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Post by StevePulaski on May 12, 2015 12:00:35 GMT -5
Mad Max (1979) Directed by: George Miller Rating: ★★½ George Miller's Mad Max is a pioneer in low-budget, action filmmaking, proving to mainstream audiences that multiple million dollar production budgets and advertising campaigns aren't a requirement when making a high-octane film. Even decades later, as Mad Max's once-crystal clear aesthetic has become more or less a representation of the sun-soaked age that one equates with seventies films, it manages to impress because of how coordinated the stunts had to be for reasons other than safety. Due to such a low budget (only around $400,000), stunts had to be done precisely right the first time, for reshoots were costly and unforeseeable with a menial budget. This fact alone could've rendered Mad Max nothing more than an obscure foreign b-movie that was lucky enough to get a wider release in the United States. Even some of the most impressive b-movies - Duel and Killer Klowns from Outer Space come to mind in terms of trying to do a great deal with very little - went on to live in obscurity and merit little cultural impact. Mad Max is the epitome of a surprise hit, spawning not only a franchise, but a career for one of the most successful actors, writers, and directors in history. We are plunged into a dystopian Australia in the not-so-distant future. Law and order, and society in general, has begun to break down in favor of chaos thanks to an energy crisis, leaving large metropolitan cities as the only ones who are able to survive. We spend most of our time in the Australian Outback, following a dangerous motorcycle gang known as The Acolytes as they terrorize passersby with their large vehicles and weaponry. At the center of all the camaraderie is Max (Mel Gibson), a police officer desperately trying to maintain structure and peace in his homeland. Soon after the chaos worsens, Max realizes that the only way to save his once peaceful homeland is to kill all the members of the motorcycle gang, led by two men known as "Toecutter" (Hugh Keays-Byrne) and Bubba Zanetti (Geoff Parry). Max's realization of the problem and method of action comes at the expense of his own personal ethics, which, we can kind of assume, were pacifistic up until this point. It's the classic case of a movie character being pushed to his limits, realizing that the only way to fight the power is to play along rather than sit back and hope everything will work itself out thanks to a lack of interference and increased passivity. Gibson plays an intriguing character with a fascinating moral complex, who, unfortunately however, isn't explored as much as he could be. His moral dilemma is downplayed in favor of the violent scenarios often occurring on screen, so much so that there is a disconcerting lack of character interest for our title character. Furthermore, the film's pacing feels off for much of the film, leaving the first sixty or seven minutes sort of deciding between wading in the water and throwing caution to the wind. At times, in the beginning, we can see director/co-writer George Miller and James McCausland attempt to weave a slowburn pacing style in with Mad Max's increasing amount of blunt force. However, Miller and McCausland cannot seem to commit to one or the other, and that leaves a film that transitions back and forth from extreme action to a humble focus on Australia's barren landscape. These changes take Mad Max down a few notches, especially considering that during these scenes of combat and action, we can't extract much else from them other than how brutal they can be. The moments spliced in between the action give us time to extract ideas, character traits, and personalities from those involved, and when there is a middling amount of that and displays of action impressive because of their spontaneity and capabilities, there's a looming emptiness to the film as a whole. Mad Max gets a large amount of style points, however, on part of Miller, who directs it with complete conviction and a respect for Australia's elegant, natural beauty. We are thrown into this world feet first, given little time to learn the politics of the road before heavily-armed muscle cars and motorcycles roar past us. This narrative technique and the scenery, made attractive by its ugliness, all work in the film's aesthetic favor. There is an unshakeable level of menace and vengeance to this particular story that could've bled through in mass amounts had our title character been more of a character rather than a force, or, paradoxically, just a title. Starring: Mel Gibson, Hugh Keays-Byrne, and Geoff Parry. Directed by: George Miller.
