By Ryan Deal ’16

It has been 30 years since Max Rockatansky, formerly played by Mel Gibson, a former policeman who has survived the nuclear apocalypse, has graced the silver screen in a storm of sand, blood, and gasoline. However, for fans of the Mad Max series, the fourth installation by director George Miller is well worth the agonizing wait.

“Mad Max: Fury Road,” to put it lightly, is absolutely insane. I mean, that is what you expect from a movie in which the first scene is the titular character stomping on a mutated lizard, picking it up and slurping it into his mouth for a midday snack. Although the trailers will lead the audience into believing that this is just another mindless action film that centers around that jaw-dropping chase scenes and violent fights, “Fury Road” is truly balanced by its core message.

In the film, Max (Tom Hardy, who, although receiving praise for the film, did not show nearly enough passion in my opinion to be considered “Mad”, he was more like “Slightly Agitated Max”) is captured by a clan called the War Boys, who, led by the seemingly untouchable Immortan Joe (a role reprised by Hugh Keays-Byrne, who played the same character in the earlier films), rule over much of their land, The Citadel, with an iron fist. Immortan Joe is downright evil, withholding large amounts of precious, clean water from his poor citizens whilst also holding women (referred to as The Wives) hostage, raping them in hopes of producing a young son.

However, this nightmarish lifestyle is squashed when Furiosa (Charlize Theron), a war rig driver, hides The Wives inside her massive vehicle and leaves The Citadel in order to remove the traumatized females from their grim reality. When Immortan Joe realizes what Furiosa is doing, he sets out mass numbers of War Boys to hunt her down. Among them is the ill Nux, played by a magnificent Nicholas Hoult, who must bring along Max so that he can leech off his healthy blood.

Seemingly hundreds of vehicles go after Furiosa maniacally, seeking to impress Immortan Joe. It is a sight to behold, watching as the War Boys zoom through the wide open desert, bloodthirsty and ready to strike. When baring witness to the crowd of riled-up drivers that includes the Doof Warrior, a madman who dangles on a soundstage, ripping through notes on his makeshift flamethrower-guitar, even the most melancholy of individuals cannot help but get their heartbeats accelerated, because a collision is going to happen, and it’s going to be beautiful.

When Max and Furiosa ultimately align with each other amidst the violent onslaught, Miller does the film right by not teasing any romantic chemistry between the two. So many action films have fallen victim to this cliché, but Miller insists on not doing so. Their relationship is solely one entrenched in surviving this brutal landscape. After all, in such a hostile atmosphere, love would not stand a chance.

“Mad Max: Fury Road” could have just been another tired action movie, but decides that it wants to be something more; it wants to change the way action movies are perceived. Women are not merely objects in this film, and instead are some of the most dangerous characters, a unique approach to modern-day films that in no way felt forced or awkward. It is a refreshing sight that now showcases that there are no longer excuses as to why a woman cannot play an action hero, and films will be better off because of it.

Final Grade: A-