Fury Road Screening Discussion (WARNING! HEAVY SPOILERS!)

[blackmocco]

Back on topic, Blackmocco, for what it's worth I'm very much in agreement with most of what you've written about it, aside perhaps from Hardy's performance, which I thought was fine if very different from Mel's.

Seeing it again tonight. I feel better about going in to see it now with those previous shortcomings in my mind. Hardy just seemed a bit befuddled throughout although after reading his interviews, it's clear that's what he was going for. Very excited again. Soundtrack has already saved chunks of the movie for me, as I know where they're going to go.

[scfc68]

Just come back from seeing it, I enjoyed it, the visuals and action were all stunning, but somehow I did feel a bit disappointed and I can't even put my finger exactly why?? Maybe overexpectation but the X factor that was in MM2 wasn't present for me; however I could concede that to nostalgia and that MM2 was literally something that had never been seen before.

I thought the villains could have been far better developed, Immortan Joe to some extent but more like the People Eater and Bullet Farmer, I also expected far more from Rictus Erectus as a principal henchman but apart from maybe 5 mins, he did little to rival Wez or even (and it hurts to say this) Ironbar.

On a positive side, I thought Hardy was excellent; looked the part and handled the action well, to me it seemed like there was a little more depth to him than Mel's portrayal and it felt like he had more dialogue than in MM2. The right choice for the role. A good chemistry with Theron that showed a growing mutual respect, maybe even affection without any hints of romance. All the acting was genuinely solid.

Action scenes; well I will need to see it a second time as there was SOOOO much to take in, it was overwhelming. Probably the most complex and spectacular chase action scenes ever filmed. really loved the mix of hand to hand combat, improvised weapons, crossbows/spears/harpoons/chainsaws and gunplay as well as all the crazy ass vehicle stunts. The other movies do look very dated in comparison on the action scenes. It was unusual to see such abundant usage of firearms in the Mad Max universe, but a welcome move none the less. The trailers don't even hint at the amount of carnage on show. It was pretty violent but in a similar way to MM2 it wasn't explicitly gory apart from a couple of scenes. Certainly much, much meaner than MM3 though. I also thought Hardy did more physical stuff than Mel in all previous 3 movies combined; he wasn't just a driver but proficient in hand to hand fighting, guns & explosives. I liked I that aspect.

I was a bit disappointed with the opening 10 mins, I had hoped for a better opening montage, I think there was just a few seconds of some trees caught in a nuclearblast and the same radio transmissions you hear in the trailers about oil wars, water wars etc. It didn't really set the world up as well as say MM2 did in its opening titles. Also the opening scene with the Interceptor, there was very little more shown than in the trailer. I expected more combat with the pursuing vehicles but as in the trailer, its caught and flipped over almost immediately. Not even close to the opening chase in MM2. I doubt the interceptor is seen on screen in its Max form for even 5 mins. After waiting so long, it's a MAJOR letdown - I say again, if you've seen the trailers you have apart from a couple of quick shots seen all of it in Fury Road.

As for the whole reboot/continuity issue; well I just took as it unfolded but I could still imagine that the events of the previous films had occurred, albeit maybe slightly differently. It didn't out & out connect with the previous films but neither did it actively distance itself. It's certainly not an obvious remake and continuity issues apart I can see it as Mad Max 4 in the same way the Bond movies work; not a direct continuity but still an ambiguous connection present. I think it works either way frankly.
The little girl in the flashbacks calls Max by his name. He has a vision of a character in the distance that calls him 'pa' but I'm not sure if this is meant to be that girl??
It's definitely a child and has a child's voice but it's slightly ambiguous and I'm still unsure if Max's backstory has been radically altered from a son to a daughter. Could he have imagined his son as grown up?? Who knows?!!

Much is made of this not being Max's movie and more of it being Furiosa, personally I found it a fairly even split. For me the real star is The Wasteland itself which looks stunning and every bit as real and detailed a world as say, Middle Earth. The scenes in The Citadel were very 'epic'. I would like to see more of this rich world in the next film and then maybe in a 3rd (or 6th ;- )see Max come home to the city. I think the film stands a very good chance of Academy success in the categories of Art Direction, Cinematography, Costume Design, Make Up. Very impressive visually. The film never seems to explicitly state we are in Australia either?? It should also be pointed out that there is a bigger Sci Fi feel to this world with more obvious mutants, bigger sets and just more post apocalyptic in general.

I loved the introduction of the elderly ladies, they really humanised the film. Found the death of one of them as very poignant after losing my mum this year, quite touched me. People say the film is one long chase but I disagree. The film takes a welcome but not overlong pause for breath midway and all this stuff about minimal dialogue, I found not to be anywhere near the case. I also liked the nighttime scenes; something pretty new for a MM film and beautifully shot too. Almost surreal in places

I wasn't that impressed with the sandstorm, felt like doing it just because they COULD. Not faulting the CGI, it looks way better on a big screen, I just personally would have preferred the action in that part of the movie to have been unenhanced that way, could have still had the dust clouds etc but all the flame and tornadoes, not for me.

I enjoyed the soundtrack, found that it had lots of nods to MM2's score. Nothing like MM3's score at all. Not sure I would buy it separately but it suited the movie and like I say it reference Brian May's 1981 score heavily.

One question, who were the faction that first attacked the warrig, the ones with the subtitles, what language did they speak?? Their vehicles with all the spikes (nod to Cars That Ate Paris) looked amazing!! We never saw inside the vehicles, at who was driving?? I wonder if these are primary antagonists for the next movie??

