Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior

I prefer minimalism and anguish of the original over the overdone and loud action in the sequel. Though George Miller defines the post-apocalyptic genre in its essence and thus opens the doors for dozens of successors, it only answers the question for me of why I don't look for adventure in similar places. (23/05/2015)

A perfect action sci-fi just how I like them. The prolog is amazing (it beats most that you might see these days), a summary of all the important events in part one along with some glimpses of wars that caused the final ruin of civilization as we know it. Straight afterwards, we are treated to a great car chase with breathtaking stunts. We get to meet Max, who is looking for gas (like everybody else). He’s lucky. There’s a colony nearby with its own oil well. But nothing is for free... (23/06/2006)

Two years after the success of his breakthrough debut, director George Miller returned to the Mad Max character with a sequel that completely redefined the concept of the post-apocalyptic world in popular culture and, furthermore, set the bar very high for action spectacle. The Road Warrior became a phenomenon whose style and success dozens of other productions around the world tried to emulate. But no one has been able to bring such an abundance of raw energy to the screen, nor has anyone succeeded in inventing such a fascinating microcosm of relationships. The post-nuclear future meets the myths of the past as Miller brings elements of the western to life with the aid of roaring engines and rampaging savages clad in leather and rags in a world where a drop of gasoline is worth more than a human life. (Annotation for the series marathon at Kino Aero, 2019) (14/03/2021)

Unlike the first film, the director "bothered" to outline at least a little bit of the vision of the post-apocalyptic world. It's nothing groundbreaking, and a rough cut of war scenes from documentaries is the easiest way to go. The script is also certainly not groundbreaking, and thus the pile of clichés may not be to the taste of the contemporary viewer and even the more tolerant individuals will struggle to swallow the overly theatrical dialogue. Fortunately, all of this is balanced by completely unique action sequences, which are unthinkable to film nowadays because some of the special effects numbers would make Hollywood insurance people throw a fit. Cinematographer Dean Semler excellently shot a vast desert wasteland and dusty trajectories trailing behind the cars are literally pouring from the screen onto the audience. Mel Gibson stepped up in the lead role and the soundtrack isn't quite as annoying. The cheesy B-movie aspects have shifted to a crazy romp (the costumes were stolen by the filmmakers from an S&M parlor!), yet it has no dead spots from first to last minute and watching it is actually perverse fun. (21/05/2006)

I skipped the first episode as a precaution and went straight to the second one, expecting brisk and raw action, and suffocating post-apocalyptic atmosphere. Well, I guess I overestimated it. The beginning was very promising, with a quick explanation of the events that led to the collapse of civilization, and then it was full speed ahead. But right after the first chase there was a big lull that lasted unnaturally long. For a while it was interrupted by the ugly bad guys, but then things calm down again, the initially working atmosphere completely fizzles out and I was really getting bored. Moreover, Mel Gibson, as great an actor as I think he is, only uses two expressions in the whole film, and by the latter I mean his final smirk. The final car chase was spectacular and entertaining, but it ended somehow suddenly, without much of a climax. And that's what the whole film is: it does its job, but I can’t say it adds something more than the bare average, nah! But I can't deny that it’s a source of a lot of inspiration to this day. 65% (14/04/2022)