Mad Maximum Movies!
May. 26th, 2015 10:03 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
chaosvizierDecades later, the Mad Max series returns to the big screen with a big action-packed something (sequel? remake? other?) to remind us that, even years in the future, Australia is still 99% made of things that want to kill you.
Mad Max: Fury Road
Welcome to Post-Apocalyptic Wasteland Scenario number three: the world went to crap due to war and nukes and stuff, and now the remnants of humanity have devolved into barbaric feudalism. At least there are no zombies or intelligent apes here; nothing but humans who have gone batshit crazy in the heat of the Australian desert (generously provided by Namibia, for whatever reason). In this world we have the titular character and the titular road, and they're pretty much the second and third most important things in the film.
The real point of this movie is to have the biggest car chase scene in history, which is to say, from about half an hour in until the end of the film. Also, you have tricked-out cars that are designed to kill stuff, because that's what happens in a lawless society. Unrelated to all of this is an old computer game, Carmageddon, in which you drove tricked-out vehicles in a death race with the intent of smashing your opponents to bits with your demolition derby-class car. This movie is like that. Not like Death Race 2000, which was similar but tried to have a plot with political implications. But I digress.
The plot: People kill other people with cars, trucks, and trucks with cars fused to them. And it's spectacular.
The pros: There is non-stop action in this movie. Maybe that's not for everyone, but it works for me. Car chases, explosions, killing, and more explosions. Encompassing this non-stop adrenaline ride is a story of freedom. Two stories, even. While Max's desire for freedom is there, he is trapped and an unwitting participant in the action surrounding him. His bid for freedom is coincidental and derived from the bigger story, as Imperator Furiosa goes rogue and rescues five women from a life of sexual and breeding slavery, with the hopes of bringing them to a safer, better place. Her quest is the driving force behind the story (oh man, I said "driving force", that was totally unintentional), and once her path and Max's meet up and unite, things ramp up to the proverbial Eleven. Charlize Theron and Tom Hardy play their rough-hewn characters in different ways - she has shown her mettle by being a war leader, she fights Max hand-to-hand (haha, I made another funny), she stands up against the warlord Immortan Joe and his entire army; Max spends half the film communicating in grunts and snarls, trying to tie Arnold Schwarzenegger in "The Terminator" for Least Amount Of Dialogue For The Titular Character, and while he is haunted by the death of his family, he transfers that grief to helping Furiosa save her own family.
The cons: If you don't like action movies, then this movie is not for you. That's pretty straightforward, I think. The villain is the least defined of all the major characters; he's simply a tyrannical warlord trying to retrieve his stolen property. But then again, simplicity works for this movie, where the action is key. The story behind Max and his lost family is also vague, but has a spiritual side that guides him in the long run; it merits more exploration. And of course, one has to wonder about the resources of this desolate world. Water is found, perhaps from a deep aquifer. Gas comes from a refinery town. Bullets come from Bullet Town. And food comes from... where?
The controversies: Oh come on. "Mad Max emasculates men by having a woman be important." Stop that. Just stop that. Max might not be the initiator of the main quest, and joins it reluctantly, but the quest benefits from his presence and support, and in the end he and Furiosa both get a dose of redemption.
The verdict: This is a great action movie. It's intense, the story is simple but relatable, and it all comes together well. Mad Max fans should not be disappointed. Action movie fans should not be disappointed.
Other: "It wasn't me, it was the one-armed Imperator!"
Note: It's good to know that, in the future, I will be spared because I'm a Universal Blood Donor. Bloodbag number one, right here, booyah!
Mad Max: Fury Road
Welcome to Post-Apocalyptic Wasteland Scenario number three: the world went to crap due to war and nukes and stuff, and now the remnants of humanity have devolved into barbaric feudalism. At least there are no zombies or intelligent apes here; nothing but humans who have gone batshit crazy in the heat of the Australian desert (generously provided by Namibia, for whatever reason). In this world we have the titular character and the titular road, and they're pretty much the second and third most important things in the film.
The real point of this movie is to have the biggest car chase scene in history, which is to say, from about half an hour in until the end of the film. Also, you have tricked-out cars that are designed to kill stuff, because that's what happens in a lawless society. Unrelated to all of this is an old computer game, Carmageddon, in which you drove tricked-out vehicles in a death race with the intent of smashing your opponents to bits with your demolition derby-class car. This movie is like that. Not like Death Race 2000, which was similar but tried to have a plot with political implications. But I digress.
The plot: People kill other people with cars, trucks, and trucks with cars fused to them. And it's spectacular.
The pros: There is non-stop action in this movie. Maybe that's not for everyone, but it works for me. Car chases, explosions, killing, and more explosions. Encompassing this non-stop adrenaline ride is a story of freedom. Two stories, even. While Max's desire for freedom is there, he is trapped and an unwitting participant in the action surrounding him. His bid for freedom is coincidental and derived from the bigger story, as Imperator Furiosa goes rogue and rescues five women from a life of sexual and breeding slavery, with the hopes of bringing them to a safer, better place. Her quest is the driving force behind the story (oh man, I said "driving force", that was totally unintentional), and once her path and Max's meet up and unite, things ramp up to the proverbial Eleven. Charlize Theron and Tom Hardy play their rough-hewn characters in different ways - she has shown her mettle by being a war leader, she fights Max hand-to-hand (haha, I made another funny), she stands up against the warlord Immortan Joe and his entire army; Max spends half the film communicating in grunts and snarls, trying to tie Arnold Schwarzenegger in "The Terminator" for Least Amount Of Dialogue For The Titular Character, and while he is haunted by the death of his family, he transfers that grief to helping Furiosa save her own family.
The cons: If you don't like action movies, then this movie is not for you. That's pretty straightforward, I think. The villain is the least defined of all the major characters; he's simply a tyrannical warlord trying to retrieve his stolen property. But then again, simplicity works for this movie, where the action is key. The story behind Max and his lost family is also vague, but has a spiritual side that guides him in the long run; it merits more exploration. And of course, one has to wonder about the resources of this desolate world. Water is found, perhaps from a deep aquifer. Gas comes from a refinery town. Bullets come from Bullet Town. And food comes from... where?
The controversies: Oh come on. "Mad Max emasculates men by having a woman be important." Stop that. Just stop that. Max might not be the initiator of the main quest, and joins it reluctantly, but the quest benefits from his presence and support, and in the end he and Furiosa both get a dose of redemption.
The verdict: This is a great action movie. It's intense, the story is simple but relatable, and it all comes together well. Mad Max fans should not be disappointed. Action movie fans should not be disappointed.
Other: "It wasn't me, it was the one-armed Imperator!"
Note: It's good to know that, in the future, I will be spared because I'm a Universal Blood Donor. Bloodbag number one, right here, booyah!
