Of course, the elephant in the room is the question: where is Mad Max in a Mad Max movie? He does make a cameo in a brief long-distance aerial shot, which is more of a hat-tip than anything else, but he doesn’t appear as an active character. This, plus the fact that the protagonist of the last two films is a woman, has caused some online whinging from a testosterone-poisoned sexist cabal of morons online.
That crybaby BS aside, it is weird to have a movie called A Mad Max Saga and never a line spoken by Max Rockatansky. This brand marketing issue should have been dealt with long ago. Mad Max: Thunderdome could have been called Wasteland: Thunderdome, and the issue would have been fixed permanently. In the previous film, Fury Road, Tom Hardy’s Max was little more than cargo. It was Furiosa’s story, played expertly by Charlize Theron. Miller has never shied away from strong female characters. Even Thunderdome put Max up against Tina Turner’s punk rock performance as Aunty Entity. Miller likes badass women.
“…the cinematography is art, as dust and fire beats at your brain…”
Every cinematic element of these last two films is nothing short of breathtaking. Miller believes in minimizing CGI, so the cars are all practical. For anyone who loves cars, it’s worth the price of admission just to see them tearing across the wasteland. The action is complex and non-stop, as the battles occur at highway speeds. Simon Duggan’s cinematography is pure art as dust and fire beat at your brain for most of the runtime, and one can get lost in the rhythm of the seething movement. Tom Holkenborg’s soundtrack sets the pulse-pounding flow. The production runs with the power and precision of a War Rig. But the film is not all vroom, bang, boom. Furiosa is more character-driven than any of the previous films. The cast turns in stellar performances that would shine in any film, not just for an action movie. The three that sparkle brightest on this stage are, of course, Taylor-Joy, Hemsworth, and Burke.
Anya Taylor-Joy has the arduous task of making Furiosa seem enough like the character Theron crafted to maintain continuity but also to make it her own. She walked that fine line with grace. Burke fills in as a replacement role for Mad Max. Jack is a neutral but civilized man who at least isn’t out to kill Furiosa or own her. While their performances are superlative, the film belongs to Hemsworth. His Dementus is a self-absorbed, crazed glory hound who doesn’t have much of a knack for leadership. He’s far better at showmanship, going into battle with a P.A. and a microphone. Dementus is the center of the plot and motivates for Furiosa to drive forward and persist.
Miller has hinted that this may be the last adventure set in the wasteland, and if that’s true, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is a powerful swan song to Furiosa, Max, and all the denizens of that blasted, delightful place.
"…the origin story of Imperator Furiosa..."
