Mad Max: Fury Road
Are we sure that Max is the one that is mad here? Director George Miller, if this fourth film in his fan-favorite franchise is representative of it’s maker, is one bizarre, bat-shit crazy individual, even more so when you consider that this is his first film since taking a detour into family filmmaking with the “Babe” and “Happy Feet” movies. Of course, if you listen to Miller speak, you kind of find out that he’s anything but bat-shit crazy, but that doesn’t stop from being more than a few whackadoodle ideas in “Mad Max: Fury Road.” And I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Full disclosure: this isn’t going to be another rapturous review for “Fury Road.” While the action, and overall vision of the film, is about as stunning as anything Hollywood has put out in years, the mayhem really does make it difficult to get into the emotional aspects of the film Miller and his co-writers, Brendan McCarthy and Nick Lathouris, are telling, and there are some lulls that really take the steam out of the film (as well as an ending that has more to do with coincidence than narrative logic). Still, Miller is a visionary director who’s managed to finally make a pet project after almost two decades of development Hell, and it’s quite a sight to behold, retaining that singular energy that made his “Mad Max” franchise so special and unique to begin with.
I don’t remember that I’ve ever watched “Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome” all the way through, but what I remember about “The Road Warrior,” still the best film in the series, is that while Max Rockatansky, the cop whose wife and child were killed by a gang in a post-apocalyptic wasteland, is the main character in the film, he doesn’t really drive the action, and in “Fury Road,” that is very true again, though more so. Tom Hardy’s Max is a loner, in addition to being haunted by past failures. He’s less person than wild animal, at this point, and that makes him very dangerous to people who cross his path. It’s not long into the film that he’s captured, however, and becomes a source of blood for War Boys, pale, fundamentalist soldiers in the army of Hugh Keays-Byrne’s Immortan Joe, a disfigured cult leader who has set himself up as a god and provider, rationing out water to his followers, and letting them fight over it. Max tries to escape from Immortan Joe’s Citadel, but he fails, and finds himself tethered as a “blood bag” to Nux (Nicholas Hoult), a War Boy who wants to desperately prove himself to Immortan Joe and get the reward he’s been promised. He might get his chance, when one of Joe’s most trusted drivers, Imperator Furiosa (Charlize Theron) makes off with his massive War Rig on what starts off as a gasoline run, but becomes a race for survival when she is discovered to have cargo that is precious to Joe– his wives, whom he uses for breeding purposes. This all happens in the first 15 minutes of the movie, and prologue to the madness to come when Joe leads his forces in pursuit of Furiosa and the women she’s trying to lead to her original home, where they will be safe. Let the insanity begin.
Much has been made about the fact that Furiosa, rather than Max, is the one driving the action, and that her goal is the liberation of women who are basically sex slaves (although as we see, they can handle themselves in a fight, if needed), and indeed, it was the notion of human trafficking that inspired Miller to return to the world of Mad Max. It’s an inspired decision that fits in organically with the franchise up to this point, and having Max be thrust into the middle of this story gives him a logical, interesting story arc towards personal redemption that Hardy plays quite well. Personal redemption is also on the mind of Furiosa, as well, although we don’t get quite a sense of what she feels she must be redeemed for– hers is more a righteous journey than a redemptive one, attempting to cut the heart out of a sociopathic leader who has lied and abused his followers, in addition to freeing some of those followers from a horrible life, and trying to get them to a better life. Theron is a highly underrated actress, usually let down by the material she’s given, and she gives a terrific, steely performance that trades on a blend of strength and vulnerability that was best on display in her two finest roles, “Monster” and “North Country.” Not too many characters can stand toe-to-toe to Max Rockatansky, whether they’re played by Tom Hardy or original star Mel Gibson, and steal the movie from underneath them, but Theron’s Furiosa does, and I hope the next “Mad Max” film we see (if we see one) is Miller’s intended chapter that follows the character more so that we can get to know her more.
Miller has a bit more on his mind than delivering a kick-ass female heroine with a desire to free women in slavery, though– “Fury Road” also takes on religious fundamentalism, and putting us in the mind of a suicide bomber. One of the reasons the film was delayed was 9/11, and when the American dollar dropped vs. the Australian dollar, but Miller reportedly had this angle in the story before that tragedy. He’s not sympathizing with the terrorists, though, but putting a human face, so to speak, on what the frame of mind would be for such an individual who is willing to sacrifice himself for eternal rewards. He does this through the character of Nux, and Hoult gives the film’s best performance as a kid who has bought into what Joe has been selling, and has a zeal to prove himself worthy of the reward that awaits him through sacrificing himself. Nux is a bit of a nut in this film when we first see him, but when he finds himself in the middle of the action, we see that he can change his vantage point when presented with reality, and channel his fanaticism into something other than destruction. Meanwhile, it will take a lot more for many of Immortan Joe’s followers to break their worship of him, and Max and Furiosa have some brave, brutal ideas on doing so.
First and foremost, however, “Mad Max: Fury Road” is an action film, and it’s here where Miller’s vision is kicked into wild, manic overdrive. “The Road Warrior” had some pretty insane ideas of what a sand-covered wasteland, and those who inhabited it, would look like, but Miller takes that to 11 here, and while it may be a little too over-the-top at times, it’s keeping with the tone of the what came before it. Even while doing family films in the past 20 years, Miller has never really settled into a typical, Hollywood style, and God bless him for that. His distinct eye for visual details is essential to the “Mad Max” franchise, and “Fury Road” is the culmination of 35 years of exploration as to what the world he envisioned might be. Though Colin Gibson’s production design, the art direction by Shira Hockman and Jacinta Leon, the set decoration by Katie Sharrock and Lisa Thompson and the costume design by Jenny Beavan help flesh the film out visually, bringing Miller’s world to life, the real MVP in making it come to life is the great cinematographer, John Seale, who Miller coaxed out of retirement for “Fury Road.” Both in their 70s, Miller and Seale bring their lifetime of knowledge to film and create a truly unforgettable visual experience for the viewer, made all the more impressive knowing that this was done practically, by stuntmen and actors risking their lives, with minimal CG used simply to hide the strings. The film is basically a two-hour-long action sequence, and it’s an astonishing ride to go on, fueled by a score by Junkie XL (who goes by his real name, Tom Holkenborg, on this film) that is operatic and hallucinatory to listen to, and completely befitting the film it accompanies. You won’t see anything else like it all year, although I do hope we get to see more “Max” from Miller in the future– even at 70, no one does action quite like he does. Cinema is better when he’s given the chance to show us what he’s got.
