Sounds simple, right? A basic post apocalyptic action movie. So why is it that after over 30 years people, including me, are losing their minds over this new Mad Max? For one, the action is intense and very real. There's little CGI used in the movie and when it is used it looks fantastic. With no CGI means that what the audience is seeking is what Tom Hardy, who plays Max, and everyone else on set had to go through. Cars exploding, a giant fireball erupting from an exploding tanker and just enough clever car designing to make a steampunk fan giddy. My personal favorite is the rock rider vehicle that has giant base sound system attached to war drums and a man playing a flame throwing guitar.
Another positive is the female characters. Characters like the wives and Imperator Furiosa feel like the vision Joss Whedon wants for sting female characters. They are tough but they have a soft side like most people do. They don't play the damsels in distress, in fact they play a bigger role than Max, the title character. Max is an observer of Furiosa's battle with the all powerful Immortan Joe, who covers the wives as treasure due to their health and ability to produce a healthy offspring.
With Joe are his war boys, the most predominant is Nicholas Hult's character Nux. He is a war boy on his dying days waiting to be taken to Valhalla as the great Immortan Joe foretells all his followers. Nux and all of the war boys represent the lost innocence and humanity of most people during an apocalypse. When Nux fails a mission given to him by Joe he falls into depression only to be comforted by one of the escaping wives. From there Nux regains his humanity thanks to love he receives from the wife.
While there are many more positive things to be said about the movie it is something to see and behold in a theater (3D optional but preferred for me). While some argue feministic tones, I gladly welcome those. I have no doubt that the Mad Max films and many future projects done by its director George Miller will be meet with anticipation.
