![]() Over the course of Mad Max’s 93-minute runtime, Miller somehow manages to never drag out a chase too long, end one too early, or cut around too much. By working with so little, Miller is forced to rely solely on the merits of his camera movement, camera placement, and editorial instincts - and the result is a smashing success. ![]() In fact, the minimalist aesthetic of Mad Max only works to elevate and spotlight Miller’s talents that much more. Miller made Mad Max with a wildly smaller budget than he did any of its sequels, but even despite those constrictions, his work on the film still proves that he’s, undeniably, one of the greatest action filmmakers to ever work in the medium. Meanwhile, for his part, Keays-Byrne (who later returned to the franchise as Immortan Joe in Mad Max: Fury Road) brings an unhinged, terrifying quality to Toecutter that makes him the perfect counterpoint to Gibson’s stoic Max.īut the real reason to watch Mad Max is the same as it is for every installment in the franchise, and it’s George Miller’s direction. Gibson landed the role of Max early on in his career, but his performance as the intimidating and vengeful character still remains one of his very best. Part of the charm of Mad Max comes from the work of its largely Australian cast as well - particularly Mel Gibson as its titular police officer-turned-vigilante and Hugh Keays-Byrne as the savage Toecutter. The film’s stark, plain cinematography achieves a similar effect, as the bright sunlight of the Australian outdoors, the muted greens and yellows of the environments, and the boring gray of the pavement all combine to give the film a harsh, unvarnished look - one that perfectly suits its dystopian setting. ![]() The way that everything, including the actors’ costumes, all feels strangely stitched together ultimately helps Mad Max to believably sell its vision of a world coming undone. However, instead of that hindering the film, it actually ends up helping it. ![]() Made on a notoriously small budget, the Mad Max crew didn’t have enough money to waste on expensive locations, intricate costume designs, or big visual effects sequences. Shot entirely in Australia, the 1979 action film envisions a world where traditional society is collapsing and gangs are running rampant on the streets - terrorizing innocent people with their customized wild rides.Ī lot of the film’s effectiveness has to do with its bare-bones, almost skeletal nature. While the film doesn’t quite dive as deep into the franchise’s nightmare world as its sequels do, it does a very good job at setting up and creating the franchise’s volatile, stark world. At the heart of Mad Max is its unique dystopian future. ![]()
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