Some movie lovers (mostly guys) adore action films and will devour just about any that come along. Some other film viewers (such as my wife) have no use for action films whatsoever. In between those extremes are discriminating viewers who seek out only the best examples of action films, as they might also for other genre. I don't mean to imply that there's anything wrong with situating yourself in any of those categories, but I figure that my job as a reviewer has more to do with the third group than the other two, since the big-time action fans will already have seen this film (probably more than once) and those with no use for action films won't be reading this review. Road Warrior (1981) ("Mad Max 2" in much of the world) is about as pure an example of an action film as you'll come across. It's highly kinetic, nonstop, exhilarating excitement with very little in the way of other film "niceties" (such as plot, dialog, character development, or even sets). The action set pieces are as well shot and entertaining as any you'll come across. You really have to decide for yourself whether great action by itself is enough to hold your interest. Strangely enough, Road Warrior was the brainchild of a physician, turned filmmaker, Dr. George Miller.

Historical Background: Australian film director and producer George Miller came to the film industry by a circuitous route. He was born on March 3rd, 1945, in Chinchilla, Australia, not far from Brisbane. In 1970, he graduated with a degree in medicine from the University of South Wales. He practiced medicine for about 18 months in a hospital in Sydney. He had harbored a love for cinema from childhood, however, and had one of those life-altering experiences, when he enrolled in a film course at Melbourne University in 1971, offered by the Australian Union of Students. There he met Byron Kennedy and the pair became fast friends and creative partners in cinema. Their initial endeavors were a comedy short entitled Violence in the Cinema (1972) and a documentary entitled Devil in an Evening Dress (1973).

With those projects behind them, Miller and Kennedy became fascinated with the idea of making a film about an anarchic futuristic post-apocalyptic world. They scrounged together enough finances for a small-budget production, which resulted in Mad Max (1979). Despite the financial limitations, the film was a huge box-office success, in Australia and some other parts of the world. It featured electrifying action scenes and the debut of a new, young, American-born, Australian-raised acting talent, Mel Gibson. Two years later, Miller, Kennedy, and Gibson teamed up again for a sequel, which is the film being reviewed here, Mad Max 2 (1981), known as "Road Warrior" in the United States. This was one of those rare instances when a sequel proved to be a good deal better than the original, having more polish, more of a mythic quality, and some of the best action footage ever committed to celluloid.

The partnership between Miller and Kennedy ended abruptly and tragically in 1983, when Kennedy was killed in a helicopter crash. In that same year, Miller was invited by Stephen Spielberg to direct one of the episodes in the multi-segment film Twilight Zone – The Movie (1983). Miller's episode ("Nightmare at 2000 Feet") was arguably the best in the film. Then, in 1985, Miller plucked the golden goose one too many times when he returned to the Mad Max idea for Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, a rather substandard film, even in relation to the original Mad Max, much less the stellar Mad Max 2. Miller next returned to Hollywood to make The Witches of Eastwick (1987), which was a well-received sensual fantasy. After that, Miller turned increasingly to producing films directed by others and found success in that capacity with The Year My Voice Broke (1987), Dead Calm (1989), which introduced Nicole Kidman, and Flirting (1990). He also produced and co-scripted Babe (1995). He returned to directing in the nineties, for a couple of films, but with less success than he had previously experienced.

For the record, there's another unrelated Australian director named George Miller, born in 1943 in Scotland, who is best known for The Man from Snowy River (1982).

The Story: You don't need to have seen Mad Max (1979) to enjoy Road Warrior (1981), but the following brief background concerning the first film will add some context. In Mad Max, World War III has produced widespread devastation. The remnants of social order still exist, though its condition is terminal. Max Rockatansky is a policeman doing his two-cents worth to hold things together, until a malicious gang of bikers kills his entire family. Max, now a broken man, heads out into the badlands to take up the life of scavenging and anarchy. This is where Road Warrior begins.

Max (Mel Gibson), a loner clad in black leather, drives a souped-up V8 black Interceptor and his daily routine consists of scavenging for food, water, and, most importantly, fuel, which has become a precious and scarce commodity. He also has to outrun or outwit marauders, from time to time. Max's territory is the endless Australian outback, devoid of dwellings and nearly treeless, but still sporting its two-lane blacktop that stretches seemingly to eternity. There's nowhere in particular to go, so life has been reduced to a never-ending road trip. Only the hulking wrecks of abandoned vehicles dot the landscape. In the opening action sequence, Max encounters a pair of leather-clad, muscular gangsters, Wez (Vernon Wells) and his mute blond boyfriend, stalking a truck cab. Wes sports an orange-colored punk-style Mohawk haircut. When the truck overturns, Max beats the bikers to the gas port, collecting as much of the precious liquid as he can, while holding the bikers at bay with a shotgun.

