sat down with wanted to watch Fury Road first like the modern uncultured swine they are. After that, I went back and watched the other three and found myself fascinated by the journey the films went on and how widely they varied even though the same director helmed all four of them. I’ll go through them in release order as I feel that is the best way to talk about them before we end up with Furiosa. I won’t be talking about the new film here as it releases tomorrow and I’m not even sure if I will be watching it during its theatrical run. Its cast is interesting being that Anya Taylor-Joy is a great actor but is slowly becoming the most overused actor in Hollywood and Chris Hemsworth is someone who I’ve soured on massively in the last few years. So I’m a little apprehensive but I trust George Miller, to an extent. So let’s get on with it.

The first film was quite different from what I had expected. I already knew going in that it was meant to be set a little before the apocalypse but what I did not expect was the revenge plot. This did not fit into the picture I had of the Mad Max films before watching them of a lone ranger helping various people as he continues his journey across the wasteland just trying to survive. But instead we start off with Max as a police officer in a collapsing society where fuel prices are soaring and violence is becoming more commonplace in every town and city. Gangs are more common and one that is led by our main villain, Toecutter, ends up chasing after Max and his family and ultimately killing Max’s wife and child. He goes on to kill Toecutter and most of the gang then turning him into the roaming vigilante that he’s more known for. This plot isn’t anything special, many more revenge films have done something exactly the same. But where this first film shines is in its worldbuilding. They don’t explicitly tell you what’s going on but many of the background features instantly get across what’s going on during this time period. Many of the characters are gang members or a part of the police force. But an interesting detail is that the police force are mostly wearing leather and talk about killing the gang members as they chase them across the Australian desert. The line between the two opposing forces is blurred instantly and it’s very obvious the comparisons that the film is trying to make. A scene later on in the film shows a member of the gang who, in any other democratic and functioning society, would normally be imprisoned for his crime is able to escape justice through the seedy lawyer that defends him sending Max’s police buddy into a frenzy. It’s clear that although these established pillars of justice in the society still exist, they are barely functioning and vigilante justice is the only thing that appears to function in this world. The visuals of this first Mad Max film is also a little different to what would become the standard. The colourscape contains more blacks, blues, and darker browns compared to the orange desert of the later films. One of the best things about this film is how gritty it feels. The other films definitely have an aspect of this but they also have much more fantastical elements added on top of that. Mad Max keeps it grounded. Not only in this gritty and visually darker tone, but also in its characters and story. Definitely something I would revisit but not attached a ton to the other films that I would feel bad for not rewatching the others as well.

The second film, Mad Max 2 (or The Road Warrior in the US), is where the franchise really kicks off and where most of the themes that encapsulate Mad Max are formed. The film is fully into the post-apocalypse where gangs are the only way to survive and throughout the film, Max is solely interested in getting enough petrol to continue his journey across the wasteland. He is initially ambushed by a gyrocopter pilot — which, on a side note, is one of the more bizarre aspects of this film franchise, which is saying something — who then informs him of a place with a large amount of petrol for him to stock up as much as he wants in return for letting the gyro captain live. Then we fall fully into the Mad Max pattern of trading with the community who makes and stores the petrol for initially selfish reasons but then, later on, makes a deal to help them out. It keeps pushing on the whole franchise’s main theme that, although the world has gone to shit, a sense of humanity always wants to push to the surface. Even in Max, who has the most right of anyone in this world to not trust anyone and always look after only himself. Even in Max who may never be able to gain a proper life or family ever again. Max eventually, after a few mistakes, wins the day and helps the convoy of the petrol makers escape before parting ways and never seeing them again. The film from a filmmaking perspective really comes into its own and establishes the style for the other films. The dark browns are replaced with lighter ones, the blacks become less common but stronger, and the dull blues turn to the bright orange of the desert. Obviously it’s not as vibrant as the 21st century films, but it’s still the brightest and most vibrant out of the original three. This is one of the standouts in the franchise, and it’s no surprise that the film became huge in the US. I feel like this and Fury Road are definitely a great couple of films to pair up for a double bill. Essentially they are the same film, but each has their own unique aspects that even in a double bill, they wouldn’t blur into one another. A solid film, through and through.

