Mad Max: Fury Road

Alkers · 20-05-2015 4:44pm

I didn't notice to begin with but could completely hear him as Bane towards the end of the film

Agent Coulson · 20-05-2015 4:48pm

Just out of it and that was totally amazing balls to the wall non stop action joyride.

e_e · 20-05-2015 4:51pm

Hell I didn't even mind Hardy's accent and would go as far as saying I liked it. It has a really intangible and distant quality that works well for the dystopian setting.

johnny_ultimate · 20-05-2015 6:22pm

I'm going to go as far as saying I very much disliked Hardy's voice! I never was really concerned about Bale's 'Batman' voice in the Dark Knight films, but I felt about Hardy here what people complained about there - it really felt like somebody 'putting on' a gruff voice, to the point where it become distracting rather than even just ignorable.

What saves it, though, is how little he actually speaks in the general scheme of things. Otherwise he occupies the role well. It hasn't been mentioned much, but there were at least two 'nods' here, where Max and Furiosa communicated through expressive glaces alone, that said all that had to be said. I agree with the comments that the film benefited from a bare minimum of back story, and those glances were an extension of the admirable economy applied in certain aspects of the storytelling here - why waste time with an exchange of dialogue when a quick shot / reverse shot can take care of it in a more visual manner?

alchemist33 · 20-05-2015 8:18pm

bucketybuck wrote: »

If there is one thing that movie did not need it was more back story. Nothing better for ruining the mystique of a strange world than having every little detail needlessly explained.

ANY backstory on Max would have been better. There wasn't much point in the little girl flashbacks when we still had no idea at the end what it was about.

Nervous Wreck · 20-05-2015 8:32pm

I thought this was awful. Went to see it today and left after an hour. Just wasn't arsed spending any more time on being bored. Pity; I was looking forward to it...

FunLover18 · 20-05-2015 8:55pm

alchemist33 wrote:

ANY backstory on Max would have been better. There wasn't much point in the little girl flashbacks when we still had no idea at the end what it was about.

I thought it was just a reminder that his family was dead and he felt responsible. I think even if you hadn't seen the original the point was just to make clear that he was a haunted individual.

ktulu123 · 20-05-2015 9:26pm

Nervous Wreck wrote: »

I thought this was awful. Went to see it today and left after an hour. Just wasn't arsed spending any more time on being bored. Pity; I was looking forward to it...

I'm sorry, but how the f**k could you be bored watching that movie?? What is your idea of an exciting movie if you don't mind me asking?

titan18 · 20-05-2015 10:44pm

That was great. Most fun I've had in the cinema since The Raid 2.

Nervous Wreck · 20-05-2015 10:51pm

ktulu123 wrote: »

I'm sorry, but how the f**k could you be bored watching that movie?? What is your idea of an exciting movie if you don't mind me asking?

Fight.
Car chase.
Fight.
Car chase.

No substance to it. Very flashy but nothing under the surface. It's not about needing excitement; it's about needing something, even vaguely, deeper than what was offered. I woulda loved this when I was 15, I'm sure. But it just felt a little juvenile. And boring. Very boring.

e_e · 20-05-2015 11:17pm

Nervous Wreck wrote: »

Fight.
Car chase.
Fight.
Car chase.

No substance to it. Very flashy but nothing under the surface. It's not about needing excitement; it's about needing something, even vaguely, deeper than what was offered. I woulda loved this when I was 15, I'm sure. But it just felt a little juvenile. And boring. Very boring.

Check out that article I linked earlier, there's a good bit there especially in how it subverts the expectations of male action heroes. I found there to be a surprising amount of heart and thoughtfulness in the film tbh.

Mickeroo · 20-05-2015 11:47pm

There was a great deal of substance to it I thought, it had more narrative weight then plenty more serious films.

BMMachine · 21-05-2015 12:23am

Nervous Wreck wrote: »

Very flashy but nothing under the surface.

to put it bluntly, you weren't looking hard enough

Faith+1 · 21-05-2015 12:40am

Nervous Wreck wrote: »

I thought this was awful. Went to see it today and left after an hour. Just wasn't arsed spending any more time on being bored. Pity; I was looking forward to it...

Apt name for that comment! :pac:

Shoulda had more faith! :cool:

bucketybuck · 21-05-2015 11:08am

alchemist33 wrote: »

ANY backstory on Max would have been better. There wasn't much point in the little girl flashbacks when we still had no idea at the end what it was about.

The flashbacks were just to show that he was insane. Mad. Mad Max, as it were.

