Mark T’s review published on Letterboxd:
Miraculously, what was already a masterclass in spectacle on the first viewing became an action film with a surprising level of nuance on this rewatch. The average mindless action film would normally spoonfeed the subtext to the audience, so they can take things with face value as crashes and explosions fill the screen. But with George Miller at the helm, he manages to develop the story and characters in such an efficient way that the subtext feels organic with the madness happening around it.
Also impressive is how the script maintains focus on the three primary characters (Max, Furiosa, and Nux) while giving each of them their own arcs. True, Max has probably the most static arc of the three, but even his reserved personality depicted in the opening act transforms into something more emotionally open by the film's conclusion. In the case of Furiosa, what easily could have been a device to make a big feminist statement is portrayed in such a way where the gender is almost irrelevant, making her characterization more progressive as a result. And I'm still blown away by the arc that Nux goes through, where his unabashed love for sacrificing himself changes context as he spends time with his initial enemies, which gives the corpse-like being some humanity.
I mentioned how utterly mind-blowing the action is in my original review, with stuntwork and editing that shows how much the work people put into it paid off in spades, and I still stand by that statement. It's not just that it relies much more on practical effects than most modern action blockbusters, it's also that the big set pieces actually feel integral to the story. A brief line mentioning how all of the conflict is due to a "family squabble" single-handedly gives purpose to WHY the car chases are happening, therefore contextualizing them infinitely more than you would expect from other action films.
Couple all of that with fantastic production design, an intense score, and cinematography that gives actual meaning to the often poorly used "orange-and-teal" color palette, and you have an expertly crafted piece of art that is full of both style and substance. And given how much input studios have on recent action cinema, it's a monumental achievement that Miller's vision is fully intact in the final product. I honestly can't think of many other films about hope and redemption that is engrossing, stunning, and downright visceral as this.
For all those reasons and more, I can't help but agree with the general consensus: Mad Max: Fury Road is an undisputed masterpiece, and a modern action classic.
