Mad Max: Fury Road Review
Sep. 24th, 2015 11:11 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
iariaI loved it. So much so that I actually watched it three times! It's a movie that I would happily watch again.
It was a beautiful looking. The cinematography was stunning; so many gorgeous shots. The soundtrack was excellent. The editing phenomenal. The action was amazing. Sure, it was mostly an 1 1/2 hour car chase but it was a very fun and tense 1 1/2 hour car chase. Sometimes you just want to watch things blow up. And despite all the action all of the characters were wonderful. I loved all of them. Furiosa is an amazing badass, Max was great and Nux was adorable. All the wives felt like distinct people despite being secondary characters and I loved all of them too.
Characters
I loved everyone. I loved how much their success was about them working as a team.
• Furiosa – was amazing and badass. I love her. I loved her determination to save the wives and find home. I loved her absolute competence. A couple moments I loved: her holding onto Max after being stabbed in the side and doing it while still driving; her taking out the two war boys on the motorcycle with one shot and then later taking out the Bullet Farmer’s light with their last bullet; her repairing the war rig while Max drove; shielding Cheedo with her body and then the door when the Bullet Farmer started shooting.
• Furiosa/Max -- They were amazing and I love them. I am very glad that the movie didn’t go with a romance between the two of them but I also ship them like crazy. ”At least that way we might be able to, together, come across some kind of redemption.” – Max. ♥ … And they do. Max gets to succeed in saving them, Furiosa gets to take them to a green place. I love them as a team. I love how easily they become one. They work so well together. They basically spend the entire movie saving each other. I particularly loved Furiosa saving him from falling head first off the war rig and then later Max saving her from falling off Immortan Joe’s car. I loved the mirroring of Furiosa removing the gearshift knife from her side and then Max removing the bolt from his hand. Oh, and how when the rig got stuck Max clung to the tree and Furiosa pushed at the rig, neither probably doing all that much in the end, but neither of them willing to do nothing. Max saving Furiosa's life with some emergency medical care was great but it was his panic at her dying and his gentleness as he held her that really made that scene amazing.
• Max -- He was kind, thoughtful and really competent. I was amused by his snarkiness while tied to the front of Nux's car - from his preoccupation with his car in the middle of the battle to his "that's my head!". Oh, and even though he's hanging upside down he takes the time to look sad when his car explodes. He was a little grunty but it worked for him. His thumbs up to Angharad made me aww so much.
+ I loved Max bringing Nux a shoe to replace the one he took. That was really sweet especially considering at that point Nux had only just joined Team Freedom. Also him sending Nux back into the cab with a gentle head touch.
• Nux -- I loved him. He was adorable and sweet and I just wanted him to have all the hugs. He was actually really good at his job and minus him tripping on the war rig (heh) he was all around compatent. I loved his character arc and despite wishing he could survive with everyone else his death actually felt fitting. 1) He died free and with purpose. His character arc took him from brainwashed and desperate to die in glory for Immortan Joe to finding acceptance and friendship, self-worth and dying to save others. 2) His greatest wish was to drive a war rig and he got that. He died doing that. He also wanted to be Witnessed – to die for a purpose (he did) and to be remembered (he will be). 3) He was dying already and chose his death to help create a new and better world.
• The Wives -- I loved them. It surprises me how much actually. I thought they were great after the first watch but after the second I adore them. I was so pleased by how active they were in the story and that they didn’t just hang around in the background getting rescued. They have agency. They all have separate personalities. They fact that they’re not very knowledgeable about a lot of common post-apocalyptic things [like shooting, or fighting, or driving] makes sense because they were breeding/sex slaves kept in a vault but they don’t let it stop them from trying to help. They fight back and lend assistance whenever they can. I loved the fact that all of them were helping to get the war rig out of mud. All of them contribute to saving themselves in their own ways and each of them gets their own moments of awesome. I also love the ways they support each other. Oh, and the fact that they don't blame the war boys but instead consider them victims as well. Watching the second time I noticed a lot more little details about them I missed the first time.