When the bikers withdraw, Max investigates a gyro (small one-man helicopter) parked nearby, only to discover that it is being "guarded" by a poisonous snake. Suddenly, The Gyro Captain (Bruce Spence) springs up from a hiding place in the dirt and gets the drop on Max with a crossbow. The Gyro Captain is a rather odd fellow, nervous and quirky. He's after Max's gasoline, just as Max was after his. Max is quick witted, however, and has an Australian cattle dog (who may just be a tad quicker-witted that its master). Between the two of them, they've soon turned the tables of The Gyro Captain. The Gyro Captain pleads for his life and promises to show Max a place where there's plenty of fuel. Soon, Max has The Gyro Captain tied up in the back seat of his car, with the shotgun mounted pointing at the man's head. A string connects the trigger to a bone in the vigilant dog's mouth. You could say that the poor man is being held against his will at dog-point.

They reach an overlook from where the gasoline stash can be observed. Max locks The Gyro Captain in irons and gets out for a look-see. Far down on the plain below is a fortress, of sorts, with makeshift walls composed of spent vehicles and old tires. On the ramparts, there are flamethrowers and crossbow devices for defense. This junkyard fortress is under attack by a gang of marauders, driving a variety of vehicles, including motorcycles, jeeps, and refurbished dune buggies. The gang's leader is called Lord Humungus (Kjell Nilsson). He and most of the others are built like pro-wrestlers. The gang members are decked out in studded leather jackets or harnesses, wristbands, leggings, chainmail, and shiny helmets. Humungus himself wears a leather mask. They fight with a variety of weapons such as pikes, crossbows, and maces. These marauders are after the tank of gas inside the fortress. The attack is beaten back for the time being.

Later, scouts are sent out from the fortress, as Max continues to observe from the overlook. He sees two of the scouts, a man and a woman, captured by followers of Humungus. The man is clubbed and the woman raped. After most of the marauders have left, Max rushes down to the site and dispenses with the one remaining gang member. He's too late to save the woman, but the male scout, Nathan (David Downer), is still alive. Nathan and Max strike a deal. If Max will get the injured Nathan back to the fortress, he can have a tank-full of gasoline.

Max delivers Nathan to his comrades, but the man dies shortly thereafter. His comrades won't honor Nathan's agreement and, in fact, are suspicious enough of Max to handcuff him to a railing. The followers of Humungus come back for another go at the fort, but all Max can do is watch and learn. There's a little boy of about seven, The Feral Kid (Emil Minty), who wields a mean boomerang and is able to scurry, like a prairie dog, through tunnels too small for the adults. He kills the blond boyfriend of Wez using his boomerang. Another villain, The Toadie (Max Phipps), gets his fingers severed off one hand when he tries to catch the boomerang. Wez is furious and wants immediate revenge, but Lord Humungus has his eye of the prize – the tank of gasoline. He gives the people in the fortress an ultimatum and a day to decide: surrender or die. When the Feral Kid, who growls like a rabid dingo instead of speaking, returns to the fortress, Max takes the opportunity to make a friend of him, by giving him the mechanism from a music box.

The fortress leader, Pappagallo (Michael Preston), has a plan. He wants to migrate northward, to a place of peace and prosperity, with his followers and the tank of gasoline. There are two problems standing in the way: the marauders and the lack of a vehicle strong enough to pull the tank of gas. Max recognizes his opportunity. He offers to find and deliver a truck cab that can haul the tank in exchange for his freedom, his car, and all the fuel his car can carry. Under the cover of darkness, Max leaves on foot, hauling four tanks of diesel fuel for the truck. He comes across The Gyro Captain, still in the chains he left him in, and turns him into a pack animal. When they reach the truck, the gyrocopter is still there as well, so Max sets The Gyro Captain free, and they each head off in their respective vehicles. Max has to drive the truck through the midst of the marauders (in another great action sequence), but makes it to the fortress intact. A few of the marauders breach the ramparts in the process, but the inhabitants overcome those that penetrated, except for Wez, who escapes. The Gyro Captain, in the meantime, takes up with a girl in the community (Arkie Whiteley), and decides to throw his lot in with them.

