‘My life fades. The vision dims…’
Upon watching Mad Max for the first time a few weeks ago, I puzzled over what had made that film into such a cult classic. It has a certain roguish charm to it, but I also found it deeply flawed and mostly unremarkable. After making my way to the sequel, it is clear that it is this film rather than the source material that has ensured that the legend of the road warrior has endured throughout various cinematic generations. This is the one…
So… the plot. Two tribes fight over some oil, I guess? It doesn’t really matter. The road warrior (Mel Gibson) is the deciding factor in a vicious war between rival gangs. That’s pretty much it.
Whilst Gibson is fairly anonymous throughout the first Max movie, he is much more charismatic and watchable here. Whilst rough around the edges, he has clearly started to develop some of that star power that would later go to serve him so well at Hollywood’s top table. Director George Miller has also advanced. A bigger budget allows better costumes, better explosions and a better overall aesthetic. Indeed, the car chases here really are an utterly joyous experience, despite (or perhaps because of) the fact that they were apparently incredibly dangerous even by 80s standards.
Once again, Miller wrings absolutely everything out of a paper thin storyline and it is this attention to detail and flair for the economical that has led to the The Road Warrior being the Judgement Day of the franchise (thanks to Stevie Keets for that analogy). In short, nobody films a car chase like Miller.
Perhaps the overriding success of the Mad Max franchise is that these movies have such a distinct style that you know within 30 seconds that you are watching a Mad Max movie. As with similarly distinctive directors such as Wes Anderson and Tim Burton, your enjoyment of The Road Warrior will depend on how much you buy into Miller’s style. Me? I’m all in.