A spectacular waste of time

Rating: 3/10 (29 November 2015)

As a fan of the dystopic movies, I saw the Mad Max trilogy a couple years ago b/c I heard they were shining exemplars of the genre and have great action to boot. I came away amused but disappointed by the lack of an interesting plot to complement the over-the-top action sequences and the post-apocalyptic setting (the two sequels in particular). So you can imagine my excitement when news came of a new sequel. But after hearing rave reviews from friends and critics alike, I decided to give the franchise another try, expecting somehow this time would be different.
Apparently the director decided the problem with his three previous attempts was that there wasn't enough adrenaline. So he proceeded to make the same mediocre movie, but with everything turned up to 11. Instead of a mere waste time, Fury Road was a spectacular waste of time. I mean this in the literal sense: the action sequences were quite the spectacle and allow us a glimpse of the atavistic savagery that lurks beneath our superficial civility; and the lead actors very much impressed in the physical acting department. But those positives were rendered hollow by a script (one which I can only assume was written by a rather talented 13 year-old) that offers little character development and a plot that can be adequately summed up as (spoiler) "Guy and girl go from point A to point B and back to point A, kill bad guys along the way and save the day". The chases, fights and explosions soon became trite and, after two exhausting hours, something to be tolerated rather than relished. The handful of attempts to humanize the good characters also looked clumsy and forced, as incongruous as the brief tender string interludes amidst the near-constant industrial drumming that filled up most of the soundtrack. In the end, this movie offers neither hope (e.g. Children of Men) nor despair (Brazil), just the anodyne comfort that the good guys won and all is right with the world again -- at least until the next sequel comes along (which shouldn't be long as there is a 5th installment on the way).
So in conclusion, if you're looking for 2 hours of mindless vroom and boom interrupted by an alleged plot, this is your flick. But if you appreciate even only an ounce of subtlety and intelligence, avoid this movie like the plague. In fact, if you just want to watch Tom Hardy drive around the whole movie, you would find Locke a far superior alternative.