Mad Max: Fury Road review

Hello and welcome to a special 05/17/2015 edition of The Comic Shop Blog!

Before I get started on a really brief review I wanted to cover a few administrative topics really fast.  This format is going to be going away as soon as I get squared away with podcast equipment that I can use competently.  This was just a decision I made that will make what I do more inclusive and have opinions other than my own.  I have several ideas for show topics and segments, but I won't move forward with the Shopcast until I return to work from my current FMLA.  I think it will be a lot of fun as I have had a handful of fun people offer to come on to discuss different things.  So please stay tuned for that.

I do have a couple of topics that I want to cover with this blog before I shut it down, so keep checking for those as I will post them when I have time.


Mad Max: Fury Road Review

There isn't much that I can say that hasn't been said at this point, but I will give it the best try I can.  I will start by saying that Charlize Theron is the absolute stand out in this movie as Imperator Furiousa.  Her portrayal of the powerful war rig driver is simultaneously stark, terrifying, sympathetic, moving, and powerful.  There has been a lot of manimist backlash that Furisoa is in many ways more integral to the plot than the titular character, but I have to say that it kind of fits the wandering kung fu style anthology that the Mad Max story seems to be transforming into.  Without Max Furiosa could not have achieved her goal of redemption and creating a new start for Immortan Joe's treasures.  With a sequel tentatively titled "Mad Max: Furiousa" it seems like the character will find herself in another difficult situation that requires the help of the post apocalyptic maurader.

My second favorite performance in the movie comes by way of Nicholas Hoult's War Boy Nux.  The journey that he goes through hits a lot of high points.  He goes from a hyped up pawn on Joe's chess board to this beautifully tragic and sympathetic character.  It is a wonderfully written and wonderfully acted character arch for Nux.  I can't say much more about it, but it is something to see play out on the screen.

Tom Hardy is a very good replacement for that other guy in the role of Max Rockantasky.  He is not given a lot of lines of dialogue, but he absolutely shines on screen.  While he spends the first act in bondage he more than makes up for it in the later parts of the film (Although his most badass scene happens off camera.)  With the promise of more action to come I was more than satisfied with what we got out of Max this go round. 


This film is a combination of summer blockbuster and art house cinema.  It has tons of creativity & potential, so much so that you forget that at it's base it's an extended two hour chase scene.  The thing that is missing now with so many of these franchises is that they are lacking in movies that can stand on their own.  This entry into the "Mad Max" franchise could more than stand on it's own as a solo entry into a new film franchise.

In all my reviews are almost always overwhelmingly positive, so consider the source but I would say that "Mad Max: Fury Road" is a must see on the big screen.  I can't wait to see whatever comes out of the mind of George Miller next!

Thank you for reading and I will see you next time at The Comic Shop!