Mad Max: Fury Road
(2015) Tom Hardy, Charlize Theron, Nicholas Hoult, Hugh Keays-Byrne, Zoë Kravitz, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Riley Keough, Abbey Lee, Courtney Eaton, Nathan Jones, Josh Helman, John Howard, Richard Carter, Iota, Angus Sampson
So I wondered if I should do a review of this film at all. I mean there’s not much to really say about it. There’s virtually no plot, and the acting ranges from ok to mediocre (but at least never downright bad). The best actor in the film, by far, is the always lovable Nicholas Hoult who, somehow, still looked adorable while under all that makeup and prosthetic (just like he did in Warm Bodies, how on earth does he do it??).
But let’s get real for a second, no one who went to see this movie did so for the plot or the acting. The action sequences were, of course, stunning. Most of them were actually done live, with only a little CGI to help, and it really showed. That’s all there was to the film though, start to finish. There are little pockets of dialogue here and there, but mostly it’s dirt road war. Unfortunately, I need more than that to keep me entertained for a whole 2 hours. I made the mistake of stopping the film about 90 minutes in to go to the bathroom and grab a snack, and I actually had trouble starting the film up again. If my husband hadn’t been watching it with me and insisted on finishing it, I’m not actually sure if I would have finished. I probably would have, since there was so little time left, but the fact that I had to think about it should tell you something about how much I enjoyed it, or didn’t, rather. I didn’t hate it, the action sequences were entertaining, but I just wish we’d of had at least some plot and character development. People died from the good guys and it was hard to care, and that’s never a good sign. I also had some trouble with Tom Hardy’s voice (or, shall I say, his grunting), and accent sliding on and off. Either let him keep his accent, or don’t. Don’t let him do both!
All in all, it’s nothing more than a mediocre film with awesome effects and stunts. 6.5/10 (the extra .5 is for Tom Hardy’s lips. Meow.)
M.
VampirePlacebo * Mel's Entertainment Page 
I loved it – and loved Nicholas’s character – even bought the dvd when it came out this week.
I think watching it on a huge screen makes a big difference.
I think you’re right…
I think I liked this a little more than you did, but great review.
Thanks! Like Abbi said, the big screen would have probably helped.
A film like this is so much more atmospheric and intense on the big screen.
Agreed.
I have to disagree entirely, I’m afraid. Mad Max is currently firmly at the top of my favourite films this year. It’s very easy to pass it aside as simply another action flick due to its abundance of cars, guns and explosions, but there is a hell of a lot of character work here. Nux, for example, began the film as a boy bred solely for war; he believes the only purpose of his life is to die for his master so he can be sent into “Valhalla” as a hero. Of course, it’s all fake, but that’s all his life is and he doesn’t know that. By the end of the film he has discovered his humanity for the first time, he accepts that the Valhalla isn’t real and that his life was a falsity in order for him to be solely a “Warboy”, and he dies in front of his old leader, but against him rather than for him. That’s character development to me. Max similarly discovers his identity and humanity. As he states at the beginning, his sole and only instinct is to survive. He knows nothing but loneliness and keeping himself alive. The film’s conclusion sees him saving the lives of others around him, embracing his survival instinct and connecting it with his newly regained humanity in order to help those he has come to trust. I also think all the acting is exceptional, especially Charlize Theron.
Still, nicely written review, and each to their own 🙂