When I was in film school there was this one guy in my class who, no matter what our assignment, attempted a post-apocalyptic film on a shoestring budget. His efforts were, unfortunately, not very good. He was making films that he did not have the means to make nor the experience to realize. He was good guy and a solid friend but his ambitions outstripped his talents and his budgets.
George Miller, on the other hand, has the means and the skills to make a bonafide spectacle unlike any other. Miller’s talents as a director are immense and unique. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024) could only have come from Miller. His kinetic style and gross-out violence is unparalleled. He’s making films that are closer to comic books than any superhero movie out this summer.
Yet, there is something about Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga that left me disengaged. The revenge narrative worked, the world building was intelligent, and the style was as bombastic as ever. Still Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga felt like little more than a summer blockbuster. I had a similar reaction to Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) as well. These grandiose post-apocalyptic spectacles just leave me cold.
And I enjoy plenty of lesser post-apocalyptic movies. Films like Warlords (1989) that are obviously ripping off Mad Max (1979) are a lot of fun for me. I think the problem is that, with all of their cinematographic grandeur, Miller’s recent run of Mad Max related movies simply move too fast. Miller’s recent films never take the time to allow the viewer to live in a space with the character. There is a lack of human interest in these Mad Max films.
Of course that isn’t a fault of the films. These movies are myth making in a way that Marvel can only dare to dream about. But for me personally, as someone in their thirties, this kind of myth making just isn’t all that interesting. I want my films to subvert myths with human frailties. I want my entertainments to be about people even if only in the abstract.
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is a beautifully made film. It should be seen on a big screen. It’s just not my cup of tea.
