Mad Max: Fury Road

I remember being excited for this film back in 2006. And now, I find out that not only has the production gone ahead, but that it has already finished principal photography.

How do I feel about Tom Hardy taking over as Max? After watching 23 James Bond films, it doesn't really bother me that much. I do believe that Mel Gibson could easily have pulled off Max as a grizzled old Badass Grandpa, but I suppose it wouldn't do much good for the film's marketability, since Mel's turned out to be a racist Jerkass, or at the very least a Jerkass who isn't careful about what he says.

Despite how The Phantom Menace, Land of the Dead, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and Prometheus turned out, I still have high hopes for my long-awaited return to the post-apocalyptic Australian outback!

edited 22nd Jan '13 10:18:18 AM by RLNice

A fistful of me.

I'm not a huge fan of the films, though I enjoy them. I think Tom Hardy is a worthy choice for Mad Max. Nice to hear that it survived development hell.

I'd rather have Tom Hardy than an anti-semitic, alcoholic, Anglophobic twit.

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I personally don't believe that the personal opinions of an actor, author, artist or whatever effects the work they do if they don't pour their own feelings into it.

That being said, had George Miller cast Mel Gibson again for Fury Road, it probably would have lost more audience members thanks to Gibson's recent controversies, than it would have gained by old fan "purists" who don't want to see The Other Darrin.

And I did suggest that Mel Gibson could have done Max as a Badass Grandpa, but I kind of prefer Max as a young-to-middle-aged wanderer in his prime. Probably because Kingdom of the Crystal Skull left a bad taste in my mouth. Of course, recasting Indy would have been even worse, but luckily, Max isn't as iconic of a character as Indy, and the After the End setting seems to be just as much a star of the films as Max, so conceivably the recast can go well.

As for the choice of actor... the only two Tom Hardy film's I've seen are Inception and The Dark Knight Rises, so I can't predict accurately how well he'll do the role. But I've heard great things about his other performances.

A fistful of me.

Mel Gibson's own prejudices can be seen in just about every work he makes, especially his hatred of the English (Braveheart, Gallipoli, The Patriot all downright invent atrocities or incompetence (or, worse, attribute real life atrocities comitted by the other side to the English) and attribute them to English characters).

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^ And of those, only in Braveheart did he have any creative control, as director (Randall Wallace was the writer).

The Patriot was directed by Roland Emmerich and written by Robert Rodat, while Gallipoli was directed by Peter Weir, with writing credits going to Weir (story), David Williamson (screenplay), and Ernest Raymond (author of Tell England, the novel on which Gallipoli was based).

I'm not saying Gibson is exactly a sweetheart, but it's a good thing to make sure the blame isn't inappropriately applied.

edited 23rd Jan '13 4:24:38 AM by Nohbody

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There's no smoke without fire...

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Let's get some things straight, shall we? England has a long and proud history of committing atrocities in my country. And we have returned the favour on many occasions. Decrying folks for saying precisely that is despicable. Look at what that cunt Longshanks did in Berwick, for example. Everything that Randall Wallace's script had Gibson saying about that carnage was true. Pretty much most of the rest of the film was ahistorical willy wagging (literally in some cases) but that bit wasn't. (There is some dubiety up here as to whether or not Robert Bruce was involved in the battle of Falkirk on Longshank's side. I find the Scottish historians vehement denials that he would have been there, and would have had EVERY reason to be there in order to protect his interests, pretty much laughable in many respects.)

The Patriot was less forgiveable, especially in its depiction of the Black American experience, and its refusal to depict accurately the stuff that the real life person behind Mel's character, Francis Marion, or the Swamp Fox, was actually like, i.e. the same sort of man that Jason Isaacs portrayed as working for the British.

Obligatory wiki page here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Marion

As for this film? I wish it well. I probably won't be going to see it or get it on dvd as I prefer to think that the series ended with Mel walking away in the desert at the end of Beyond Thunderdome.

For a series where oil and gas have been used up(I think) there sure are a lot of cars still driving around.

