Surpassed expectations

Rating: 10/10 (5 June 2015)

As a huge fan of the original Mad Max films (1 & 2), I'd always wanted another Mad Max that was like The Road Warrior on steroids.
Miller has returned to make a chase movie that's like The Road Warrior on steroids, and it's actually so much better than what I'd imagined it could be, I even think it may have replaced The Road Warrior as my favourite MM movie.
It doesn't really feel possible that a Hollywood movie of this kind could ever really exist. It defies the very conventions of the studios that churn out the same old stories. Because Miller. And because Mad Max is a style of story that is not often re-told (Although Django touches on similar themes).
This is a brilliant re-invention of the road warrior chase turned into a whole film and with a load more warring factions involved. This far surpassed what I ever expected from a new MM sequel. Intensely grueling action and live stunts from start to finish and just enough dialogue and enough depth to the few words, combined with clever storytelling, to create meaningful and believable characters.
Even the cars (which are the most OTT and gritty of any MM film), despite being real trucks and not having smiley faces on the grills, have a huge amount of character and development in this film.
While it's primary visual focus is on destructive car fetishism, it's underlying themes are liberation, emancipation, redemption, anarchism and empowerment. It's a brilliant film with a brutal retro style that I never thought I would see in modern big-budget cinema.