- I loved the Cheedo/The Dag relationship. Anytime you looked in the background you’d inevitably find Cheedo/The Dag holding onto each other or very near each other. The Dag is clearly very protective of Cheedo and Cheedo clings to her in return. I loved them holding hands on Nux’s shoulder as they re-entered the canyon.
- Angharad and Capable were the best. They were obviously very close too and wherever Angharad is Capable will very likely to be right there behind her. When Angharad was shot Capable started to go to her before being stopped by Furiosa and as soon as she could she was by her side, it was Capable holding Max’s chain with her, Capable holding her as she leaned out of the rig, Capable by her side as they dealt with Nux the first time, Capable helping her to cut the harpoon chain and after Angharad fell it was Capable demanding that they to go back for her. If Angharad was the leader of the wives then Capable was her second. (Also I feel like if Capable had been by the door when Angharad began to fall she would have lunged forward and managed to pull her to safety.)
- In contrast Toast didn’t appear to have the same level of closeness with the other women that they shared with each other which makes me think that perhaps she was a recent addition to Joe’s harem (which makes sense considering her practical skills). I did like her comforting hand on Capable’s back after Angharad’s death.
+ I loved Angharad and even though she was in less than half an hour of the movie she was a very clear character and possibly my favourite. ”We are not things.” were her words. She was clearly the driving force of the wives and she was utterly determined to escape to the green place and be free. She called guns ‘anti-seed’ (“plant it and watch things die”) which I love. It was her decision that there be no unnecessary killing and her choice to let Nux live. My favourite moment [possibly of the movie even] was her using herself as a human shield to prevent Joe from shooting Furiosa. Her leaning out of the war rig (while Capable held her) and her utter ‘fuck you, just try it’ expression was amazing. I also find it amazing that despite the fact that she’s very likely never been in a war rig (or possibly any vehicle) she didn’t hesitate to open the doors and lean out. Twice! The second time she literally stepped out of the war rig to cut the harpoon chain with Capable, while holding on with only one hand. That is fucking badass. (I confess I would have been one of the ones sitting in the cab because no way.) Except the fact that she actually dies at the end of this sequence that whole scene was excellent.
Her death was the worst for me. I think at least one of the wives probably should have died but it still sucked. It was the combination of everything that made it the worst – my love for her, that Angharad was the one who was most determined to escape, that she was decisive during Rictus's attack and was only outside of the truck in order save them (which she did), the fact that she survived the rock collision by being agile and quick thinking, that little moment of bonding between her and Max just before (her smile and his answering thumbs up were adorable) and the fact that she only slipped because of the blood from where Max shot her. I like to imagine that after cutting out her dead son Joe lost all interest in her, that she wasn't as near death as appeared and that Miss Giddy managed to save her. And then they somehow managed to make their way to the Citedal. Possibly with a couple of the Vuvulini. Yup, that is totally what happened.
+ I love The Dag’s weirdness and sassiness. She’s very mouthy with an interesting way with words, very protective, and with a deep fierceness where I can see her demanding Furiosa teach her how to fight. I loved her faking being unable to cut Max's chain during the first fight and then throwing the bolt cutters to Furiosa during it.
+ Cheedo’s full name is Cheedo the Fragile and it’s certainly a very true moniker. She spends much of the movie hovering in the background uncertain and afraid. She’s the one who has a moment of doubt about their course of action and in her grief tries to turn herself in. But it means that when she makes a move at the end, by her own choice – of pretending to Rictus that she wants to return to Joe in order to get on Joe’s car so she can help Furiosa on - it’s all the more awesome.
+ Toast is more quiet but also the most knowledgeable of the wives. She knows how to match bullets to guns, holds a gun like she knows how to use it and knows enough about how to drive a car to keep Joe’s car from crashing at the end (from the passenger seat!) When Furiosa gets on board it’s only Joe pointing a gun in her face that prevents her from helping and it’s her lunging forward and grabbing Joe’s arm that enables Furiosa to hook her robot arm in his face mask and kill him. I love that she got to physically help kill him.
