I love this movie so much. The tragedy of a good man losing his family, his best friend and driving into the vast wasteland of an even darker tomorrow.
The final scene of Max speeding down the highway reflects the state of humanity: Lost, confused and going nowhere down a lonely road. Road Warrior is my favorite, but this ending is one of the most powerful moments in Post-Apocalypse movies.
What an amazing ending scene. It's so cold. After killing that worthless pycho he just takes that dark roads going nowhere. His face reflects his destiny. He knows what his new fate is going to be like.
@@small_ed The whole point of the Mad Max films is exactly what you miss in saying that. There was no civilization left to have counsels or trials, and when all else fails the one rule that still remains, Eye for an Eye.
Post-Apocalypse movies are almost always reimagined Westerns. Many of the concepts about revenge, loss and uncivilized brutality are the same in both genres. Max himself is a lot like the characters you'd see in Italian Spaghetti Westerns.
I love that even after Toecutters death, the movie ain't over. We still have this one antagonist that's basically a mosquito in all of this, and an injured Max treats him that way. But yeah, I love how the movie breaks tradition by ending not with the main villains death but instead with an ambiguous decline of the last member of the gang. It truly made for iconic, smart, and cool ending that is hard to rival.
I really liked that too. Because Toecutter was the true main antagonist of the film, you would think that they would have him be the last guy to get killed. I thought it was cool how they didn’t make him the last guy to get killed and instead had this be the final scene of the movie
@@superjackster0165 I know why they did it too. Johnny was responsible for Goose's death and raping that lady, and he escalated alot of the things that happened in the film. Only fitting he go last, and the worst possible way.
"The chain in those handcuffs is high tensile steel.It'll take you ten minutes to hack though it with this." (holds up hacksaw).. "Now if your lucky, you can hack though your ankle in 5 minutes.. Go." Absolute Legendary line.
I really like the ending, it's a dark scene of the road, the look on his face. I don't think Max enjoyed killing them but he was so hurt at what they did to his family he had to get even.
Bri G. I believe that Mad Max, in a small way, DID enjoy the kill. Like he told Fifi McAfee, if he spent any more time out there in the rat race, he would be a terminal crazy, only he has a badge to say that he's one of the good guys.
In Mad Max society was collapsing, and in The Road Warrior it has collapsed completly since it takes place a couple years later. It's barren in TRW because he drove away from the scraps of civilization into the outback desert.
In TRW it wasn’t completely barren. In the outback (even after the apocalypse) there was still bushes & trees, altho they were starting to rot due to the world running out of water. It later did become barren in Beyond Thunderdome, & then fully barren in Fury Road.
It's actually all barren not just the outback by the time of the third movie. There was a nuclear incident between TRW and BT. It's been confirmed by Miller. The hint we get as the audience is when Max scans the water at the beginning of Beyond Thunderdome with a geiger counter.
@@gatorarman12 I always thought that the nuclear apocalypse happened before the first movie and the coastal areas rebuilt society while the outback degraded into insane lawlessness. But I mean if Miller confirmed it I believe it.
The actor who plays Johnny the Boy is really good. He runs the full gamut of tactics a psychopath would take in situation where he's cornered. From deflection to excuses to questioning to anger to rationalizations to bluster to outright exposed madness. The actor really shifts well between each, from lows to highs, and it all feels 100% genuine without being overdone (admittedly in a movie with some pretty scenery chewing performances). He's despicable and pathetic in his madness and yet you know he's also dangerous if given a chance. Yet there is this spoiled childishness to him. The little screech he gives always stood out to me as the sound of some spoiled kid finally having some discipline applied and screeching in shock at it more than the pain itself. It's a great scene and the actor play Johnny really makes it work perfectly.
3:02 There's something about the explosion with that fade shot with that sound to the emotionless look in Max's eyes. It's like that explosion was symbolic in that the old family man is gone and now appears as a man who has lost everything and who ventures out onto the open road to hunt down more enemies.
Yes, I also saw this film double-billed with the Road Warrior at a midnight showing back in the 1980s and the audience cheered and applauded after this scene. Johnny the Boy was the most despicable one in Toecutter's gang and he had this coming to him.
Great shot of Mels emotionless,1000-yard stare as he drifts out into the unknown and dangerous wastelands in the excellent sequel. For in that moment after the killing of johnny the boy,max knew there was NO TURNING BACK. He lost everything and everyone he ever cared about and there was no reason to return to a crumbling civilization. The hero's path to revenge and the consequences of its aftermath can be a harsh mistress indeed.
This spot looks nearly the same. But about a kilometre up the road it's got houses haha. You can't see them due to the fact it's in a massive valley. It's about 25 mins from the Tullamarine airport, next to Sunbury.
Toecutter's gang shot him in the knee, then ran over his arm when he tried to reach for his gun. That's why he has a metal knee brace and a missing sleeve in Mad Max 2.
Speaking as someone who has tried to cut through green wood with a hacksaw and found that the teeth get clogged and render it useless almost instantly, I really don't think sawing through your leg would actually be a 5-minute job. In effect, Max tricked Johnny into pointlessly torturing himself before he died. I've never seen that pointed out anywhere, but George Miller did have medical training so it's not impossible that that was intentional.
Fun Fact. The rolled Ute in final scene was not rolled on the actual right hand corner before Emu Creek Bridge. It was rolled 100 yards or so up hill on same side from the corner. And the skid marks on road were painted by Andrew 'Sluggo' Jones the Traffic Director. And he played the dead body of Ute owner that Johnny was draging to steal his boots.
