The Latest Film Has The Best Special Effects, But That's All. Mad Max 2 Is Still The Undisputed Champion.

Rating: 7/10 (26 June 2015)

In 1979, George Miller directed a dystopian action film which earned US$100 million worldwide and held the Guinness record for most profitable film for decades. The film propelled Mel Gibson to an international cult figure called Max. This film Mad Max, was followed by two sequels, Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior and Mad Max 3: Beyond Thunderdome.
I watched the sequel to Mad Max before I ever saw the original Mad Max. The original Mad Max can be considered a backdrop story to Mad Max 2. I think the original film was made just to launch the more serious chapter of the film which was the sequel. The concluding third chapter was generally considered a mediocre final chapter of the franchise and an average performer at the Box Office.
The Human society is decimated by a nuclear holocaust and the few survivors fight over the meager resources, gasoline, food and water. Enter Max, a patrolman whose wife and toddler were literally run-over by vicious motorcycle gang and who is now just a "shell of a human being" wandering aimlessly through the badlands...
Miller's latest film Fury Road can be considered a continuation of events just after The Road Warrior and a prequel to Beyond Thunderdome. In fact, a character called Imperator Furiosa(Charlize Theron) is very similar to the Mad Max 3 character Aunty Entity(Tina Turner).
Mel Gibson who played Max in all three of the films has been replaced by English Tom Hardy. This I find very offending. Mad Max is an Aussie franchise and should have stayed that way. Also the absence of Mel Gibson in the film is an open insult to Mad Max fans all over the world. The casting of South African actress Charlize Theron is the final slap on the face. Aren't there much prettier Aussie actresses to choose from? What about Nicole Kidman a veteran Aussie actress? Why was she not considered for this film?
Plot: Max is captured by the War Boys, the army of the tyrannical Immortan Joe(Hugh Keays-Byrne), and taken to Joe's Citadel. Designated a universal blood donor, Max is imprisoned and used as a "blood bag" for the sick War Boy Nux. Meanwhile, Imperator Furiosa drives her armoured war rig to collect gasoline. When Furiosa drives off-route, Joe realizes that his five wives — women selected for breeding — are missing. Enraged, Joe leads his entire army in pursuit of Furiosa, calling on the aid of nearby Gas Town and the Bullet Farm.
Verdict: Mel Gibson fans will find their hero sorely missing in this one. The only consolation is that Hugh Keays-Byrne who played the main antagonist "Toecutter" in the original Mad Max, is cast as a new villain Immortan Joe.
Fans of Tom Hardy will be disappointed, as Charlize Theron ousts him in every cut of the film. She is the major character of the film and Hardy plays the role of the side-kick. The sound and special effects are very well done, which is the only redeeming aspect of this latest film.
More George Miller Films: Twilight Zone: The Movie(1983), The Witches of Eastwick(1987), Lorenzo's Oil(1992), 40,000 Years Of Dreaming(1997), Babe: Pig in the City (1998), Happy Feet(2006), Happy Feet Two(2011).
Thank you for having the time to read my review. May you live long and prosper.