Do we really need to know every little detail of what happened to the girl? Do you need to know how she died, who was with her, what she had for breakfast? No we do not. We just need to know that Max is insane, haunted by events in his past that have made him the loner he is today, and the momentary flashbacks do exactly that.

Any further exposition about what happened is unnecessary, the film showed us everything we needed to know. Show, don't tell! Complaints like yours above are what leads to shite like Transformers where everything is info dumped to the viewer because they aren't trusted to read between the lines.

Gwynplaine · 21-05-2015 11:55am

Saw this last night. Brilliant film, non stop action. Might go see it again.

thegreengoblin · 21-05-2015 1:15pm

bucketybuck wrote: »

The flashbacks were just to show that he was insane. Mad. Mad Max, as it were.

Do we really need to know every little detail of what happened to the girl? Do you need to know how she died, who was with her, what she had for breakfast? No we do not. We just need to know that Max is insane, haunted by events in his past that have made him the loner he is today, and the momentary flashbacks do exactly that.

Any further exposition about what happened is unnecessary, the film showed us everything we needed to know. Show, don't tell! Complaints like yours above are what leads to shite like Transformers where everything is info dumped to the viewer because they aren't trusted to read between the lines.

You're completely exaggerating here and missing the point. The very fact that the flashbacks were used tells us that something happened to this man that affected him very deeply. I don't see why people wouldn't want to know what happened. Those scenes naturally piques the viewer's interest. However, that doesn't automatically mean these viewers need a complete info dump Transformers-style, as you put it. Fairly snobby attitude you have there tbh.

But the lack of explanation certainly didn't come close to putting a downer on it for me. If, as George Miller says, there are more films to come then who knows, maybe one of them tells us what happened to Max before the events of Fury Road.

bucketybuck · 21-05-2015 2:48pm

thegreengoblin wrote: »

The very fact that the flashbacks were used tells us that something happened to this man that affected him very deeply.

Exactly. Thats all you need to know.

Besides, if you really wanted to know what happened to Max previously, well, thats what Mad Max 1 ,2 and 3 are for.

FunLover18 · 21-05-2015 2:53pm

thegreengoblin wrote:

You're completely exaggerating here and missing the point. The very fact that the flashbacks were used tells us that something happened to this man that affected him very deeply. I don't see why people wouldn't want to know what happened. Those scenes naturally piques the viewer's interest. However, that doesn't automatically mean these viewers need a complete info dump Transformers-style, as you put it. Fairly snobby attitude you have there tbh.

I get what you're saying but I disagree. I think it's partly this attitude which led to all the origins that we've had in recent times (I'm not blaming you personally). I liked that Max was fully formed with only tiny glimpses as to how he was formed. Personally, I didn't need or want anymore.

thegreengoblin · 21-05-2015 4:03pm

FunLover18 wrote: »

I get what you're saying but I disagree. I think it's partly this attitude which led to all the origins that we've had in recent times (I'm not blaming you personally). I liked that Max was fully formed with only tiny glimpses as to how he was formed. Personally, I didn't need or want anymore.

And I get what you're saying! My point is that there were hints of a major event in Max's life and it's perfectly normal to be curious about it, that's all. I totally agree that it wasn't necessary to explain it in Fury Road but you'll find it's quite rare to do that without the intention of revisiting those flashbacks at some point in time, whether that be the next film or the one after.

I'm actually wondering if it could be explained in the prequel comics that I mentioned a few pages back. There's probably a good chance, especially as those comics are co-written by Miller. If so then great, it will be cool to find out more about this fantastic world that he has created.

I think it's brilliant the way we just jumped head first into the film and off we went on that mad journey. I hope other directors take note!

Lemming · 21-05-2015 11:08pm

Just back from watching the film in glorious, glorious IMAX 3D.

"Nyom".

...
...

That is all (for now; still processing the absolutely bonkers sensory overload that has me grinning like a Chestershire cat).

MakeEmLaugh · 22-05-2015 2:38am

Lemming wrote: »

Just back from watching the film in glorious, glorious IMAX 3D.

I can't imagine 3D helped much, especially for some of the more darkly-lit scenes, such as the sand storm.

The sooner that ridiculous fad ends, the better.

Saw it in 2D, and my enjoyment would have been significantly reduced had I been forced to watch it with a pair of plastic spectacles on my face.

ktulu123 · 22-05-2015 9:39am

thegreengoblin wrote: »

I'm actually wondering if it could be explained in the prequel comics that I mentioned a few pages back. There's probably a good chance, especially as those comics are co-written by Miller. If so then great, it will be cool to find out more about this fantastic world that he has created.

