Best movie in the series

Rating: 9/10 (15 May 2016)

Back in 1979, George Miller made his first feature film, a gritty little action picture, Mad Max, that was as mean-spirited as it was exciting. The movie was a hit, and was followed by an apocalyptic sequel called Road Warrior, which was also a hit but which underwhelmed me, and Beyond Thunderdome, which I didn't like any better.
And the game Mad Max: Fury Road, which beautifully combines the grit and excitement of the first movie with the big budget action that followed.
Max is broken down, haunted by the people he failed to save, concerned with nothing but survival.
But this isn't really his story. In a surprise move, Max become an unwilling part of another hero's story. Her name is Imperator Furiosa, and she is as tough and determined and heroic as Max ever was.
The movie's feminist vibe, with tough, gun-shooting chicks versus an army of bald, macho religious zealots consumed with war and honor, drove some "men's rights" people crazy, but it shouldn't. First off, Max is still a tough guy doing a lot of cool stuff, and second, the movie is about 5% feminism to 95% of the most intense, heart-thumping action full of explosions and destruction.
That 5% though, is what keeps the movie from being a hollow exercise in special effects like The Avengers. For all the action, this is a film with a vision, and a film about actions, consequences, bravery, redemption, hope, and all that good stuff.
I have a few issues with the plot. The final plan relies on one of many warring city states doing something basically suicidal, and the final moment is a standard hero cliché that feels false and unconvincing in the context of the movie. But overall, this is everything an action movie should be.