Session #2 for me in a few hours. 3D IMAX again.
This time I'm forcing my wife to watch it with me.
This time I'm forcing my wife to watch it with me.
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It was good but we'll see how opinions change once the dust settles. Without spoiling anything- it has some really good ideas and is well-paced but it felt like Max was
and I found Furiosa rather boring. I don't understand why Theron and Hardy are receiving such effusive praise.
Gibson really sold Max as every inch the reluctant hero in The Road Warrior but I thought that Hardy lacked his gravitas- I could buy Gibson leaving sometime to saw off their own leg but not Hardy. Gibson's Max was a believable burnout but Hardy just seems a bit quiet and vacant by comparison.
Nux was rather interesting and I really liked Immortan Joe and his gang though.Comment
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That's fair criticism, didn't ruin the movie for me though, I personally wish they used old Gibson for this role. Hardy doesn't add anything other than act mad/erratic and if you never seen the original movies you'd never really feel Maxs pain/anger or frustration regarding his loss.Comment
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Agreed. Confusion and regret perhaps but never that rage driving him onward and keeping him distant and alone.
Old Gibson would've been fantastic . Just imagine how weary he'd be. Hardy didn't ruin the film for me at all but Gibson had that taciturn grittiness about him that was straight out of a Western.
Also, forgot to mention a certain character that also has an influence on the soundtrack when they appear. So over the top but so, so good as well.Comment
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You make a good point but ultimately I thought the main character were the cars and overall setting of the film. I thought it was excellent and even after the dust settles, I don't think my opinion will change. I'm certainly no fan of Mad Max and found the first movies quite boring originally. Then again, I saw them in my early teens so I probably had little understanding of the films. They simply lacked the flashiness I enjoyed in films at that age.Originally posted by Decider-VT View Post
I'll revisit the earlier movies now with a new outlook.Comment
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Overall I was cool with Fury Road, this is from a lifetime megafan of the originals which dare I say could detract from my enjoyment of this one,
Totally agree that I thought until the last, excellent, segment - Max was just a participant in the movie not the main attraction, which was a shame for me. Hardy's accent was wonky and there was one exchange between him and Furiosa that had me scratching my eyeballs out. The orchestral score was disgusting also.
Apart from these gripes I really enjoyed it, at least its better than Thunderdome.Comment
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Not happy with this.
As a fan of George Miller's previous work and his ability to direct a sequel, I was completely disappointed with this film.
It was nothing like Babe: Pig in the City or Happy Feet 2.
I felt enraged and my toddler was in tears.Comment
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Went to see this last night and thought it was ace. Really liked Theron, Hardy blew a bit hot & cold, but the real star (unsurprisingly) was the vehicular mayhem. Mind blowing, just a huge amount of fun from the get-go. Massive cliche but it must be seen on the big screen (I opted for 2D).Comment
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Finally got to see this and it totally blew me away. A fantastic spectacle. So many cars and people, actual human beings. Insane action and stunts, crazy over the top visuals and it gripped me the entire time. I thought Theron was fantastic. It was totally a Furiosa movie, not even sure why Max got his name in the title. She kicked ass. And the soundtrack was pretty spectacular. Although I saw it IMAX and my ears needed a break by the end.
So yeah, I totally loved it. My only criticisms would be that
Those things aside, this was amazing. Best cinema experience I have had in years. A relentless assault.
But QC's review trumps all.Comment
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In order to possible prepare me mentally but also to possibly make up my mind as to whether to watch this film, I'm happy to canvass recommendations.
Here's my position. I know there's a few fans of Max on here from which experiences on watching the new film will be coloured by but I think I need as objective a recommendation as possible.
To try and prep/decide I've worked through the original trilogy as I know at some point I've watched at least bits of them but either way the memories weren't very distinct so I'd say I've always been aware of the franchise rather than being familiar with it. Mad Max 1, I found to be awful. Honestly, I think I would have thought the same years ago too. Everything but Gibson was pretty face palming and based purely on it I think I'm still pretty surprised a second film ever happened.
Mad Max 2, I can't say impressed me either. The idea of it I'm fine with, most of the characters and tone etc are probably sat within how my mind sees a definitive Mad Max film. But the execution felt weak, maybe due to it being too close its roots still but I wouldn't be bothered about seeing it again.