The whole backstory & the flashback stuff is already explained in the previous films, well the first one anyway.

22-05-2015 9:57am

Saw this last night and... Wow.

Story? Pft. Who cares?
Character names? Er. Max. Furiousa. Did the other breeding women have names? I genuinely can't remember.

It was one of the most glorious spectacles that I have seen in a very long time. The action scenes were so beautiful, the whole segment in the dust storm is up there with some of the most insanely beautiful scenes in any movie.

There wasn't much gore and, you know, it wasn't missed because the rest of what was going on was so mind blowingly insane that you just didn't notice.

What else was fantastic is that none of the women were sexualised. Sure, they were in skimpy clothes, but the camera never focused on this, like how you'd get in Michael Bay movies. They were women who happened to be dressed in next to nothing, but they were unbelievably bad-ass. The movie should have been called Furiousa Road, because Theron's character made this movie. Heck, Max was voiceless for a large portion.

In many ways this reminded me so much of 300. Some of the visual flairs were very similar and had a similar colour palette.

Lemming · 22-05-2015 9:58am

MakeEmLaugh wrote: »

I can't imagine 3D helped much, especially for some of the more darkly-lit scenes, such as the sand storm.

The sooner that ridiculous fad ends, the better.

Saw it in 2D, and my enjoyment would have been significantly reduced had I been forced to watch it with a pair of plastic spectacles on my face.

The 3D worked very well as a matter of fact, and wasn't overbearing, nor did it diminish the film for me in any way. It was also used to comical effect at one point towards the end of the film (namely involving a guitar and a steering wheel ... )

Birneybau · 22-05-2015 9:59am

Deleted User wrote: »

Saw this last night and... Wow.

Story? Pft. Who cares?
Character names? Er. Max. Furiousa. Did the other breeding women have names? I genuinely can't remember.

It was one of the most glorious spectacles that I have seen in a very long time. The action scenes were so beautiful, the whole segment in the dust storm is up there with some of the most insanely beautiful scenes in any movie.

There wasn't much gore and, you know, it wasn't missed because the rest of what was going on was so mind blowingly insane that you just didn't notice.

What else was fantastic is that none of the women were sexualised. Sure, they were in skimpy clothes, but the camera never focused on this, like how you'd get in Michael Bay movies. They were women who happened to be dressed in next to nothing, but they were unbelievably bad-ass. The movie should have been called Furiousa Road, because Theron's character made this movie. Heck, Max was voiceless for a large portion.

In many ways this reminded me so much of 300. Some of the visual flairs were very similar and had a similar colour palette.

I felt the exact same.

22-05-2015 10:06am

Mickeroo wrote: »

I didn't think it was his own at any rate, it sounded a bit like Bane at times to me and not at all Australian.

I have to agree with you on that - he did come across as very Bane sounding. I thought, "great, if you start talking like Bane, I won't understand a word you say"

Lemming wrote: »

The 3D worked very well as a matter of fact, and wasn't overbearing, nor did it diminish the film for me in any way. It was also used to comical effect at one point towards the end of the film (namely involving a guitar and a steering wheel ... )

It always bothers me when I'm watching a movie in 2D, especially one you know were designed in that way, and then a scene arrives that you just know was only shoehorned in for the 3D. I sighed a little when I saw the scene you were referencing.

Lemming · 22-05-2015 10:18am

Deleted User wrote: »

It always bothers me when I'm watching a movie in 2D, especially one you know were designed in that way, and then a scene arrives that you just know was only shoehorned in for the 3D. I sighed a little when I saw the scene you were referencing.

Sigh away. I didn't miss a thing.

Nor did the scene do anything other than raise a smirk and show that it's not meant to be taken seriously. It's spectacle. Entertainment. Not life-or-death which a lot of people who dislike 3D seem to view anything 3D-related as being. I'm always amused by the amount of snobbery on display towards 3D. So you [not you personally boney] don't like 3D, that's fine. So you don't like 3D but others do, accept that they do, and that you're possibly going to miss something from the experience, and stop being pretentious bell-ends about it.

22-05-2015 10:44am

Don't get me wrong, I love 3D when it's done right. I've seen loads of movies like that and I still believe that Gravity and Avatar are among the greatest spectacles in modern cinema - not for the story, but for what they achieved. But what annoys me is when a movie has 3D tacked on to it. That's when it becomes a gimmick. If I'm right, the director stated how he was going to only do 2D, but then it gets released in 3D also (that may not be 100%, I'm paraphrasing someone who was paraphrasing someone else) so you know that it was the studio pushing for it to get the extra buck. That's what bothers me, because when you see those scenes, you can pretty much hear the cha-chink and the dollar signs appearing in the studio exec's eyes.

