Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior

I've been in a bit of an effort to "catch-up" lately.

As I explained in my most recent Retro Review of Terminator 2, there are several "classic" franchises which I have embarrassingly not seen (trust me, I DO feel embarrassed when asked if I've seen some classic film and I have to respond sheepishly with "No"). 

One of these franchises is Mad Max. Obviously, this series isn't the best or most classic on my seemingly ever-growing Catch-Up List, but it has been expedited near the top, thanks in part to some of the best trailers in recent memory for it's upcoming sequel/reboot/do-we-really-know-what-it-is?, Mad Max: Fury Road. I'm pretty sure I'm not alone when I say that those trailers are borderline perfect; they feature tons of action beats without giving an ounce of the story away, leaving me to believe that the film is saving its best for the big screen. 

Now...if you go back through my Retro Reviews you'll see that I really, really disliked the original Mad Max (as always, click the title for that review). Having seen The Road Warrior it's VERY apparent that the first film suffered greatly from its small budget. Maybe I was too hard on it, but it's still a film that doesn't age well at all, and when compared to the vision being presented in this summer's Fury Road, it hardly captures George Miller's concept of a dystopian Outback. Again, that's mainly due to budget, but that still doesn't make it a good movie in the year 2015. Despite my distaste for it, I was encouraged by several readers/friends/peers to continue with the second one even if I didn't like the first. Initially I was reluctant, but after a few months passed, I decided to take the plunge and watch The Road Warrior. 

To say that it was vastly improved would be an understatement...I consider the two films night and day. In fact, I'd even go so far as to encourage most people to skip the first film given that the second has a mini "recap" at the beginning, but that just might be me. Sorry hardcore Mad Max fans. 

Ghost ride the whip!

The Road Warrior starts up what seems like a few months/years after the original in a dystopian future where oil is like gold. Right away it's clear that the budget has been upped and that THIS is getting far closer to the crazy society that Miller has in mind. Whereas it was supremely confusing and poorly constructed in the first, this one is more well defined: everyone is crazy, oil is precious, the world is barren, and people dress super weird/oddly sexual (ass-less chaps anyone?). Comparing it (somewhat unfairly given the decades of difference) to the most recent Fury Road trailer, it has hints of the same elements and given that it came out in 1981, I'm not sure they could have done too much more to convey their world. Also vastly improved is the editing, specifically with the action. It's way more understandable than the first film and most scenes are logical without featuring too many gaps of "Wait what just happened?". This is very welcomed in the action scenes which, instead of being hilariously sloppy before, are now progressing sequences that have visible outcomes. The editing still isn't perfect by any means, but it's a far cry from the first film's sins. 

The guy with the gun is going to have a really weird sunburn

Speaking of action, I really enjoyed it in this film. Granted, it's not anything I haven't seen before, but for its time I'm sure it was big, brutal, and inventive. Even years later it's still entertaining and as a big fan of vehicular action set pieces, I imagine that The Road Warrior wrote the book...or at least a few chapters of it. There were several camera angles (i.e. car front bumper then zoom up to see driver through windshield) that are still used in almost any action movie ever today and it was really neat to see them being incorporated into a film that is over 30 years old. Almost as if to show off the film's increased budget, there is also a humongous explosion scene that truly rivals really anything put out today and through my smile I wondered how impressed audiences were back in the day with it. 

Road Warrior also features an improved story and cast of characters this time around, mainly in part to the higher quality editing. Max is far more understandable as a character now...a lone wolf trying to survive in the wasteland. Eventually he finds himself helping a group of well-established survivors fend off the "crazies" as they try to escape with their oil. The ending was a bit poorly constructed, but overall its a simple premise for an action film. Feral kid was an interesting character as was The Gyro Captain -- again, both constructs from Miller's mind that are far better represented in this film. The enemies were grotesque and memorable for being both savages and probably insane, although the black leather BDSM garments are hardly believable in the heat of the Australian Outback, but hey, it makes for some interesting enemy designs.

It's a miracle Mel Gibson didn't die from heat stroke while filming this movie

Road Warrior isn't perfect however, although I'm not sure anyone who recommended it me would defend it as being so. It still carries over a few faults of the original like the aforementioned editing, and at the end of the day it's still a 30+ year old film. Unlike some of its "classic" or near-classic Retro Reviewed brethren, The Road Warrior didn't do enough to totally blow me out of the water and make me fall in love with it. But even still, I cannot deny its influences on modern action cinema and this is a film where I can understand it's praise and the amazement of the audiences at the time of its release. 

Let's just hope that we're all blown away again when Fury Road releases next month.

CONS:

• Some editing issues make it hard to piece together what is going on and/or generally creates awkward scene transitions
• Although much more minimal than before, there are still signs of a budget here and there. I was thrown off anytime they were on a paved road, for instance
• Forgettable ending
• Ass-less chaps?
• Some boring action

PROS:

• Miller's world is well conceived and displayed with the increased budget. I get it now
• Simple story that makes sense and gives purpose
• Iconic role for Mel Gibson in a character that is defined better this time around
• Fun, well designed action for an '81 film. It's cool to see some of the influences for modern action films
• Some select scenes of great cinematography
• Interesting side characters and villains

Retro Rath's Review Score: 7.5/10