+ I loved Capable's gentleness. I like how she's always there helping as best she can. I liked her volunteering to be look out (I also felt like she needed to get away to deal with Angharad's death which made me sad for her.) Her relationships with Angharad and Nux were wonderful. I liked her going after Cheedo and her ushering her back to the rig with an arm around her shoulders. I liked everyone sleeping one her. I feel like after Angharad's death she became the centre support for the other wives.
+ Capable/Nux were really endearing. I love how quickly they bond. I love that her reaction to seeing Nux again wasn't fear or anger but a gentle curiosity and that she ended up not only convincing him to help them but also helped him. His quick kiss to her cheek before taking the chain to Max was adorable. Them curled up together in the back of the rig was adorable. I really loved their goodbye - I loved their long looks at each other, Capable's hesitance to leave him, Nux slowing down to prevent Rictus from getting her, and Capable Witnessing his death.
• The Keeper of Seeds was my favourite of the Vuvalinis. I loved her telling The Dag that she killed everyone with a headshot and then while dying from a chainsaw to the neck (and already fading) she takes out a war boy to save Furiosa by shoving a bullet into his eye. (Headshot to the end!) I loved how enthusiastic she was about Max's plan. I also loved her relationship with The Dag so much. They had such a short time together but clearly made a connection. For the Keeper: her showing The Dag her seed collection, her reminding The Dag that she could have a girl, her smile when The Dag began praying. On the other side, The Dag giving the Keeper her bag, her holding the Keeper’s hand as she died and her goodbye look at her before abandoning the war rig. The Keeper’s death was so sad! She needed to survive so she could mentor The Dag and watch her precious seeds grow and finally become trees and plants and for there to be plenty again!
• I loved the Vuvalinis. We didn't get to see enough of them but what we did see was awesome. I loved their reactions to seeing the wives - did it feel like hope to them?
Other
• The Max vs Furiosa [vs Nux vs Wives] scene was amazing. It was so well choreographed. I loved how well matched Furisoa and Max were, I loved that the wives were right in there helping Furiosa when they could [pulling the chain, jumping Nux], I loved the way Nux was used in the fight [him holding out the clip was great]. I loved it all.
• This really was a stunning looking movie. My favourite was the long shot of them driving towards the sandstorm - gorgeous. My second favourite was Angharad using her body to shield Furisoa. [That one is going to stay with me.] Some of the others that I loved: the inside of the storm full of tornadoes and lightning; swamp stilt-people as the war rig drives past; Furiosa in the desert screaming out her grief; the long shot of Nux running in front of the war rig, the scene shrouded in blue; Max rising from the sand after the storm.
• Max washing the blood (of the men he just killed) off his face with ‘mother’s milk’ seems pretty on the nose. I think that’s basically the entire theme of the movie summed up in one 5 second scene.
• I loved how we get two separate decisions – Max shooting Angharad and Angharad/the wives letting Nux live – and the ways the consequences of them play out once again showing the overarching theme of the movie. Max shot Angharad, acting with violence and no care, and it ends up leading to her death (and after he’d started to get attached for added ouch). Angharad/the wives spared Nux life and Capable later treats him like a person and trusts him and he proves invaluable to saving them all. Max (in that moment at least) was the old/current order of violence and selfishness which only leads to death. Contrasting the Wives are the potential for a good future showing how compassion and teamwork leads to success.
• I love that the film isn't male-gazey at all. Even though there are five model-actresses running around in skimpy clothes they don't feel sexualised. There's one scene where they're washing up and Max stares at them face full of shock and want - and then it turns out he's licking his lips over the water. Valkyrie is naked in one scene and even that wasn't. I loved it. Also Furiosa isn't sexualised either and in her fight with Max she isn't treated differently because she's female. It's the exact same fight we'd get if Furiosa was male.
• I like that when Max stops everyone and offers up his plan for a new green place everyone gets involved in discussing whether to do it or not.