A classic movie ending; by the time the credits roll, we realize Max actually stopped being a good guy/hero; morale of the story: vigilantism takes a heavy toll.
why surprised, movies of that times was always well done, and the script always was very accuracy with the tale and good writing, is TODAY when there are a crisis in movie industry, when you watch this movie you get it at first sight, everything, but when you watch a movie today you need four books, lot of interviews, and two movies more with explanations of what the heck happen in the first movie, movie industry today not worth a dime
I love that last look shot of max’s face,he finally accomplished his revenge on the killers of his loved ones and he is now ready to fight other killers who mess with him.
One of the greatest, badass, satisfying revenge kills and endings of all time When he said that line you can feel the anger, sorrow and pain in his voice. Mel Gibson was incredible in this role
I don't think he loses it, he just buries it. It almost resurfaces at the end of Mad Max 2 and he definitely shows his human side when he helps the lost children in Beyond Thunderdome.
Iv always loved the use of morals in relation to Max with this film, like he mentions earlier hes scared of turning into those he hunts, whats great is at 1.45 Max looks as if he shouldnt be doing this, then when we next see him he has this slight crazy smile to him, such great acting by Mel, especially considering its one of his first roles
I remember seeing this at a midnight show at a college. All any of us knew was the second film of the series, and this answered lots of questions. The explosion in this sequence was followed by an eruption of cheers and applause.
or thunder dome cus having him RR maybe woulda been a little too cliche imo, but a appearance somewhere woulda been cool nd he woulda had a hard time driving or riding missing his right foot ,
I have always found it intriguing the one thing that most people overlook about this story .. It was revealed by Bubba that Toe Cutter was trying to fashion Johnny the Boy into a new Night Rider. ... But in the end he ended up creating him out of Max.
I lived just around the corner from this final scene, as he drives up the hill, and the final explosion happens. For years, I used to drive my Wife mad, telling her where we were, every time we drove past there. (True fact. It's the exact same place we see Max for the first time, just shot from a different angle). The worst thing about this, is that that area is almost as bad as the movie depicts, these days. I,m so glad to live in the country!
Wow to hear about that. Probably not much happens there but I've wondered about that the locale and such. Greetings from the USA btw the Deserts of SW US & Mex offer a similar scenery.
@@podcastfan2544 Greetings from Australia, Buddy. The whole area really is just an extremely low cost housing, low wage magnet, now. And, the worse it gets, the worse it gets. I lived there for a few years and it was horrific. Funnily enough, I now live in a town not dissimilar to where they pick up the night riders coffin.
@@alastairward2774 Australia is all prohibited. Its all just like this movie, which is actually a documentary. Im so glad i dont live in Australia. What a horrible place.
"I know what you're thinking. "Did he fire six shots or only five?" Well, to tell you the truth, in all this excitement I kind of lost track myself. But being as this is a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world, and would blow your head clean off, you've got to ask yourself one question: Do I feel lucky? Well, do ya, punk?"
Tristan Yes, Tristan. We have seen the new movie and we still prefer the Original Mad Max. Mel Gibson is Mad Max. It was with Mel that we saw the transformation of Max into Mad Max. It was with Mel that this movie with low budget became international Hit. Mad Max Fury Road wasnt even about Max, it was more for Charlize Theron and Max wasnt even mad this time; more like frustrated. Mad Max Road Warrior btw is much better than Fury Road. Here is why: www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2015/05/15/mad-max-review-5-reasons-why-road-warrior-is-better-than-fury-road/
when I lived in Paraguay in the 80's the movie theaters there would always show older movies, not only the new ones. Since I was too young to watch Mad Max when it came out (I was 2 in '79) I was lucky I had the opportunity to experience it in a movie theater in '88 (I was 11) when one of the theaters decided to play all 3 Max movies back to back. This one of course, the first movie, really made an impression on me, the others were just...well, I really didn't care much for them.
One memorable line: "You're mad, man, you think I look silly, don't ya? Ha ha... Don't bring me on this, man! Don't do this to me! Sweet Jesus, I was sick!" I still have it in my head, lol...
Wildwood bridge.. fuckin love it 2 minutes from my house and i go over it all the time. I feel like mad max when I do. Wish i was driving an xb coupe over it though.
It is strange, yeah, but that's what makes it so unique. George Miller had a distinct artistic vision that set the Mad Max series apart from all the other action flicks of the time. If you think this one's weird, you should see the third one! I love them all, though.
@@gustavosouza45994 well when you saw the movie with 8 years old, and the guy have 2 choices, to cut his own foot or cut the chain to live, i dreamed about this several times
especially when its a cop delivering the justice and when you mention dc and marvel vigilantes marvel has mad mad and he is known as the punisher same story wife and child die revenge plot.
Kungfooligan I think that was his point from the start. Toilet the guy try to saw anything he could , grabbing onto that tiny hope of 5min to be free....and boom. Sweet sweet vengeance.
Duude that is awesome. The last bit with him driving in the middle of the road suggests "I am free, but I am not." because there is nothing left in the world to be free for. So he is just alone.
Yeah, but the details are few. In the first movie, Max's home city is in a state of decay and overrun with crime. The second film reveals this was the result of a world war and massive fuel shortages. In the third film, a peddler tries to sell Max irradiate water. Max's Geiger counter goes nuts and the guy quips "What's a little fallout, eh?"
I love this scene since my childhood, watched this movie like 20 times..., I love ti imagine I am Max in this scene doing this exact thing to Johnny, and man... I am truly enjoying.
You should listen to when Johnny the boy says "we remember the Nightrider" in the dubbed version, like not to be rude to Americans but their voice actors are.............their really something else aren't they.
I remember a really great geocities website all the mad max universe and theories. I remember one of them talking about how he turned INTO mad max when he finally donned the black leathers and set out in the interceptor. That was when he turned to the dark side.
