Mad Max: FURY ROAD

"It is by my hand! You arise, from the ashes, of this world!"

That quote could've easily belonged to director George Miller as his rallying cry to action movie junkies craving the next big thing.

The Plot

His name is Max (Tom Hardy) and he lives in a world of fire and blood. The Road Warrior finds himself caught in the crossfire between Warlord Immortan Joe (Hugh Keays-Byrne) and Imperator Furiosa (Charlize Theron) thanks to the machinations of an eager War Boy, Nux (Nicholas Hoult). This brings Max on the chase of his life across the vicious Fury Road as he decides to aide Furiosa with her cause in defiance against the monstrous Warlord. To deliver the Five Wives (Rosie Huntington-Whitely, Zoe Kravitz, Riley Keough, Abby Lee Kershaw and Courtney Eaton) to freedom in the Land of Mothers.

Review

Oh what a film! What a lovely film! MAD MAX FURY ROAD is hands down probably, and will be, the best action movie of 2015! Some are already considering putting it in the category of The Raid and The Raid 2 as some of the best new action movies of all time! Do I think it deserves to be up there? Hell yeah I do!

But okay, let's be serious though. I'm going to point out the two negatives of the film so that I can just go on and on about what makes this movie incredible. First off... the plot is pretty straight forward. It get from point A to point B because of reason X. Simple and not exactly that complex. Luckily the film is done with very little dialogue and forces great performances to show off character growth as well as propelling the story. Second... the second half of the movie feels like it slows down a little bit too much than the first half of the movie. This is mostly attributed to the more quieter scenes that set up the finale. But despite slowing down, the entire film is still one hell of a thrill ride!

This is the first action movie that George Miller has directed in 30 years, with the last one being Mel Gibson's last outing as Mad Max, Thunderdome. Pushing 70, you'd think that he would be too old to direct something as vicious and dangerous as this beast. But no, Miller is still completely capable of delivering the thrills the same way he did decades ago directing the first Mad Max movie. The man knows action has evolved, but he wants his old school techniques to evolve to meet the challenge. This is evident as 90% of the film is done with practical effects and very brave stunt men. It is this old school style of filmmaking that ramps up the intensity and makes the danger feel more real than ever. However even he knows that CGI can be a useful tool when utilized properly, and he uses it as a cleaner or to make subtle changes rather than rely on it. This is what will definitely set the film up there in the pantheon of Action Movie Greats. And it doesn't hurt that the cast he assembled to go on this mad adventure with him is filled with talent.

Tom Hardy takes over Gibson's legendary role as Mad Max. In here, he is still a broken man wandering the world with a very mythic quality to him. This is a character who has truly gone insane but is pretty much fighting to keep his sanity in tact. And driving beside him in the spotlight, Charlize Theron as Furiosa. Theron delivers a strong and subdued performance as the ferocious one armed Imperator driven by her singular mission of achieving redemption. Chasing after the duo, with his entire armada of muscle cars from Hell, Hugh Keays-Byrne as Immortan Joe. This isn't his first drive through the apocalypse as he was the original villain in the first Mad Max movie. But here, he plays a completely different animal who is both evil, yet extremely practical with crafting his society. But the true scene stealer of the film is Nicholas Hoult as Nux.

Hoult delivers probably the most human performance and most relatable character in the film. His Nux is pretty much a devoted disciple to Immortan Joe who will do anything to please him. While he could've easily fallen into the category of creepy mad henchman, he transcends it by actually going through a journey that changes his character drastically. This comes from his failures as well as his interaction with the Five Wives, the reason for Immortan Joe's pursuit of Furiosa.

Rosie Huntington-Whitely, Zoe Kravitz, Riley Keough, Abby Lee Kershaw and Courtney Eaton play the objects of Immortan Joe's desire: a healthy breeder for his heirs. While most of them were played by models, with the exception of Kravitz who is a legit actress, they all do a fine job as playing these determined young woman hoping for a better tomorrow. Whitely in particular delivers a performance that elevates her above the rest, mainly because of the position she is in, but proves that in the hands of a talented director, she can become a good actress. But all in all, they are all just fine. And that's okay. Because this entire picture is filled with crazy people already. It's good to have some people who still clench to sanity.

Final Thoughts

There are a couple of smaller details I could point out and one small plot twist that I wish I could talk about, but I'd rather the viewers experience this on their own. This is a film that has to be seen on the Big Screen. A MASSIVE SCREEN! The film is definitely special in a time where blockbusters are pretty much almost recycled by story and method of filmmaking. It is definitely a film that will go down as one of the greatest action films of all time. And it deserves to be. I can't imagine any other film this summer coming close to the amount of fun and insanity that this film delivers. GO SEE IT!

SCORE: 8.5/10 if you think about it, but 9/10 immediately after watching it!