• I loved the flame-throwing guitar player and drummers. Joe bringing along his own soundtrack is hilarious and just so over the top it becomes awesome.
• The Polecats were really cool.
• I like that it's the war pups who let Furiosa and the others up in the end.
• A small thing but I like that the death of the Green Place, which was a matriarchal society, wasn’t because someone like Immortan Joe came in and destroyed them but rather because of environmental reasons (though granted that cause goes back to the destruction of the world.)
• Who the hell were the stilt people? I want to know more about them.
• I like that Furiosa was completely accepted as an Imperator. The fact that she’s female (the only one?) has no bearing on anything. I liked that her war boy team seemed pretty loyal to her. The Ace called her 'boss' and trusted her all the way until the end. Even when it's obvious that she did something to make Immortan Joe angry he doesn't try to immediately kill her but instead demands several times to know what she did before grabbing her. I'm very curious about their relationship.
• I liked the Nux/Slit friendship. They seemed to genuinely like each other. I also rather liked Slit himself. The scene with him holding aloft Max's boot going "pick me, pick me" amused me.
Issues
• My biggest issue was with what they did with Valkyrie, or rather what they didn’t do. Considering that she was the only named Vuvalinis (well, other than Keeper of Seeds) I was expecting her to have more of a role in the escape so it was surprising how quickly she died. I liked that she died protecting one of her own and trying to take out Joe but… I would have liked more. I wish she’d died in a way that more actively helped the others. So instead of being run over by The People Eater she jumps out of the way, gets on a car/bike, taking it over and gets back into the main fight, perhaps even getting onto the war rig itself. I would have been okay with her dying on the war rig as she defended it.
• It would have been nice if the wives had gotten a little more focus. A couple more scenes with them interacting with each other and with the others [Furiosa/the wives, Max/Angharad, Cheedo/The Dag and Angharad/Capable, Keeper of Seeds/Dag, Furiosa/Toast, Toast/the other wives, Capable/Nux]
• They threw in one really obvious CGI scene when Nux crashed the tanker and everything goes flying towards the camera. It didn’t fit with the rest of the movie.
It was a beautiful looking. The cinematography was stunning; so many gorgeous shots. The soundtrack was excellent. The editing phenomenal. The action was amazing. Sure, it was mostly an 1 1/2 hour car chase but it was a very fun and tense 1 1/2 hour car chase. Sometimes you just want to watch things blow up. And despite all the action all of the characters were wonderful. I loved all of them. Furiosa is an amazing badass, Max was great and Nux was adorable. All the wives felt like distinct people despite being secondary characters and I loved all of them too.
Characters
I loved everyone. I loved how much their success was about them working as a team.
• Furiosa – was amazing and badass. I love her. I loved her determination to save the wives and find home. I loved her absolute competence. A couple moments I loved: her holding onto Max after being stabbed in the side and doing it while still driving; her taking out the two war boys on the motorcycle with one shot and then later taking out the Bullet Farmer’s light with their last bullet; her repairing the war rig while Max drove; shielding Cheedo with her body and then the door when the Bullet Farmer started shooting.
• Furiosa/Max -- They were amazing and I love them. I am very glad that the movie didn’t go with a romance between the two of them but I also ship them like crazy. ”At least that way we might be able to, together, come across some kind of redemption.” – Max. ♥ … And they do. Max gets to succeed in saving them, Furiosa gets to take them to a green place. I love them as a team. I love how easily they become one. They work so well together. They basically spend the entire movie saving each other. I particularly loved Furiosa saving him from falling head first off the war rig and then later Max saving her from falling off Immortan Joe’s car. I loved the mirroring of Furiosa removing the gearshift knife from her side and then Max removing the bolt from his hand. Oh, and how when the rig got stuck Max clung to the tree and Furiosa pushed at the rig, neither probably doing all that much in the end, but neither of them willing to do nothing. Max saving Furiosa's life with some emergency medical care was great but it was his panic at her dying and his gentleness as he held her that really made that scene amazing.
