Watch Mad Max 1979
Mad Max is an Australian post-apocalyptic action film series and media franchise created by George Miller and Byron Kennedy. It began in 1979 with Mad Max, and was followed by three sequels: Mad Max 2 (1981, released in the United States as The Road Warrior), Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985) and Mad Max: Fury Road (2015); Miller directed or co-directed all four films. Mel Gibson portrayed the titular character Max Rockatansky in the first three films, while Tom Hardy portrayed the character in Mad Max: Fury Road.
Watch Mad Max 1979
Mad Max is a 1979 Australian action film directed by George Miller. Written by Miller and James McCausland from a story by Miller and producer Byron Kennedy, set "a few years from now". It tells a story of societal breakdown, murder, and revenge. The film, starring the then little-known Mel Gibson, was released internationally in 1980. It became a top-grossing Australian film, while holding the record in the Guinness Book of Records for decades as the most profitable film ever created,[2] and has been credited for further opening the global market to Australian New Wave films.[3][4]
When it premiered in April 1979, the film was met with mixed reviews; despite this, it won four AACTA Awards. The film was produced on a shoestring budget of $27,6760; its gross revenue quickly soared beyond US$100 million worldwide and thus set an impressive Guinness record for being the most profitable movie ever made.
Before you head out to theaters this weekend to see the highly anticipated "Mad Max: Fury Road," check out the trailer for the 1979 cult classic that started the franchise. The original "Mad Max" starred a young Mel Gibson in a role he would revisit on two separate occasions. "Fury Road" director George Miller also directed the original, as well as its two subsequent sequels. It's obvious that Miller was working with a much smaller budget back then, but without this cult classic we wouldn't be able to enjoy what some are calling the best movie of the year so far. Follow BI Video: On Facebook
Parents need to know that this 1979 movie is a celebration and an onslaught of intense, cartoonish violence, though it's probably a bit tamer than some of today's films. The hero, Mad Max (Mel Gibson) is actually a good and kind soul with a loving family that he goes home to at the end of a long day of high-speed chases and shootouts. But he's outnumbered by the evil, sadistic people in this post-apocalyptic world, and despite the dark laughs and adrenaline bursts the movie inspires, the movie presents a more or less hopeless vision of the future. The laughs and cheers stop when characters are raped or burned alive, and the hero's "reward" for trying to be with his family is a terrible punishment; he spends the movie's last ten minutes seeking brutal revenge.
In 1979, the cinematic world was smack in the middle of resurgence of Australian films, a time period that would come to be known as Australian New Wave. Riding the crest of this movement was Mad Max, debut feature director George Miller's leather-clad, blacktop-melting road epic that launched Mel Gibson's career as an international movie star. Cobbled together for less than half-a-million dollars, Mad Max went on to gross $100 million worldwide and launched a franchise that continues to this day with Mad Max: Fury Road.
And yet, the safe bet in 1979 would have been that this film would simply crash and burn. First-time feature director Miller was, up until this point, an emergency room doctor exposed to all sorts of violent injuries and deaths. It was through his interest in film that Miller met up with amateur filmmaker Byron Kennedy at a summer film school, where they formed a partnership that would lead to massive success with Mad Max. Teaming up with first-time screenwriter James McCausland, Miller and Kennedy then turned to casting their film with fresh-faced actors relatively new to the cinematic scene. With all that green talent both behind and in front of the camera, Mad Max had every reason to fail. So how did it become the most profitable film for decades to come?
Beatty Smith is a Film, Television and Theatre major from England. She has a job as digital media producer for the Office of Outreach and Engagement and is the founder and president of the Media and Entertainment Industry Club. Smith intends to pursue a career in the film industry. After watching Mad Max: Fury Road in the cinema, Smith was overwhelmed by the intense visuals, the depth of the plot and, especially, the representation of women in a traditionally masculine action franchise. Her essay, "Is Mad Max: Fury Road Really a Feminist Film?" was a final paper for her Writing and Rhetoric class. It explores the controversy over whether the film can truly be considered feminist when it contains many misogynistic elements. Smith is especially grateful to her professor, Robin Murphy, for his insightful advice and for encouraging her to pursue this topic.
Mad Max (1979) is an Australian film directed by George Miller, and is set in a barren wasteland that once was Australia. In this dystopian society, the people have gone mad. Max, played by Mel Gibson, is the renowned badass cop on the barely existent force.
Have no advice to give you, but I do have some encouragement: 1). As a Mad Max fan, (...George Miller help me, but the one I dig most is Beyond Thunderdome ) this sounds great. As a GTA V fan, it's good to have new maps out there. 2). Ok, so I DO have some advice, let's combine it with encouragement and call it 'adcouragement'-- don't give up. Sometimes the process is boring or your interest fades, and if that does occur, that's when you take some time, and re-watch Mad Max to recharge. Also, build in layers so you don't get burnt out; work on a house or road, and the next day work on adding trees and rocks.
Previously my total knowledge of Mad Max entailed: The fact that it was set in a post-apocalyptic time, that it involved a young Mel Gibson from back when Australia still claimed him as our own, that there was lots of cars, anger and explosions, and that Tina Turner shows up at some point in the third movie. But, with the fourth movie, Mad Max: Fury Road, out this week, I thought it was about time I actually watched the original. And here is what I discovered...
Mad Max: Fury Road is an amazing film, and one of the best things about the editing is how easy it is to follow the action. All of those crazy visuals would be lost if the viewer can't follow the action but, unlike other recent action films, Mad Max is easy to watch. You can follow the action, and you always know what's going on.
I am yet to see the 21st century version of "Mad Max" but whilst I am not a fan of remakes I reckon it was the right move. Now that doesn't mean I am saying that George Miller's 1979 movie was bad enough that it was worth remaking but I am going to say it is a generational movie which to fully appreciate and understand why it is loved you would need to have watched it back in the late 70s. Only then would you understand why this Australian movie impressed audiences and lead to two sequels.
Now I first watched "Mad Max" back in the late 80s and even then it didn't have the impact I believe it would have had on audiences back in 1979 and as such I am convinced if an inexperienced movie fan watched it now they would probably be left perplexed by why it is held in such high esteem. And I can see why because we have these misfits who rule the wasteland ending up untouchable thanks to their lawyer to the point they even go after cops, it isn't anything out of the ordinary. And neither is it out of the ordinary when you have a cop who it becomes personal for and he ends up a vigilante in a black car running the scum off of the road.
What that means when you watch "Mad Max" now you do have an entertaining, slightly wild eyed performance from Mel Gibson. You also have some slick directing from George Miller who keeps things moving. But mostly you have stunts, lots of vehicle stunts with cars and bikes flying through the air. Yes there is also violence as well but again watching it now the violence and in truth the toying with audiences doesn't have the same impact.
What this all boils down to is that whilst I can understand why "Mad Max" impressed audiences back in 1979 it has never had the same power for me having come to it for the first time in the late 80s. But if you enjoy action, revenge movies or are a fan of Mel Gibson then it is worth seeing. 041b061a72
