The Road Warrior (1981) Warner Bros./Sci-Fi-Action RT: 97 minutes Rated R (language, strong violence, bloody images, implied rape, brief nudity and sex) Director: George Miller Screenplay: Terry Hayes, George Miller and Brian Hannant Music: Brian May Cinematography: Dean Semler Release date: December 24, 1981 (Australia)/August 20, 1982 (US) Cast: Mel Gibson, Bruce Spence, Vernon Wells, Emil Minty, Mike Preston, Virginia Hey, Kjell Nilsson, Max Phipps, Arkie Whiteley, Moira Claux, David Downer, William Zappa, Steve J. Spears. Box Office: $23.7 million (US)
Rating: ****
Director (and co-writer) George Miller did something quite brilliant with The Road Warrior (known as Mad Max 2 in Australia), the sequel to the 1979 cult flick that introduced the world to Mel Gibson’s anti-hero, former cop Max Rockatansky. The world has become a post-apocalyptic desert wasteland in the years since we last saw him, the result of a global war over the depleting supplies of oil. It would have been easy to rehash the basic plot of Mad Max with a few a minor variations and sell it like a vigilante flick. Instead, he takes it to the next level by placing the character in a savage, lawless world where roving bands of murderous marauders do whatever they damn well please. The Road Warrior plays like a western with a lone stranger defending a peaceful band of settlers against bloodthirsty bandits. Only instead of horses, they have motorcycles, hot rods, trucks and cars built from parts of other cars. One guy has a gyroplane. The plot of The Road Warrior is simplicity itself, but it all leads to one of the greatest car chase sequences ever captured on film. It comprises the final third of the film and never becomes tedious. It’s awesome!
Petrol is extremely scarce in this futuristic society (as is food, clean water and ammunition for guns). People, like Max, scavenge for such things. When he spots on overturned semi-truck, he immediately goes for the gas tank, catching every last precious drop in whatever’s handy and sopping it off the ground. He has an encounter with the Gyro Captain (Spence, Newsfront) who shows him the location of a nearby oil refinery, presently under siege by a gang whose hulking, hockey-masked leader is known as “The Humungus” (Olympic weight lifter Nilsson). He promises the people working the refinery that he will allow them safe passage out of the area in exchange for handing the facility over to him and his men (yeah, right!). The settlers’ plan is to haul ass out of there and make their way to a supposed sunny paradise 2000 miles away. Once Max gains their trust, they ask him to drive the tanker-truck filled with petrol. He initially refuses, but has a change of heart after a run-in with Humungus’ main henchman Wez (Wells, Commando), a psychotic with a red mohawk. And then, the big chase!
WOW! The Road Warrior rocks on every single level. Once again, Miller shows that he has a sure hand when it comes to staging spectacular action sequences involving vehicular mayhem. The crashes and stunts are unbelievable. People jump from one fast-moving vehicle to another. People hang from the sides and grills. They shoot at each other with rifles (with shells that might fizzle) and crossbows. One vehicle has two steel posts on the front to which enemies can be strapped. This means they will be the first to perish in the event of a car crash. People fall under the wheels of the vehicles. It’s chaotic, but it’s edited in such a way that it’s never confusing.
Miller creates a striking, vivid post-apocalyptic society where bad guys dress like members of 80s punk rock bands and a small music box is a thing of wonder for a young boy (“Feral Kid” played by Minty) presumably born after the war. This kid wields a mean metal boomerang that slices off fingers and embeds itself in the foreheads of enemies. Does it still slice a tomato paper-thin though?
Gibson is amazing in his second go as the taciturn anti-hero, described as a burnt-out shell of a man. He basically has nothing to live for and nothing to lose. He simply exists, trying to survive in a desolate world. The Road Warrior doesn’t waste any time with character development or expository dialogue. It jumps headlong into the action, violence and mayhem, never stopping to catch its breath. The music by Brian May (NOT the one from Queen), once again, adds a lot to the proceedings. Cinematographer Dean Semler makes great use of Australia’s vast desert landscapes. Never has such a brutal and desolate post-apocalyptic world as the one Miller dreams up in The Road Warrior felt so much like a roller coaster ride. It’s a bleak vision of the future; I wouldn’t want to live in it, but it sure is fun to visit. This movie is AWESOME!