• Max -- He was kind, thoughtful and really competent. I was amused by his snarkiness while tied to the front of Nux's car - from his preoccupation with his car in the middle of the battle to his "that's my head!". Oh, and even though he's hanging upside down he takes the time to look sad when his car explodes. He was a little grunty but it worked for him. His thumbs up to Angharad made me aww so much.
+ I loved Max bringing Nux a shoe to replace the one he took. That was really sweet especially considering at that point Nux had only just joined Team Freedom. Also him sending Nux back into the cab with a gentle head touch.
• Nux -- I loved him. He was adorable and sweet and I just wanted him to have all the hugs. He was actually really good at his job and minus him tripping on the war rig (heh) he was all around compatent. I loved his character arc and despite wishing he could survive with everyone else his death actually felt fitting. 1) He died free and with purpose. His character arc took him from brainwashed and desperate to die in glory for Immortan Joe to finding acceptance and friendship, self-worth and dying to save others. 2) His greatest wish was to drive a war rig and he got that. He died doing that. He also wanted to be Witnessed – to die for a purpose (he did) and to be remembered (he will be). 3) He was dying already and chose his death to help create a new and better world.
• The Wives -- I loved them. It surprises me how much actually. I thought they were great after the first watch but after the second I adore them. I was so pleased by how active they were in the story and that they didn’t just hang around in the background getting rescued. They have agency. They all have separate personalities. They fact that they’re not very knowledgeable about a lot of common post-apocalyptic things [like shooting, or fighting, or driving] makes sense because they were breeding/sex slaves kept in a vault but they don’t let it stop them from trying to help. They fight back and lend assistance whenever they can. I loved the fact that all of them were helping to get the war rig out of mud. All of them contribute to saving themselves in their own ways and each of them gets their own moments of awesome. I also love the ways they support each other. Oh, and the fact that they don't blame the war boys but instead consider them victims as well. Watching the second time I noticed a lot more little details about them I missed the first time.
- I loved the Cheedo/The Dag relationship. Anytime you looked in the background you’d inevitably find Cheedo/The Dag holding onto each other or very near each other. The Dag is clearly very protective of Cheedo and Cheedo clings to her in return. I loved them holding hands on Nux’s shoulder as they re-entered the canyon.
- Angharad and Capable were the best. They were obviously very close too and wherever Angharad is Capable will very likely to be right there behind her. When Angharad was shot Capable started to go to her before being stopped by Furiosa and as soon as she could she was by her side, it was Capable holding Max’s chain with her, Capable holding her as she leaned out of the rig, Capable by her side as they dealt with Nux the first time, Capable helping her to cut the harpoon chain and after Angharad fell it was Capable demanding that they to go back for her. If Angharad was the leader of the wives then Capable was her second. (Also I feel like if Capable had been by the door when Angharad began to fall she would have lunged forward and managed to pull her to safety.)
- In contrast Toast didn’t appear to have the same level of closeness with the other women that they shared with each other which makes me think that perhaps she was a recent addition to Joe’s harem (which makes sense considering her practical skills). I did like her comforting hand on Capable’s back after Angharad’s death.
+ I loved Angharad and even though she was in less than half an hour of the movie she was a very clear character and possibly my favourite. ”We are not things.” were her words. She was clearly the driving force of the wives and she was utterly determined to escape to the green place and be free. She called guns ‘anti-seed’ (“plant it and watch things die”) which I love. It was her decision that there be no unnecessary killing and her choice to let Nux live. My favourite moment [possibly of the movie even] was her using herself as a human shield to prevent Joe from shooting Furiosa. Her leaning out of the war rig (while Capable held her) and her utter ‘fuck you, just try it’ expression was amazing. I also find it amazing that despite the fact that she’s very likely never been in a war rig (or possibly any vehicle) she didn’t hesitate to open the doors and lean out. Twice! The second time she literally stepped out of the war rig to cut the harpoon chain with Capable, while holding on with only one hand. That is fucking badass. (I confess I would have been one of the ones sitting in the cab because no way.) Except the fact that she actually dies at the end of this sequence that whole scene was excellent.