Thunderdome came across as the best made film, but one let down by some real weaknesses. Gibson is spot on and there's less scenery chewing for Max but the Thunderdome section is let down by Master (it's surprising Tina Turner gets mentioned by fans so much when Master is by far the worst aspect in the first third). The middle could be called Kindergarten Max, no idea what the thinking was there and the film almost lost it for me. The saving grace is the last half hour with the on rail chase where Max tries to save the kids from the encampment. It felt like a mixture of all the elements and execution and the closest to what the decent looking trailers for Fury Road suggest.
As you can see, there's intrigue but the original trilogy didn't impress. As a non-fan, is Fury Road a modern 'more of' situation or is it likely to be easier to digest now it has the scale/budget/action to realise the premise?Comment
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It stands alone and you should definitely see it regardless of your experience with the first movies. It is most like the second but really only in the sense that there is a chase across the desert with lots of cars. It's a different take on Max and it feels about a hundred times bigger. The action is spectacular and it's a huge cinema experience. Totally unique, I feel. There just isn't anything like it in terms of filmmaking. I reckon you would be doing yourself a disservice not to see it in the biggest loudest cinema you can.Comment
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That and the rave response is what's kept it in my eyeline. Stuff like the sandstorm shot etc in the trailer I can imagine would look immense on the big screen. I like the idea of the film constantly being on the move too, the slower somber pace of the originals was bit bit a drag at times and the whole pitch of this one seems to be also addressing stuff like that. Would be a breath of fresh air to have a decent, grown up cinema experience film with punch... I think Dredd was the last one I saw I'd class as that.Comment
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Yeah the pace is pretty relentless in this one right from the start. And Dredd is a good comparison, although they are very, very different movies (this is insane by comparison, Dredd's violence is much nastier though). By all means get some varied views but I reckon you'll be glad you saw it if you went. If anything, not being a huge fan of the previous Max movies might be a plus.Comment
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I didn't actually give my honest thoughts on this, so I should probably expand on my joke review.
The first thing I need to say is that hype is a funny beast.
If a film has high expectations and ends up being average, it's often seen as poor.
If a film has low expectations and ends up being average, it tends to be regarded as good.
However, sometimes a film ends up getting hyped because it was better than anyone expected and then the second wave of people seeing it strength of the word-of-mouth praise are then let down, which Fury Road has the potential to suffer from.
I hate hyping things too much and try to encourage people to see things without any baggage, if possible.
With all that said, Fury Road is a brilliant film and I definitely think, as a massive film fan, you should see this @Superman Falls.
You talk of not enjoying the original films to any degree, but this really doesn't feel like it's a sequel, but a re-imagining by a different director. As the Mad Max films progressed, the outfits and sets got more outlandish, so Mad Max and Thunderdome don't even feel like the same universe either. Personally, I found the design in Fury Road to be a little too outlandish, so you just have to go with the fantasy setting and accept it's a little out there.
That one grumble aside, the film is a real thrill ride. The start section last about 20 minutes and there was barely any let up. It's not very often I feel exhausted at the cinema, but Fury Road joins The Raids and the first two Matrix films where I've felt spent by the immersive action!
I saw it at the IMAX in 3D but, apart from a humorous shot towards the end, the 3D didn't add all that much. Age of Ultron was better with various computers projecting translucent displays and whatnot, but nothing amazing. I've said before that The Amazing Spider-Man 2 has some really thought out shots that made the most of the 3D format. Fury Road was great to see on such a big screen, but I'm toying with seeing it in 2D at a boutique cinema with sofas local to me next.
Here's a lovely article from Den of Geek about the importance of Fury Road to Summer blockbusters.
One of the best points of the article is:
"When a computer-generated city collapses in the average summer action film, we blink. When a dozen cars collide in Fury Road, we gasp."
I was genuinely wincing and recoiling from some of the stunts as they had a real impact.Comment
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The thing is, if we had old Mel we'd still comment/complain that this still was Furiosas movie not Max's . . . . . fair enough. What kinda gripes me in a stupid nerdy way is that Hardys younger Max doesnt make sense because he is too young to have lived or remembered the world in normality before it all went to sh1t. His flashbacks are pointless as they go into no depth for new viewers nor do they hark back to the original Max's trauma.
Prior to this movie I could've quite comfortably said I had enjoyed every Hardy performance I'd seen (including Nemesis and I havent seen that romantic comedy with Whiter-away-spoon) Bane, Bronson, Warrior, Rocknroller, Tinker Tailor, Inception all really good roles but this one was below par. Not sure if I blame him or the director but something went wrong here. Again, not enough to ruin the film but now that I've let it rest from the high of coming out of the cinema its one of the things that sticks in my head.Comment
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