Giggernaut · 22-05-2015 10:47am

I watched it and loved it! The story who cares, it was meaty in the visual sense.
Hardy went a little bane-y when he spoke more than three word and that took me out of it.
Its bonkers and had enough intrigue (flashbacks) to make me eagerly await the next installment.
I saw it in 3d Maxx and it wasn't bad at all in that format and I only went 3d as the 2d was fully booked! Pleasantly surprised :pac:

pixelburp · 22-05-2015 11:09am

So by and large it's fair to say Fury Road has been a critical success, and feedback from viewers appears to be equally effusive: is there any evidence yet how it has done at the box-office? I'm too lazy to look it up, and wouldn't know what's good/bad/atari jaguar when it comes to box-office takings anyway

I'm certainly hoping the film's a commercial success too; god knows the mediocre and godawful is rewarded too often with people's money, it'd be nice if a genuinely fantastic, intelligently-made blockbuster gets its own day in the financial sun.

Joeface · 22-05-2015 11:30am

worldwide currently stands at $124million and change , budget was approx $150million

only open a week so it should do its budget then some . if it gets to 300million then it will probably be consider a success.

needs to avoid the Dredd Trap , which it probably has . Dredd got a 3D only release(or very limited 2D). cost 50million to make and only made 34million worldwide, it had critical acclaim , and Viewers liked it ................still bombed . Mad Max seems to be doing a lot better

e_e · 22-05-2015 11:36am

pixelburp wrote: »

So by and large it's fair to say Fury Road has been a critical success, and feedback from viewers appears to be equally effusive: is there any evidence yet how it has done at the box-office? I'm too lazy to look it up, and wouldn't know what's good/bad/atari jaguar when it comes to box-office takings anyway

I'm certainly hoping the film's a commercial success too; god knows the mediocre and godawful is rewarded too often with people's money, it'd be nice if a genuinely fantastic, intelligently-made blockbuster gets its own day in the financial sun.

124 million worldwide so far. Here's hoping it passes 300 million at least!

Johnnio13 · 22-05-2015 12:00pm

Saw this on Monday night. Was not blown away but it was excellent.
Particularly loved the scene with Max clobbering the lad with the guitar.

A hundred miles a minute. Going to watch the other 3 on VHS over the weekend.

BMMachine · 22-05-2015 2:31pm

its amazing isnt it. Everyone is shouting from the rooftops about how good this is yet its still not getting anywhere near the numbers that some films do, namely transformers, spiderman, avengers etc.
Are people really programmed that badly? You can really see why Hollywood backs "franchises" like Taken and rubbish like that, which is ironic considering this is technically a franchise/reboot. It sounds cliche but standards just seem to go further and further down. Save us James Cameron!

Joeface · 22-05-2015 2:36pm

BMMachine wrote: »

Save us James Cameron!

Go wash your mouth out with soap ............ Cameron and Bay need to be stopped.

BMMachine · 22-05-2015 2:44pm

Joeface wrote: »

Go wash your mouth out with soap ............ Cameron and Bay need to be stopped.

I'm referencing the South Park episode where he raises the bar from the bottom of the Marianas Trench due to Honey Boo Boo putting it down that low.
Besides Cameron has many amazing films under his belt. Didn't rate Avatar that highly but it was a lot better than 90% of the "blockbuster" genre

Joeface · 22-05-2015 2:51pm

Yeah Cameron has done good with Aliens , The Abyss , Terminator , T2 ...and ok with True lies then fizzled of into a sub and the pressure on his brain gave us Avatar . Really only as good as the last movie . He needs a win. and the Ferngully Smurfs cannot save him. Mad Max is a simple light plot executed brilliantly , with no really filler . It is what what it says on the tin MAD

Sorry for taking the thread of topic but James Cameron doesn't do what James Cameron does for James Cameron. James Cameron does what James Cameron does because James Cameron is James Cameron!

thegreengoblin · 22-05-2015 3:28pm

Joeface wrote: »

worldwide currently stands at $124million and change , budget was approx $150million

only open a week so it should do its budget then some . if it gets to 300million then it will probably be consider a success.

needs to avoid the Dredd Trap , which it probably has . Dredd got a 3D only release(or very limited 2D). cost 50million to make and only made 34million worldwide, it had critical acclaim , and Viewers liked it ................still bombed . Mad Max seems to be doing a lot better

I think it definitely has. I don't recall Dredd having anything like the buzz that Fury Road is getting.

