Mad Max // George Miller {Movie}

Ugh. Can I just say -- a plate full of edamame does not constitute “vegetables,” not even with the little bits of shredded carrot. We went out with some of Alan’s friends for this one, and I was not impressed by the Chinese (?) fusion place we went. I think it was supposed to be French/Chinese fusion, but it was just Americanized Chinese take-out with fancy plates and a few odd ingredients. It wasn’t bad, but… meh.

Anyway!  

Why I'm watching
Well, yes, partially Tom Hardy, but honestly the movie looks like great scifi dystopian action.

Where I saw the movie
Middletown. The theater was super tiny… I’m not sure why we went there for an action movie. Once we walked over to the parking lot, I realized I’d been here before with Abby to see that sort of magic-themed Ocean’s 13 bank robbery movie with Morgan Freeman, Ariadne, and the kid who played Zuckerman Now You See Me.

Expectations
Boom.

So how was it?

The entire thing is more or less a chase scene. 

It was pretty much everything you could ever want out of a dystopian action movie. Fantastic cinematography, high caliber actors, self-aware absurdity, engaging characters (heroes and villains!), crazy sets and wardrobe, world building, an impressive lack of spoon-feeding… just solid, awesome, and chock full of explosions. And on top of all that, a female-heavy cast (without making a point of it) and fairly feminist plot.

Mad Max is played by the gorgeous and increasingly non-verbal Tom Hardy, Furiosa by the badass Charlize Theron, and a host of excellent supporting actors rounds out the cast.

Recommendation
Action fans, scifi fans, and/or feminists.

Feels
Like a solid, classic 80s scifi flick -- and I'm not just talking about the visuals. Beautiful cinematography, fantastic world building, simple-but-solid plots and themes, absolute unapologetic absurdity, and none of the overly twisty-turny plot shenanigans that have been so popular in the last decade.

Favorites
I can’t choose. Doof (the guitar guy). The two lead actors, who were able to crunch so much into just one glance that the usual action movie dialogue tropes weren't necessary. The world building. The wives. How every single character was a solid, recognizable, individual personality.

Least favorites
Max was pretty quiet -- which I didn’t have a problem with at all -- but since they went that route, I think they should have made it a more deliberate character trait. There are a few scenes that make a point of how non-verbal he is, but several scenes just seemed a little unbalanced, like they forgot to write in his dialog.

Cinematography
I remember thinking about the cinematography in Blade Runner -- gorgeous, sure, but it was just rammed down your throat. HEY LOOK, STOP AND LOOK, LOOK AT THIS SET, LOOK AT HOW WE SET THIS SHIT UP, IT LOOKS LIKE A PAINTING LOOK LOOK LOOK.

This... was not that. There were a handful of incredibly gorgeous shots, but they always fit with the flow of the movie, had elements of movement and good timing, and told you something about the characters. They weren’t just pretty shots.

And yes, yes I did tag this as road trip.