Review of Mad Max 2 (1981) by Richard L — 04 Apr 2015
Yep, 33 years late, I finally get the whole Mad Max phenomenon. The second movie is all about this Australian ex-policeman, his dog, and his Ford, and how he finds his humanity again in a dystopian future. Along the way are amazing action set pieces and 1980s-style gratuitous violence and nudity.
The way women are treated in these films is problematic; they exist only to be raped and/or slaughtered. Balancing that is how some of the men exist only to be raped and slaughtered. Another problem is the depiction of homosexuality; it exists in these movies as just another example of how men turn evil. Really the subtext is just awful.
Then again, this IS dystopian and it WAS the late 1970s/ early 1980s. Despite these issues (and without even getting into lead actor Mel Gibson and his more recent rants), this is still one of the best sequels ever made, an exciting, witty, darkly humorous, kick-ass masterclass in filmmaking. The cinematography is gorgeous, the editing is fantastic, and the plot is full of world-building that makes an evil kind of sense, even as it races forward toward the exhilarating signature death-convoy finale.
It took me this long to finally watch the Mad Max series, but now that I have, the second one especially remains an instant classic.
This review of Mad Max 2 (1981) was written by Richard L on 04 Apr 2015.
Mad Max 2 has generally received very positive reviews.
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