Her death was the worst for me. I think at least one of the wives probably should have died but it still sucked. It was the combination of everything that made it the worst – my love for her, that Angharad was the one who was most determined to escape, that she was decisive during Rictus's attack and was only outside of the truck in order save them (which she did), the fact that she survived the rock collision by being agile and quick thinking, that little moment of bonding between her and Max just before (her smile and his answering thumbs up were adorable) and the fact that she only slipped because of the blood from where Max shot her. I like to imagine that after cutting out her dead son Joe lost all interest in her, that she wasn't as near death as appeared and that Miss Giddy managed to save her. And then they somehow managed to make their way to the Citedal. Possibly with a couple of the Vuvulini. Yup, that is totally what happened.
+ I love The Dag’s weirdness and sassiness. She’s very mouthy with an interesting way with words, very protective, and with a deep fierceness where I can see her demanding Furiosa teach her how to fight. I loved her faking being unable to cut Max's chain during the first fight and then throwing the bolt cutters to Furiosa during it.
+ Cheedo’s full name is Cheedo the Fragile and it’s certainly a very true moniker. She spends much of the movie hovering in the background uncertain and afraid. She’s the one who has a moment of doubt about their course of action and in her grief tries to turn herself in. But it means that when she makes a move at the end, by her own choice – of pretending to Rictus that she wants to return to Joe in order to get on Joe’s car so she can help Furiosa on - it’s all the more awesome.
+ Toast is more quiet but also the most knowledgeable of the wives. She knows how to match bullets to guns, holds a gun like she knows how to use it and knows enough about how to drive a car to keep Joe’s car from crashing at the end (from the passenger seat!) When Furiosa gets on board it’s only Joe pointing a gun in her face that prevents her from helping and it’s her lunging forward and grabbing Joe’s arm that enables Furiosa to hook her robot arm in his face mask and kill him. I love that she got to physically help kill him.
+ I loved Capable's gentleness. I like how she's always there helping as best she can. I liked her volunteering to be look out (I also felt like she needed to get away to deal with Angharad's death which made me sad for her.) Her relationships with Angharad and Nux were wonderful. I liked her going after Cheedo and her ushering her back to the rig with an arm around her shoulders. I liked everyone sleeping one her. I feel like after Angharad's death she became the centre support for the other wives.
+ Capable/Nux were really endearing. I love how quickly they bond. I love that her reaction to seeing Nux again wasn't fear or anger but a gentle curiosity and that she ended up not only convincing him to help them but also helped him. His quick kiss to her cheek before taking the chain to Max was adorable. Them curled up together in the back of the rig was adorable. I really loved their goodbye - I loved their long looks at each other, Capable's hesitance to leave him, Nux slowing down to prevent Rictus from getting her, and Capable Witnessing his death.
• The Keeper of Seeds was my favourite of the Vuvalinis. I loved her telling The Dag that she killed everyone with a headshot and then while dying from a chainsaw to the neck (and already fading) she takes out a war boy to save Furiosa by shoving a bullet into his eye. (Headshot to the end!) I loved how enthusiastic she was about Max's plan. I also loved her relationship with The Dag so much. They had such a short time together but clearly made a connection. For the Keeper: her showing The Dag her seed collection, her reminding The Dag that she could have a girl, her smile when The Dag began praying. On the other side, The Dag giving the Keeper her bag, her holding the Keeper’s hand as she died and her goodbye look at her before abandoning the war rig. The Keeper’s death was so sad! She needed to survive so she could mentor The Dag and watch her precious seeds grow and finally become trees and plants and for there to be plenty again!
• I loved the Vuvalinis. We didn't get to see enough of them but what we did see was awesome. I loved their reactions to seeing the wives - did it feel like hope to them?
Other
• The Max vs Furiosa [vs Nux vs Wives] scene was amazing. It was so well choreographed. I loved how well matched Furisoa and Max were, I loved that the wives were right in there helping Furiosa when they could [pulling the chain, jumping Nux], I loved the way Nux was used in the fight [him holding out the clip was great]. I loved it all.
