Saturday, June 27, 2015

The Case for Maximum Madness



Mad Max: Fury Road starring Charlize Theron as Furiosa.




And there’s also a guy called Tom Hardy who plays someone called Max.




Hardy does a great performance as the quiet, grim tough guy Max, even if on almost all those counts, and also in the “sympathetic” side, Theron’s character beats him hands down.  Sometimes literally.



Its hard to say a lot about the plot, as there isn’t much of one.  There is a set up that puts bad guys in motion in ridiculous vehicles, bent on capturing Max in the futuristic wasteland that the earth has become.  



Along for the ride is a surprising turn as Nicholas Hoult as a mutant… well, perhaps it’s not quite as surprising when I write that, considering his role in the X-Men movies.  But he plays an albino-ish guy who… well, that would be telling.



And its really not a movie that needs a lot of telling.  Or about which there is much to say.  It is action, pure and simple, strung together with a few compelling characters and enough of a story that it all hangs together.  Kind of like Gravity but with more people.  And it is awesome.



The cinematography too is incredible.  The desert feels so warm and dry, it is a wonderful escape from winter reality outside the cinema.  The fires, the cars, the thumping soundtrack – all build a hot, muscular, enraged and desperate environment in which the action takes place.  And it is good.



Except for the 3D – not really worth it.



Verdict: Not much to say about this one, except that Mad Max: Fury Road is awesome.  Not for everyone, granted, as story wise, there’s not a huge amount to go on, but as a pure action adventure flick, it is pretty much perfect.  9 bouts of madness out of 10.