Review of Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985) by Popdod — 05 Sep 2020

They obviously wanted to go a different direction with this film, putting far more emphasis on the post-apocalyptic world and less so on the fighting it out via high speed chases the other films emphasized, that doesn't happen until the end.

They also seemed to be going for more kid-friendly, like mixing elements of Peter Pan and the Goonies, a lot more cartoonish comedy scenes, less scary and brutal moments, but odd they left the whole S&M look in place with many of the characters.

What this film does really well is the costume design, vehicle design, set design, mix of looks of the characters, and overall aesthetic. Where the villains and characters were somewhat believable in the first 2 films, in this one they are much more out there like it's a Disney live action film, especially the tribe of kids.

That said, I still think this is a good film overall and around a 7/10. It's just all 4 films in this series are good and worth watching and this and the first are the weakest of the 4 but for different reasons.

I rank the films: 4, 2, 1 & 3 (tied). The 4th is a great film overall and retains the spirit of the first 2 while having the great costume and set design of the 3rd. The 1st was the most realistic and balanced, he had a wife and kid and was just doing a job that he eventually wanted to get out of but he was forced back into it due to the villains.

There was some goofiness in it but it was more borderline horror at times and definitely not kid friendly. But visually it's the least appealing and the pacing is pretty slow, it seemed less post-apocalyptic and more Nowheresville, Australia during the late 70s / early 80s with a mildly punk-ish bike gang.

The 2nd film was a good mix of realism and a more creative post-apocalyptic world but I am guessing was still limited by budget, just not as limited as the 1st.