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Post by StevePulaski on May 14, 2015 7:36:16 GMT -5
Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981) Directed by: George Miller Mel Gibson returns as "The Road Warrior" known as Mad Max in Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior. Rating: ★★★ Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior, more or less, notably improves on its predecessor and this is evident from the first half-hour of the film. Rather than the inconsistently paced narrative we got in the first film, burdened by flash-in-the-pan action sequences and a cycle that ping-ponged between minimalist and blunt-force, director George Miller and the trio of writers (Terry Hayes, Brian Hannant, and Miller himself) have finally found the time and place when to do both and realize the series' potential to feature both styles. What unfolds is a film more carefully balanced and more kinetic in its energy than its predecessor. The film concerns the same dystopian Australia as the first film, only this time, law and order has ceased to exist and gasoline is a nearly nonexistent commodity. Former Australian police officer Max Rockatansky (Mel Gibson) still roams the street as a vigilante, taking out the numerous violent gangs that have claimed highways as territory all over the country, with his dog and his sawed-off shotgun clinging to him. Max's latest responsibility is to defend a group of settlers, who are trying to protect a compound which houses dozens of vehicles and a substantial amount of fuel, despite marauders attempting to overrun it, at one point succeeding and killing all but one settler. While Mad Max felt like it was laying the groundwork for the series to operate on, etching in some social commentary in addition to illustrating its vast, barren setting, Mad Max 2 begins to pick up and actually have some fun with its premise. It's by no means reliant on momentarily substantive action, but it finds the charm in your average car chase, where the excitement is usually buried between two tons of clanking metal, fire, and murky camera shots. Miller's groundwork pays off for Mad Max 2, as we now know the setting we're working with and have more time to enjoy our outing with this particular effort. The film is almost entirely focused on Max and his dog, whether they be rescuing the settlers or engaged in a hot pursuit chase. The first film found itself more concerned with creating a dichotomous focus between Max and the motorcycle gang. Here, our focus is made more intimate, personal, and exhilarating thanks to it being limited in such a large world. Furthermore, Miller's action sequences are delivered with more polish than they were in the first outing. They're more entertaining, for one, as the stakes are raised (armored trucks, gasoline trucks, faster cars enter the mix) and the tension is more balanced. Miller and his writing team take time to build a sense of dread on the ground, when Max is ostensibly alone, and when he's on the road, engaged in a high-speed chase, Miller captures it with complete clarity. We are always aware of space during these action sequences (also thanks to the trio of editors, David Stiven, Michael Balson, and Tim Wellburn), never becoming lost in a shuffle of incoherence or absurd camera angles. The action sequences, especially when set against Dean Semler's beautiful cinematography, are absolutely elegant and pristine. Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior had quite a bit of polishing to do following the ho-hum effect Mad Max left. The simplicity and digestible nature of this film makes it all the more watchable, and the action sequences, combined with the sequences exploiting pure dread, work from the get-go. The film adheres mostly to the principles of older, American westerns while admirably playing its own game of dystopian hell, which works quite nicely thanks to the barrage of talent constantly on display. Starring: Mel Gibson. Directed by: George Miller.
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Post by StevePulaski on May 16, 2015 14:00:08 GMT -5
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985) Directed by: George Miller and George Ogilvie Mel Gibson in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. Rating: ★★ The third film in a series can make or break it. There's a wave of "wow, we got this far?" on part of the filmmakers and a wave of the "I can't believe they're making another one" on the audience, and, understandably, filmmakers and studios try to see if they can take the series in a different direction once making it a trilogy. The problem is that, with this change, while certain admiration comes into play for risk, the change in direction can often squander or lessen what was already built from the previous films and solidify the decision for moviegoers not to seek out any more films from that franchise. It happened with the Child's Play franchise and the Halloween franchise, and unfortunately, it had to happen with Mad Max. The series, in my eyes, was never an amazing one, but had certain appeal. The first film took the bare basics of action filmmaking and predicated a frightening, if somewhat slight, dystopian story on the large canvas of a desert. Its sequel, however, kicked itself into high gear, formally asserting Mel Gibson's titular character as an action hero. The third film, Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, takes a Return of the Jedi-style approach to the sequel, softening it a bit, decorating it in costumes, trying something completely different, and ultimately, leaving divided reactions in its rear-view. What was once a series about suspense and disorder in the middle of nowhere has descended into a film that takes the formula of an epic or a classic warrior tale with little effect. Beyond Thunderdome morphs into a film of silly costumes and scenery-chewing fluff rather than capitalizing off of what made the franchise so unique and, often times, quite mesmerizing. Gibson returns in the titular role, this time exiled into the desert by Aunty Entity (Tina Turner), the ruler of Bartertown. While wandering through the desert, again, trying to remain alive and alert in a sea of chaos and disorder, Max stumbles upon the crashsite of a Boeing 747. The people inside the airplane are members of a Melanesian Cargo cult, many of whom children who act in primal behaviors. After protecting the villagers in the previous film, Max confronts himself in order to try and maintain order amongst the people and protect them, specifically the children, from the dangers of the gangs that lurk in the desert. Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome feels like a film that managed to escape the control of George Miller. The film feels hijacked by greater Hollywood forces, who, in turn, minimized the violence, turned down darker themes, and created a film much more concerned with the portrayal of people than the dangers that lurk in the desert. That would be understandable if the film wasn't burdened by a general sense of disconnect. Little human or character interest can be obtained from these characters, and Max feels as if he has transcended the realm of being an enigma to a completely artificial character, especially when cloaked in ridiculous costumes. At this point, the franchise's different direction, equipped with more light-hearted scenes than the first two films and, for a while, what seems like low stakes suspense, especially in the middle portion of the film, does what I feared it would do and that's take it off course in hopes this particular move would pave the way for greatness. Unfortunately, Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome suffers under the weight of its own ambitions and ideas, effectively creating something out of an original property that wasn't there to begin with. I'm sure if you told the Max from the first film he'd end up in the situations he finds himself in in this film, he'd laugh at you. Starring: Mel Gibson and Tina Turner. Directed by: George Miller.
