Over the last few days you may have heard a bubbling up from the pits
of Hell, a poisonous cloud emanating from certain manly men angry over George
Miller's Mad Max: Fury Road.
Not because they had to wait 30 years for the film, which would be an
understandable reason to be mildly perturbed. But they're upset because the
film really centers on Imperator Furiosa, a bald-headed badass woman played
with grit and steel by Charlize Theron. Tom Hardy is there, too, but really
this is her film. Well, according to these men, who
have decided to boycott the film, Miller has destroyed the entire Mad Max
mythos by inserting some kind of feminist agenda. Let's be clear, these dudes
are morons, not only because of their misogynistic mindset, but because they're
missing out on quite possibly the best action movie in years. There will never
be another movie like Mad Max:
Fury Road. Period.
That's not to say there won't be copycats,
but matching the brazen insanity and blistering, stupefying awesomeness will be
damn near impossible. There's barely a moment when the camera stops
moving; it's dizzying, especially when set against the harsh and hot desert
landscape. But even when it does stop, the wheels are still in motion. Despite
the endless amount of blistering action, Miller somehow takes time to explore
larger ideas of motherhood and femininity, things we wouldn't expect in a
balls-out blitzkrieg of fire and death.
While Tom Hardy ably fills in for Mel
Gibson as the road warrior, Mad Max Rockatansky, make no mistake this is the
same character you know and love. Only, perhaps, leaner and meaner than
Gibson's version, with Hardy bringing every pound of his muscular intensity to
bear. The plot is simple, yet fleshed out enough that we recognize the years
Miller put into making this film a reality. He's had more than enough time to
consider every detail of this post-apocalyptic wasteland. Max, still haunted by
his past, finds himself in the clutches of brutal, masked warlord Immorten Joe,
who runs a small city known as Citadel. Joe controls the flow of water, and
thus he controls everything and everyone. He's surrounded by an army of loyal
followers that look like something out of a carnival freak show, which is fine
because Joe is perhaps the most freakish of all. These are psychotic minions
(Nicholas Hoult plays one of them) who feed on 100% pure breast milk and
paint themselves in chrome with hopes of dying and being reborn in Valhalla.
His iron grip is shattered when his chief lieutenant, Furiosa, steals a
massive war rig and escapes with five of his harem.
This is where things really pick up and
never really slow down. Mad Max: Fury Road is a two hour car chase fueled on
equal parts testosterone and estrogen. The dust flies, the flames kick, the
engines roar...you can feel it rattling in your bones, the heat scorching your
hair. Miller's refusal to gloss up the action with CGI may have made this
incredibly acrobatic, jaw-dropping production more of a headache, but it was
completely worth it. There's an immediacy, a gut realism that computer graphics
simply can't match and never will, and with a score ranging from orchestral to
thumping tribal drums there is literally something for everybody from a sensory
standpoint. Just prepare to have your eyes and ears melted by it, and get ready
to fall in love with the maniacal fire-spewing guitarist.
What may be disappointing to some is the
relative lack of focus on Max himself. The character has never been wordy but
he's downright monosyllabic here, and more of a blank slate than ever. The bulk
of the focus is really on Furiosa, a hard-edged woman looking for
"redemption" by fighting for the rights of five, obviously abused
women to live their own lives rather than to give Joe more sons. Played by Zoe
Kravitz, supermodel Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Riley Keough, Abbey Lee Kershaw,
Courtney Eaton, they give each of these women a different kind of strength that
sets them apart. When the group encounters another enclave of female warriors
who have chosen a different path than the despotic Joe, the point is very
clear: the world would be a more hopeful place if run by women. While this idea
isn't explored with the depth it could have been, and arguably none of them are
given the time they deserve, this is a film with something on its mind other
than blowing stuff up. Buried deep beneath all the sand and smoke is a
surprising amount of heart.
It can't be said enough; there will never
be another movie like Mad Max:
Fury Road, not even if Miller directs it himself. This is a once in a
lifetime movie event, but do yourself a favor and see it as many times as you
possibly can.
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