(V)(;,,;)(V)

I'm from Scotland as well, you do realize that - the avatar, etc? I'm not complaining that the English were the baddies in Braveheart or The Patriot, I'm complaining that their real life atrocities are magnified in a cartoonish fashion.

And I'm well aware of Berwick, nor am I denying it. What I find less appealing is his portrayal of Longshanks as a cartoon villain (throwing that wee boy out the tower), rather than a fairly typical cunt of the time, the English lords invoking Droit du seigneur (not true) and his implied plan in the film to cause race-death of the Scots via mass rape (not true). Given the obvious real life atrocities, it just comes off as the real English not being evil enough for him. I wouldn't mind, except that this kind of historical fail happens in just about every one of his films, and it always seems to be at England or Britain's expense, especially the downright insulting portrayal of the British Army (who did plenty of dying themselves) in Gallipoli.

edited 23rd Jan '13 5:48:38 AM by Achaemenid

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^^ Not used up, but a lot more scarce than before, with the remnants of the authorities hard-pressed to maintain safe transport for what remained, unless I'm misremembering (entirely possible).

edited 23rd Jan '13 5:50:14 AM by Nohbody

All your safe space are belong to Trump

In Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, the residents of Bartertown have learned to use methane from pig shit as fuel.

A fistful of me.

Insulting portrayal of the British involvement at Gallipoli? Wow, how do you get there? As a former soldier, who did the Gallipoli campaign as part of his history course at school, the script for that film was pretty damned accurate in showing what the British officer class were like at that battle. If anything they were being charitable. The whole campaign was a fuck up from start to damned near the finish. The evacuation was the only thing that went right. (and was pulled off mostly by the ANZACS)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallipoli_Campaign for details.

Young men were pissed up against the wall by both sides in that battle. And it isn't as if there has been an equally good or better movie done by a British cast and crew for comparison.

Well, the film claims that A: the Aussie landings were a diversion for a British attack, which is shown in the movie not so much as an attack but sitting on the beach drinking tea, with B: the obvious implication that the British are sacrificing ANZA Cs so Brits don't have to die. In reality, the Aussie landing at the Nek was a diversion for a Kiwi attack at Sari Bair, and two companies of Welshmen took monstrous casualties trying to support the bogged down Aussies (again, which was the fault of incompetent Australians). Sure, Gallipoli was a royal clusterfuck, but it is the way in which the film absolves Australians of any blame whilst implying the British commanders viewed them as Red Shirts that really ground my gears. Whilst many criticisms can and should be made of the arse-headed Gallipoli Campaign^note On a related note, the alternative was an amphibious landing in Northern Germany - one wonders..., the slander that the British sacrificed Australians to save themselves is not one of them. In fact, the ANZA Cs were included because Horse Guards thought that the Turks would be a pushover, and it was felt that this would ease them in to fighting the Hun later on.

Even if I was to accept that Mel Gibson has no anti-English axe to grind, he is still a disgusting anti-semite, and I am glad he has been replaced by Tom Hardy, who by all accounts is a better actor and man.

edited 23rd Jan '13 10:54:20 AM by Achaemenid

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If Gibson has no involvement, does this mean the film has evil straight bikers as antagonists?

So with the film's release date about fourteen months away, one or two details are out. Apparently, it's an interquel that fits between the original and The Road Warrior.

Character posters.

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Hahaha, why is Mad Max the least angry of those four?

I didn't write any of that.

He ain't even mad.

Apparently the Comic Con footage was very good, but I'm not even sure what's happening in some of these. Like, is Max upside down in his poster?

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Max's face is like "Jesus these people are fucking insane"

"All you Fascists bound to lose."

Said the guy nicknamed Mad Max.

Wow, this movie must be insane if the 'Mad' guy is the least mad.

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Yeah, he's on the outside of a vehicle as it is flipping over in mid-air.

I didn't write any of that.

I figured. REALLY doesn't look it though.

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The Doctor is in.

O_O

This looks incredible.