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Post by StevePulaski on May 16, 2015 14:10:26 GMT -5
Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) Directed by: George Miller Tom Hardy (left) and Charlize Theron (right) in Mad Max: Fury Road. Rating: ★★★½ After allowing it to lie dormant for nearly three decades, George Miller reboots his beloved "Mad Max" franchise in a manner that, I believe, very few saw coming. While it's the season for raucous, summer blockbusters that require little thought and provide for passing entertainment, "Mad Max: Fury Road" changes course for the series and the idea of a blockbuster. This is an exhilarating, but uncommonly brutal, display of some of cinema's most kinetic and coherent actions sequences of the last decade, sewn together with everything from grotesque characters and characters that tread the line of being impressionistic. For the first time, the titular character isn't played by Mel Gibson, but instead, Tom Hardy, who provides a large amount of subtlety. In addition, I'd say that he also has about two full pages worth of dialog in a one-hundred and twenty minute film. He is less a character and more a brushstroke representation of an action hero, even moreso than in the last three films. Taking place, yet again, in a distant future where societal order has collapsed, Max is kidnapped early in the film by a gang known as the War Boys, led by the ruthless King Immortan Joe (Hugh Keays-Byrne), to be used as a blood donor. Meanwhile, a woman known as Imperator Furiosa (Charlize Theron), who was assigned to use an enormous, armored truck to collect gasoline, the most sought after commodity in the community, is driving off course with all five of King Joe's wives, all of whom meant for breeding. Max winds up escaping and hitching a ride with Furiosa, resulting in a long chase throughout the entire desert. There is a simple moral of personal redemption in "Mad Max: Fury Road," and it's a moral that keeps the film from being entirely empty. However, it's not tacked on or exploited in a way that feels heavy-handed. This is one of the many tricky dances "Fury Road" manages to pull off and do so very well. It's also a film of details, with screenwriters Miller, Brendan McCarthy, and Nico Lathouris essentially playing around on the large, spacious canvas of the desert, seeing where they can go and what they can do in order to create a film entirely focused on creating tension and breakneck action. Consider little inclusions like a deformed character who rides on an enormous truck, shredding on an electric guitar with dozens of loud speakers behind him. It doesn't add much to the story, but it provides for some incredible sounds throughout the whole film. The film also bears the best cinematography and visual effects so far this year. The desert has scarcely looked more attractive in all its sun-soaked glory, and cinematographer John Seale gets some of the best, most vivid shots of it throughout the entire film. Consider the scene when Furiosa collapses to her knees in the desert, as the sand and the sun are shown as limitless representations of time and space and stray sand grains softly glide on top of more compact sand, effectively creating what looks like a mirage. Or even consider the longshots that show the intense scenes of the War Boys catching up to Furiosa's truck. All of these beautiful inclusions and more are thanks to an extraordinarily talented visual effects and cinematography team. Finally, we have the action, which makes up about ninety-five minutes of the entire film, and for the first time, I'm not complaining. For one, the action in the film is captured clearly and vividly. Miller never loses us in the camaraderie; everything is so visually pristine and clear that there's never a lost sense of suspense because the camerawork is shoddy or the editing failed to do the scene justice. Editor Margaret Sixel really shows her talents in the beginning of the film, a briskly paced opening sequence involving Max, who is haunted by past memories, desperately trying to outrun the War Boys whilst being burdened by visions of his past encounters. These kinds of scenes are haunting, and add a layer to what would otherwise be standard situations in action films. However, the action is captured so crisply that it's impossible to ignore the sheer magnitude of talent on display here. For me, "Mad Max: Fury Road" is an early candidate for the most surprising film of the year and favorite summer blockbuster. This is a film that pulsates with life and energy, taking one exhilarating, cacophonous circumstance after another and bathing it in road rage, gasoline, and unbridled chaos. Its immaculate portrayal of madness almost works to call out other big-budget films that have skimped on their own visual clarity, proving great results can be achieved if time is taken to do such great work. It appears that during his time away from the franchise, Miller reflected on where he wanted to take it, and what results is a fully realized film that struts with confidence and swagger. The film proves a lot of things about action films, but most importantly, also proves you can have a franchise lie dormant for years and, if seriously handled and given to the original creator, there is still potential for a spectacular comeback.
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