• This really was a stunning looking movie. My favourite was the long shot of them driving towards the sandstorm - gorgeous. My second favourite was Angharad using her body to shield Furisoa. [That one is going to stay with me.] Some of the others that I loved: the inside of the storm full of tornadoes and lightning; swamp stilt-people as the war rig drives past; Furiosa in the desert screaming out her grief; the long shot of Nux running in front of the war rig, the scene shrouded in blue; Max rising from the sand after the storm.
• Max washing the blood (of the men he just killed) off his face with ‘mother’s milk’ seems pretty on the nose. I think that’s basically the entire theme of the movie summed up in one 5 second scene.
• I loved how we get two separate decisions – Max shooting Angharad and Angharad/the wives letting Nux live – and the ways the consequences of them play out once again showing the overarching theme of the movie. Max shot Angharad, acting with violence and no care, and it ends up leading to her death (and after he’d started to get attached for added ouch). Angharad/the wives spared Nux life and Capable later treats him like a person and trusts him and he proves invaluable to saving them all. Max (in that moment at least) was the old/current order of violence and selfishness which only leads to death. Contrasting the Wives are the potential for a good future showing how compassion and teamwork leads to success.
• I love that the film isn't male-gazey at all. Even though there are five model-actresses running around in skimpy clothes they don't feel sexualised. There's one scene where they're washing up and Max stares at them face full of shock and want - and then it turns out he's licking his lips over the water. Valkyrie is naked in one scene and even that wasn't. I loved it. Also Furiosa isn't sexualised either and in her fight with Max she isn't treated differently because she's female. It's the exact same fight we'd get if Furiosa was male.
• I like that when Max stops everyone and offers up his plan for a new green place everyone gets involved in discussing whether to do it or not.
• I loved the flame-throwing guitar player and drummers. Joe bringing along his own soundtrack is hilarious and just so over the top it becomes awesome.
• The Polecats were really cool.
• I like that it's the war pups who let Furiosa and the others up in the end.
• A small thing but I like that the death of the Green Place, which was a matriarchal society, wasn’t because someone like Immortan Joe came in and destroyed them but rather because of environmental reasons (though granted that cause goes back to the destruction of the world.)
• Who the hell were the stilt people? I want to know more about them.
• I like that Furiosa was completely accepted as an Imperator. The fact that she’s female (the only one?) has no bearing on anything. I liked that her war boy team seemed pretty loyal to her. The Ace called her 'boss' and trusted her all the way until the end. Even when it's obvious that she did something to make Immortan Joe angry he doesn't try to immediately kill her but instead demands several times to know what she did before grabbing her. I'm very curious about their relationship.
• I liked the Nux/Slit friendship. They seemed to genuinely like each other. I also rather liked Slit himself. The scene with him holding aloft Max's boot going "pick me, pick me" amused me.
Issues
• My biggest issue was with what they did with Valkyrie, or rather what they didn’t do. Considering that she was the only named Vuvalinis (well, other than Keeper of Seeds) I was expecting her to have more of a role in the escape so it was surprising how quickly she died. I liked that she died protecting one of her own and trying to take out Joe but… I would have liked more. I wish she’d died in a way that more actively helped the others. So instead of being run over by The People Eater she jumps out of the way, gets on a car/bike, taking it over and gets back into the main fight, perhaps even getting onto the war rig itself. I would have been okay with her dying on the war rig as she defended it.
• It would have been nice if the wives had gotten a little more focus. A couple more scenes with them interacting with each other and with the others [Furiosa/the wives, Max/Angharad, Cheedo/The Dag and Angharad/Capable, Keeper of Seeds/Dag, Furiosa/Toast, Toast/the other wives, Capable/Nux]
• They threw in one really obvious CGI scene when Nux crashed the tanker and everything goes flying towards the camera. It didn’t fit with the rest of the movie.