Pappagallo, who was highly impressed with Max's handling of the truck rig, pressures Max to stay with the community and help with their effort to flee. Max is the quintessential loner, however. He's kept his part of the bargain and wants to leave with his reward, much like Han Solo in the original Star Trek. Max does leave and gives the marauders a good run, but ultimately his car is driven off the road and tumbles down an embankment. He's badly bruised but escapes with his life, thanks to his bobby-trapped gas tank and his dog, which loyally makes the ultimate sacrifice. Max tries crawling toward the junkyard fortress, for a while, but collapses. Later, however, The Gyro Captain comes to Max's rescue.

Back in the junkyard fortress, Max recovers (more or less) and is fixated on revenge. He'll drive the rig after all. The members of the community pack up their belongings and prepare for the big getaway. The idea is to send out the truck with the tank of gasoline in one direction to lure the marauders as far away as possible. Then, the vehicles with the members of the community will make their getaway, heading north. Sure enough, the marauders head after the tanker with all they've got. This leads to the final prolonged and dramatic action sequence, which lasts very nearly half the film's length. I'll leave the outcome for readers to discover for themselves.

Themes: Hoard gasoline, guns, and ammo now!

Production Values: The screenplay for Road Warrior was written by Terry Hayes, George Miller, and Brian Hannant. It exhibits no thematic pretensions or complexities of plot. It's a stripped down affair with precious little dialog, narrative exposition, or character development. There's just a bit of opening narration, provided, as it turns out, by an adult version of The Feral Kid, but otherwise the action and the images do most of the talking. The reason that Miller is able to make this work is that the script draws upon the long familiar characters and themes of American Westerns. The characters in Road Warrior are well beyond stereotypes and into that rarefied domain of Hollywood archetypes. Viewers immediately recognize Gibson's character as the Clint Eastwood-type solitary, lone gunslinger, brooding over some past pain, who refuses to care about anyone or anything, but who ultimately finds salvation in helping others. We recognize the junkyard inhabitants as the noble occupants of a Western fortress. Lest there be any doubt, they're all dressed in white. We recognize the followers of Humungus as the archetypal marauding redskins. Lest there be any doubt about their evil intentions, they're all dressed in black and decked out in bondage fetish gear. There are no women in the gang, so they're implicitly gay (explicitly, in Wez's case), which, in movie parlance, also means they're evil. Given this set of archetypal characters, we also essentially know the plot in advance. All of this ensures that the minimum amount of film time is spent on plot and dialog so that the maximum amount of time can be devoted to the visceral action sequences.

But, oh what action sequences they are! Vehicles exploding, vehicles being run over and crushed, people on fire, arrows penetrating torsos, vehicles falling down ledges, fire bombs and snakes dropped from a gyrocopter, people strung up on crosses, people tied to the front of cars, people leaping from one speeding vehicle to another, a woman raped, fingers severed by a boomerang, and the remnants of a fortress demolished in a massive explosion. Basically, Road Warrior is one long roller-coaster ride of stunts and thrills. The final vehicular chase scene is the best that I can remember seeing in any film. The visuals are very nicely enhanced by a raucous soundtrack provided by Brian May, a guitarist for the rock group called Queen.

Road Warrior didn't invent the post-apocalyptic action film but it refined it to such an extent that it has been imitated ever since. Before it, there were films like Planet of the Apes (1968), The Ultimate Warrior (1975), and Damnation Alley (1977), for example, but after it, the post-holocaust landscape became a new version of the wild, lawless, but romantic West. Villains decked out in combination punk and fetish costumes became de rigueur. Road Warrior was not precisely seminal, but it reinvigorated a genre, though few subsequent imitators have matched its eloquence.

Mel Gibson does a star turn and is in nearly every scene. He gives a very nice performance but, to be honest, it's not that difficult a kind of role. The performance doesn't rank with his great performance later that same year in Gallipoli. Bruce Spence was outstanding as The Gyro Captain, providing most of the film's comic relief. His part was actually more difficult than Gibson's, but got far less screen time. Spence's other work included The Cars That Ate Paris (1974) and Dark City (1998). Vernon Wells deserves kudos in the villainous role of Wez. Emil Minty was very effective as The Feral Kid.

Bottom-Line: The only extras on the Warner Brothers DVD are a theatrical trailer and production notes. There's a choice of English or French soundtracks and English or Spanish subtitles. The film's running time is 95 minutes. This is an extravagant, action-packed post-apocalyptic fantasy with action sequences that deserve the highest possible rating. Everything else in the way of cinematic qualities is pared down to the bare bones. If pure, astonishing, kinetic action is what fires your engine, this film will get you to the finish line.

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening
Suitability For Children: Not suitable for Children of any age