Then we come onto the mess that is Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. It is no surprise that the franchise came to a bit of a standstill after this one. Not only is the plot an absolute mess that pings back and forth between a couple of different films, it also has the grubby fingerprints of corporate Hollywood all over it. Although it still has that 15 certificate, it definitely has the glow of a 12 certificate film that the production company wishes to sell to all the masses as a fun cinema trip for the whole family. Characters become tame and the film loses its gritting and grounded feel that it had in the first two. The first film Beyond Thunderdome tries to be is a spy thriller mixed with a martial arts film as Max finds himself in barter town and makes a deal to kill The Blaster, one half of a duo called Master Blaster, in order to help Aunty Entity, played by Tina Turner, gain complete control of Bartertown without the need to subject herself to Master Blaster. We go into the titular Thunderdome for an okay fight until Max breaks his deal by revealing to Master Blaster that Aunty sent him to kill The Blaster. He is sent off into the desert alone to die as punishment and then suddenly we are sent into another film as Max is rescued by a group of wild children who think he is some kind of god sent to save them. The tribe ends up splitting up as to whether they want to leave for the ‘promised land’ now that their god has arrived but arguments only see half the tribe leaving. Max catches up but with no supplies, the group travel to Bartertown and we have a final chase as Aunty tries to recover supplies stolen by Max, the children, and other characters who join them along the way. The film really tries to be two different plots without merging them effectively. The visuals keep their colour palette but sadly everything looks muted and nowhere near as vibrant as any other Mad Max film. Some of the performances are good, but it does feel like half the cast have no idea what kind of film they’re supposed to be in, nor how they should be approaching the characters. This is the only film out of the franchise where I never want to watch it again. Even if Tina Turner was the surprising positive from this experience.

Fury Road time. And boy was this a watch. As I mentioned it was the first one I watched out of the currently released four and it was not hard to see why this has the praise of many critics and general audiences as it does. It’s also hard not to call this my favourite out of the four. Mad Max 2 does come very close and maybe on a particular day if you asked me it would overtake Fury Road, but the latter is very much George Miller’s vision fully realised. We have our new Max in Tom Hardy again as a wanderer in the wasteland. He is soon hunted down by own new enemy gang and taken back to be used as a live blood bag. But when one of the gang’s officers, Furiosa, takes their leader’s wives which leads to a big chase. And there’s where this film fully realises the vision. The film does take a couple of pauses, but in the end it is indeed one long car chase full of great action and a wonderful visual style that has been perfected here. The colours pop so much it looks like a Red Hot Chili Peppers music video. The camera work has also taken a big step up. The camera feels much more involved in both the action and the film as a whole. Each shot being a purposeful action in and of itself to put forward an idea, push information, or even simply for style. Back to the action, Max finds himself able to free himself and join the ragtag group as they escape from Immortan Joe and his gang. The film brings back some of the blues from the first film in a night time scene but whacks up the saturation and gives a eerie and still fresh take on this hellish post-apocalyptic landscape. The group is eventually convinced by Max that going back and taking over Immortan Joe’s citadel is a better idea than following Furiosa’s idea of a ‘Green Place’ from her childhood. Again the film’s finale is focused on Max trying to survive but still allowing that small spark of humanity to creep back into him and allows him to help out these strugglers in the post-apocalypse before ultimately parting ways with them in the end. Fury Road is easily rewatchable over and over again, but I do recommend that those who enjoyed this but have not seen the older films to at least try out Mad Max 2. It does some great things that will not only give you another great experience but also allow you to appreciate how far the franchise has come since its early days.

So yeah, Furiosa looks like an interesting film to go to next. Not sure when I will end up seeing it but I am looking forward to what it could be. I’m not sure what I would want from a new Mad Max film, so it will be interesting to see what this, or another main series film, will provide. But this series, as long as George Miller is involved, deserves to continue on. To ride eternal.

Shiny and chrome.