You won't be able to look away

Rating: 10/10 (19 January 2018)

Where do I start ? I'm part of those very few who hadn't seen Fury Road to this day (we're in 2018), for whatever reasons. While I had some definite interest in it, I'm also part of those few who haven't seen the original Mad Max trilogy.
Logically, when the fourth installment aired on French television, I was beyond excited. Well, Fury Road definitely lived up to my expectations.
(+)

Every character has a real purpose and follows through with it.
Junkie XL as the soundtrack. I swore all along this was him (Junkie XL is also responsible for soundtracks such as 300: Rise of an Empire - which was admittedly way better than the film itself).
The imagery. The artistry. It's a splendid film, which we don't see often in the action genre. The color palette is incredible, as well as the contrast. For most of the run, there's a lot happening on screen but the viewer is never lost in it.
The editing is just as superb.
Practical effects everywhere ! Another reason why it all looks so good (According to director George miller, 90% of the visual effects in Fury Road were practical), the stunts are impressive.

(-)

I was left a bit perplexed as to why Norse mythology was mentioned/used by the War Boys. I might have missed something, but this felt a bit out of place to me, especially since one of their opponents was actually called "The Valkyrie".

Mad Max: Fury Road was an exceedingly satisfying experience, I felt like all my senses were tingled and the first chasing scene with the War rig, the Buzzards and Immortan Joe's War Boys had me sitting on the edge of my seat - I was literally leaning forward, towards the screen, almost squinting by the end and letting out a little sigh when it did. The person I was watching it with had the exact same reaction and did exhale too, we were just that immersed.
The film manages to keep you interested despite a linear, simple story. It's all about survival, redemption, resurgence and hope; nothing original, nothing we haven't seen before, but George Miller succeeds on making it feel new, on creating empathy from us viewers for its (although numerous) mains. Also, and as the poster shows, the real main in this film is none other than Furiosa (Charlize Theron), Max Rockatansky (Tom Hardy) is a good (nearly silent) second lead.
Ultimately, Fury Road is proof you can make a beautiful movie with complex characters, female leads, a feminist subtext, violence, and a whole lot of action, all of that while appealing to a large audience. 10/10.