Mind-blowing action!

Three decades after the last film, Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, George Miller returns to helm this post-apocalyptic story riddled with high-octane action and captivating characters. Recasting the title role (once Mel Gibson’s sole preserve) with a very able-bodied Tom Hardy and going for high stakes with unprecedented vehicular mayhem expounded in traditional fashion, but on a level that surpasses everything that has come before (even F&F7), the 72-year-old George Miller shows the current crop where and how to go with a sequel story. 

The entire narrative is busy as a bee, hitting fast clip right from the word go. There’s not a moment to stop and ponder as the caravan of unsightly quasi-beings and weathered human survivors make it a fight to the finish - one that speeds up, chases, bounces, gets stuck in quagmires, skittles through deliberate rock falls, successfully runs through a majestic series of sandstorms and retaliates with equal gusto.  An accelerated frame rate, neat editing, the entirely involving pacing, sound design , music by Junkie XL, costumes by Jenny Bevin and narrative depth are far above the commonplace. In fact, the opening action sequence is one of the most breathtaking ones ever seen. And that’s just a starter.  Theron is in fine fettle, enriching Furiosa with a bitter-sweet resignation while nurturing a faint ray of hope for a better place and a new beginning. Tom Hardy’s Max is fresh, able and memorable. In fact all the major characters here have iconic representations.  — JT