So overall, a few gripes, and actually as Ive replayed it in my head while typing this, I feel more positive now. Could anything really live up to our massive expectations after such a wait? It's not a 10/10 but i will give it a solid 9. A repeat viewing may alter that one point either way. Certainly blows Thunderdome right out of the water and you ask yourself, just how Miller got that so wrong?? If he had brought half of the FR mentality to it, with all MM3's great art design, costumes, vehicles and photography it could easily have been a classic back in 1985.

[Stamper]

Ha was just mourning when he made TD

[scfc68]

Its a very, very good reason but I still don't understand the script if it was wriiten before Kennedy's death. The shortcomings aren't in the direction or any of the technical aspects, they are all in the original source material.

[Artemis Flow]

The spiky car people were the Buzzards

[Nightwalker]

These thoughts already crossed my mined while watching the movie how I feel about this one.
I'm not in for long speeches. Especially when I have to type in an other language, but these are some highlights of my thoughts.

The narration at the start by Max sounds a bit odd. Saying himself that he was a cop and all.
The flashbacks are understandable for a person who lost his whole family by violence. But for a fan who, for years, has in mind Max had a toddler son instead of a teenage daughter, this looks pretty weird.
Tom Hardy portrays Max as a more silent and suspicious/nervous type than the original Max of Mel Gibson. The Max of Gibson would keep his head cool during the fight (with the 5 wives an Furiosa after the sandstorm) He would give clear verbal instructions of what he wanted them to do, just like he did with the Gyrocaptain, also bluffing with an empty shotgun. And like how he made his point at the entrance of Bartertown including the negotiation. To name a few examples.
Max is also portrayed more as a fighter than a driver (like some others mentioned before) In the old movies you see Max never fight, only drive, negotiate or over-bluff. Except for the thunderdome scene. But there you can clearly see he is very clumsy at advanced physical combat.
In general Max is pictured in this movie as a still burned out man suffering from the memories of his past.

Now I try to recall some of the references to the old movies:
The shotgun with the dud.
The music box.
The eyes popping out during a flashback.
How the bicker gets under the trailer wheels.
Furiosa's eye at the end (same as Max's eye in TRW)
Tanker roll.
Some particular shots with airgun arrows.
The car out of control connected to the tanker by a cable.

I cant recall any other reference at the moment.
I will definitely go and see Fury Road again. It is an excellent movie. Because Max is portrayed by an other actor with a fresh view, it is very easy to see it as a stand alone film. Even if you know it is connected to the 3 old ones.

[scfc68]

Hey be careful mentioning any connection to the previous 3 films, some on here will have your guts for garters LOL

I wondered about the eye popping scene, i'm taking it as being a clip from MM1 and not some redone FX? I wonder if it was a way of George Miller firmly saying that the encounter with the Toecutter did occur in Max's backstory?? As far as I'm concerned whatever the continuity issues/timelines etc, even if the details are a bit different, if Hardy's max is the same as Mel's (and Miller has said that himself) then I still fit all the element from the previous movies in some form into this, obviously altered but still there ie let your imagination remake those movies. Max obviously had other adventures prior to Fury Road so why not imagine versions of Wez/Humungus etc. I think the eyeballs thing is another stirring up by George in the same way as he cast Bruce Spence as such similar characters in 2 & 3.


Any more info about The Buzzards??; I really liked their vehicles, the circular saw was insane!I loved that we never saw the actual people inside. Hopefully they will feature more next time...

[johnentwistlespout]

OK, So just back and not reading any other views first in case I agree with someone and confuse myself. Because this is a confusing film. The guy I went with (who loves MM2 but is not obsessive like me) said it was like watching a two hour fury road trailer...and I kind of think that somes it up perfectly. There is beauty here; the night shots specifically, and moments of shear unadulterated oddness...but this isn't a mad max film. The thing is, what is a mad max film? For many of us it's mad max 2 and, to paraphrase a character therein, the capability to just let things breeeeath. Theres no mad max on broken hill eating dog food overlooking a vista here. There's no echoing crow as dying V8 passes beneath us. To be honest, there's no worship of the engine really...not like we know and love. That's not to say this isn't a mad max film though. This is a deeply fucked up film. It is more mad max, in a way, than anything we've had yet....I just don't what to make of it yet. Is it flawed, or am I flawed? Will I dislike it more and more I see it or love it more...I REALLY don't know. One thing I do know....do not see it in 3D. I have one more ticket in that format and I'll never watch it again like that.i have feeling that 2D will make my mind up. Anyway enough ramblings until tomorrow.

[scfc68]

The lack of reverence for The Interceptor disturbs me the most, after 33 years to treat such an icon with such disdain is really bizarre! It does show George doesn't give a shit about us diehards. I thought we would get an opening chase..and we got EXACTLY the same as the trailer A very poor opening 5 or 10 minutes.

[DGSimo]

The lack of reverence for The Interceptor disturbs me the most, after 33 years to treat such an icon with such disdain is really bizarre! It does show George doesn't give a shit about us diehards. I thought we would get an opening chase..and we got EXACTLY the same as the trailer A very poor opening 5 or 10 minutes.

If that was true it wouldn't of been in the movie at all. The shape of the Interceptor was another visual cue that the car is just as broken and burnt out as it's driver.

Thankfully the Mad Max franchise does not revolve around 1 car.