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Rating: 5 out of 5
“Oh, what a day… what a lovely day!”
Yoooooooooooo! Mad Max: Fury Road is freakin AWESOME, INSANE, FANTASTIC, and one of the best movies that has come out in a long while. This is the fourth installment in the Mad Max franchise, dropping 30 years after Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. I want to give major props to George Miller, who co-wrote, co-produced, and directed this film. After the third one, he waited a freakin long time to drop this film which was almost a reboot of the franchise, and introduced the world again to Mad Max. He freakin delivered because, from the jump, this film is a high-octane, always-going film, and it is highly enjoyable to watch and will leave you on the edge of your seat. Get ready to take a ride on Fury Road.
Miller begins his epic film with Max Rockatansky (Hardy) taking a piss while he narrates. The scene is great as it has this orange tinge, and you hear Max’s gruff voice saying, “My name is Max. My world is fire and blood. Once, I was a cop. A road warrior searching for a righteous cause. As the world fell, each of us was broken in our own way. It was hard to know who was more crazy… me… or everyone else.” Pretty much Max is a nuclear holocaust survivor, and the world became a desert wasteland while all civilization has collapsed. Max is suddenly captured by the War Boys, an army of the tyrannical Immortan Joe (Keays-Byrne), and taken to Joe’s Citadel. Designated a universal blood donor, Max is imprisoned and used as a “blood bag” for a sick War Boy called Nux (Hoult).
During this same time, the story movies to Imperator Furiosa (Theron), one of Joe’s lieutenants and trusted advisors. Furiosa is a badass bitch who will whip ass with her mechanical arm. Joe sends Furiosa and her badass armored truck with a small escort of War Boys to defend it as they collect fuel from Gas Town, controlled by Joe’s homeboy. Things are going well when Furiosa leaves the route and goes off course. Joe soon realizes his five wives, aka women selected personally based on looks for breeding, have thrown up the deuces and left. Joe is pissed and calls upon his entire army and the other lords, Gas Town and Bullet Farm, armies to pursue Furiosa and retrieve his wives.
At this point, the audience knew they messed up because Miller was about to have us strap in and take us on a wild ride. Max enters the story when Nux, a skilled War Boy driver, wants to join the pursuit. He is a sickly man and can’t survive without his blood bag, which is Max. What does he do? Straps that fool to the front of his car to ensure he has a continued blood supply. The first part of this case is CRAZY and WILD. Miller’s distinct eye, where you become so involved in the chase as the camera pans on Max’s face and then to the overall feel of it, is simply amazing. The first part ends beautifully with that freakin sandstorm and cars getting tossed around like it was nothing.
The film continues after the storm, where Max sees Furiosa trying to repair her truck and is accompanied by the wives: Capable (Keough), Cheedo (Eaton), Toast (Kravitz), Dag (Lee), and Angharad (Huntington-Whiteley). Angharad is the most important as she is about to burst from her pregnancy with Joe. Max and Furiosa get into an epic all-out fight when they suddenly have to stop because Joe is coming, and no one wants to be caught by him. Max and Furiosa start a shaky alliance and fight their way through a canyon while chased by bikers. Once again, it is wild and crazy.
After talking about things, the film gives you a break to catch your breath with the main reason being told. Furiosa wants to take the wives to the “Green Place,” aka her childhood home. Miller makes you strap in again with the battle of the Bullet Farmer. This was beautifully done by Miller and his cinematography team. The scene is at night and has a blue tinge to it. It is intense and keeps you on the edge of your seat and wanting more.
Now, I’m going to skip ahead and say that the finale was everything you would want in this film. Miller was like, fuck it, we are going all out and ending this chase with a bang. Dude delivered on that promise because you had it all from explosions, surprised deaths, edge of your seat entertainment and what the fuck is going on? Everything was marvelously done.
The casting was phenomenal in this film. Even though the main stars really didn’t get along during filming, they still made a great film. Tom Hardy as “Mad Max” Rockatansky was excellent. He didn’t speak much, but you can tell he was intimidating. He just looked like he would hurt or kill anyone. Charlize Theron as Imperator Furiosa was another great choice. Theron just has that badass woman appeal to her where she looks like she would beat your ass and then be cool with it. Love her intimidation. I have to admit that I enjoyed Nicholas Hoult as Nux. He played his character as someone who wanted approval from Joe, only to be cast away by Joe for his minor failure. Nux changes from one drinking that Kool-Aid to one who decides to help Max and Furiosa. Even Hugh Keays-Byrne as Immortan Joe was great as the fearsome warlord. When he wore that mask and had his white powder over his skin, he looked evil and someone you didn’t want to mess with. Finally, I want to give a shout-out to the dude playing the guitar. He was by far one of the best parts of the whole film.
Mad Max Fury Road is one of George Miller’s best works. He presented a story that will leave you in awe. The acting, cinematography, story, and everything involved in making a film was damn near perfect. I highly recommend watching this film as you will not be disappointed.
