An insane post-apocalyptic opera...possibly a masterpiece?

Rating: 10/10 (2 June 2015)

I honestly expected to walk out of Mad Max: Fury Road giving it a 10. I rarely hand out tens (went all last year without a single one) and this is now my second. The critics love Mad Max, fans love Mad Max...the buzz has been terrific. The reason behind it? They did everything right. This is not a "reboot" (I HATE that expression) or a remake. It can fit in the previous Mad Max incantations, stand on its own or be open to interpretation (a fan rumour suggests Max in this film is not even the same Max as Mel Gibson's.) They didn't hire a new director or writer etc etc...instead the studio heads let the master himself come back 35 years later and redefine his vision. There are easter eggs throughout the film that connect this movie to The Road Warrior, the Mad Max world and sets itself apart. The bleak wasteland is so intricately created that half of the time your jaw is dropping at the sheer insanity in front of you. Does it make sense? Does it need to? What has happened to these people to make them completely insane? It is science fiction-post apocalyptic-action madness. And action it is...I'm not sure I've ever seen a film that is quite literally wall to wall action. It does manage to demonstrate a story but its pretty thin because this is just one event happening in this wasteland. When its all over, I couldn't think of anything bad to say about it. It was insane and I loved it.
The only less than stellar comment I can say about the film is Mad Max himself. If I were George Miller, I would have ditched Max as the focus of the film and changed it to Furiosa (but more on that in a moment.) Tom Hardy picks up the iconic role of Max and he is alright in the role. The thing I've always found with Hardy is I'm not sure he's a leading man. He's a hot commodity in Hollywood but I don't feel like he has the charisma to truly carry a film and I didn't feel like he carried this one. I get that Max is a man of few words but you go back 30 years and watch Gibson in the role and he just oozes charisma. You are riveted to his Max. Hardy's Max you hardly remember he is there most of the time. You could remove him from the film and it would have been nearly as good. The scene stealer, the heroine, the reason to see this film is Charlize Theron. She is absolutely mind blowing amazing as Furiosa. Her character is full of depth, determination and simple bad-assery. She is one of the best female heroes on screen in a very long time. Nicholas Hoult is excellent as the insane defector Nux. His character could carry a film on his own. Hugh Keays-Byrne returns to the Mad Max Universe as our main villain Immortan Joe. Keays-Byrne played Toecutter in the original film 35 years ago and despite being a little underdeveloped, hes make a heck of a villain this time around too. The gals that play Immortan Joe's wives are also quite good but underdeveloped. Still the film definitely has a lot of extremely strong female characters.
George Miller has created a chaotic opera of insanity with Fury Road. There are scenes in this movie that made me go...what in the world?...and yet you cannot deny the absolutely epic absurdity of this world he's created. I could watch this ten times to see what is happening behind the action. The film is ultimately one massive car chase and the action does not stop for a single moment and yet it is the furthest thing from mindless action. I thought it was unfortunate so much CGI was used in the film but then I discovered that Miller insisted on practical effects whenever possible so now I don't know what to think but all I know is that I think he may have created a modern day masterpiece much like he did back in 1979 with the original film. Action, sci-fi, Mad Max fans need to see this immediately. It is likely the best summer blockbuster we will see!! 10/10