Out of interest, has anyone seen it more than once yet? I'm definitely going to go again, might leave it for another week or two though.

e_e · 22-05-2015 4:28pm

It actually beat Pitch Perfect at the US box office on Monday and Wednesday, think it'll stay strong with good of word of mouth around it.

Hate to sound like a studio executive but I'm gunning for films this strongly made and interesting to do well. :P

pixelburp · 22-05-2015 4:34pm

e_e wrote: »

It actually beat Pitch Perfect at the US box office on Monday and Wednesday, think it'll stay strong with good of word of mouth around it.

Hate to sound like a studio executive but I'm gunning for films this strongly made and interesting to do well. :P

Hmmm, you're gunning for a hard-edged, intelligent, basket-case of a blockbuster that doesn't speak down to its audience ... you couldn't sound more unlike an executive tbh

If anything, Fury Road feels like 2015's Snowpiercer, minus a Weinstein and plus a sh*tload more money at the box office

Looper007 · 22-05-2015 4:41pm

pixelburp wrote: »

So by and large it's fair to say Fury Road has been a critical success, and feedback from viewers appears to be equally effusive: is there any evidence yet how it has done at the box-office? I'm too lazy to look it up, and wouldn't know what's good/bad/atari jaguar when it comes to box-office takings anyway

I'm certainly hoping the film's a commercial success too; god knows the mediocre and godawful is rewarded too often with people's money, it'd be nice if a genuinely fantastic, intelligently-made blockbuster gets its own day in the financial sun.

I think Fury Road has got some of the best reviews for a blockbuster since the Dark Knight. It's made 124 million in its first week and that's for a R rated/15 rated film which is pretty good. I think many people are forgetting that, could you imagine what this would have made if it was a 12A.

It hasn't opened in Asia yet which is a big market. It's done well but it wasn't ever going to be a Billion dollar grossing film. I think if it gets to 300 million and does great business on blu-ray/DvD then it be considered a success. Plus I think many will be talking about this rather then Pitch Perfect 2 in the next 20 years.

rossc007 · 22-05-2015 4:42pm

Saw it last night, best movie I've seen this year for sure. Cant see why some people need the whole flashback situation explained, does it really matter? Seems to me the flashbacks where the only indication that Max was mad. Max: Fury Road sounds pretty ****.

PhiloCypher · 22-05-2015 5:46pm

With prequel comics on the way to flesh out the backgrounds of some of the characters one wonders whether Miller is planning to follow traditional hollywood wisdom and see any sequels build off the characters introduced in this film rather then how he approached the previous films ?

johnny_ultimate · 22-05-2015 6:18pm

To be that pedantic guy: Max wasn't 'mad' as in mentally disturbed in the first film, but 'mad' as in 'furious and vengeful'

Frank Bullitt · 22-05-2015 9:54pm

Can we now change the face in the title of the thread to actually reflect how awesome this movie is???

MakeEmLaugh · 23-05-2015 1:12am

pixelburp wrote: »

If anything, Fury Road feels like 2015's Snowpiercer, minus a Weinstein and plus a sh*tload more money at the box office

I've always said Snowpiercer was Mad Max on a train.

Dave_The_Sheep · 23-05-2015 9:08am

Watched it last night in the Odeon, cracking stuff.

Driving home, I pulled down the slipway onto the N3 - load of cars cruising behind me. After two hours of watching someone getting chased by cars filled with psychos behind them, they freaked the **** out of me looking in my mirrors.

Chain Smoker · 23-05-2015 9:33am

I've been viewing fury road pretty much as snowpiercer done right tbh. Snowpiercer dragged like hell at points and it's attempts at any kind of depth in a narrative sense fell flat on their arse. Still would be interested to see what weinstein wanted changed because the film definitely could've done with an edit.

Fury Road, on the other hand, straddles some very fine line throughout (amount of exposition, when to take a break from the action, etc) and managed to rope me back into it every single time I was beginning to feel a bit jaded. I'd say everyone involved asides from Miller and the editing team were a bit terrified they were after making a huge pile of ****e.

Kylo Ren · 23-05-2015 2:53pm

Saw it last night. It's absolutely fantastic. The best Mad Max film? I think so.

Guitar Guy for an Oscar nod? A crappy Grammy at least.

Mad Max: Fury Road

Comments