Mad Max Fury Road: Review (No Spoilers)
Attention all other post apocalyptic films! This is how you scare the fuck out of your audience about the end of the world; not flesh eating undead, not volcanoes erupting, tidal waves, and fault lines crumbling. This is the most terrifying vision of the end of the world, nothing but fire, guzzoline, and madness! The fourth installment of George Miller’s classic trilogy is so full of visceral ferocity you never have a second to breathe. All you can do is feel the heat off the engines dry out your eyes, the screech of the super charger wail on your eardrum, the pungent aroma of exhaust fumes choke your nostrils, and the dry empty wasteland drench your palate in dust and death. No matter what you have read, or what trailers you have seen; you are not prepared for the behemoth that is Fury Road.
Tom Hardy is the perfect choice for Max. He captures the spirit Mel Gibson had when he played the character, as well as makes the role his own for the new series. He is the tough, a survivor, and any ethical rules that existed in the old world are far gone. He is no hero, no criminal, he is only a man, and the wrong people pissed him off. Hardy does a perfect job of giving us a deep and complex character with using almost no dialogue, I think he had maybe ten lines in over two hours of film, but his mannerisms and expressions say it all. Hugh Keays-Byrne does a fantastic job of giving us a Mad Max antagonist. Immortan Joe is weird, unknown, a faux-religious figure, merciless, full of rage and his access to Bullet Farm, The Citadel and Gas Town make him formidable. Nicholas Hoult is a crazy, lovely treat as the lost and wandering Nux. The real standout is Charlize Theron. Her talent was something I never doubted, Young Adult and The Road are two great examples, but here she is beyond awesome. Her moments of quiet are only temporary relief from her of power, intellect, and ferocity. Some of the looks she has in this film are simply spine chilling. The whole cast is a treat to watch, and the old gang seem like they are all here, the classic Mad Max characters: ones we only get to see for a few moments before they are violently killed off, the outrageous, the gluttonous, the sadistic, the imposing, the frightful, the heartfelt, and then there are the characters we have no words for (I am looking at you faceless, flame guitar wielding, bungee guy).
The action, o the action! It is everything from the simple chaos of the first film, the crazy vehicles and crashes of the second and third, and then there are several scenes, that… put it this way, I was giddy. I have never been giddy in my life, but I was for parts of this; that’s how jaw dropping, over the top, explosive, awe inspiring, and just fucking mad parts of this film were. Miller and company deserve a standing ovation simply for the sheer technical brilliance of filming this many things on one screen at once, and little to no CGI, that’s right old school filmmaker means practical effects, yay for us! If you are a diehard fan of the series like myself, the fan service is there in droves. I won’t spoil anything here, but if you know your Mad Max, you will have lots of little moments throughout the whole film where you connect the dots to the first three. Being a fan, I was very worried about the time gap between films, but it’s all there. If you have never seen a Mad Max, you will enjoy the film, but some things, like the post apocalyptic language, may be a bit much at first, but just go with it, in the end it’s all about seeing how close you can get to the red line before you blow the engine. Miller somehow blows the engine and keeps revving all the way to the finish line. The engines are loud, the stunts are stupefying, the guzzoline free flowing, the violence constant, the desperation palpable, and the wasteland harbors no mercy. Max is back!
chrisancarrow 