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Recently, Paeter talked extensively about the Max Max movies in his Geek Week segment. And that got me thinking that I should re-visit these movies, re-watch the original trilogy, and finally get around to watching Fury Road, being the patriotic boy that I am.
Paeter talked about the difference in setting between the first and second movies. I originally saw Mad Max 2 in my early teens, and didn't see the first one until my late teens / early 20s. I remember watching it and asking my Dad "When is the apocalypse going to happen?" He answered "This is set after the apocalypse." But Mad Max 1 didn't meet any of my expectations of a post-apocalyptic world. There was still civilisation. There were towns. People lives in houses with running water and electricity. They went to work. They bought icecream at he shop.
Having re-watched the first one, and the opening of the second, here's my head-canon take on things.
Mad Max 1 is set very early in the post-apocalypse. I'd suggest that nuclear weapons have not fallen on Australia. But the federal government has fallen. People have rioted and anarchy is starting to spread. I imagine that it's worst in the big cities like Melbourne and Sydney. Max lives in a country town (probably in New South Wales). Similar kind of place to where my wife grew up. While there is no government running things anymore, the anarchy hasn't fully spread to the country yet. There is still the sembellance of a police force. The people at the power stations still show up for work and try to keep things running. But the gangs are starting to take over. Soon, people will stop showing up for work at the power station and the services we take for granted will disappear.
After the death of his wife and child, Max heads deep into the outback (which explains the difference in vegetation and scenery). Maybe by this point there have been nuclear weapons used in Australia.
At the very beginning of Mad Max 2, we see a sign for Mundi Mundi lookout. This gives us an exact location for this movie. And it's really deep in the outback - the middle of nowhere.
Think of Mad Max 1 taking place somewhere in the green. (maybe between Dubbo and Wagga Wagga). And then Mad Max 2 out in the yellow bit near Mundi Mundi Lookout.
Anyway, it's all starting to come together a bit better in my mind now.
Speaking of the first film, what really struck me was how Max and his wife were portrayed as so devoted and in love with each other. I just thought it was a beautiful portrayal of marriage. The affection was so tangible between those two. And there was a very nice character scene between them where Max admits he was never able to talk to his father about his feelings, but he doesn't want to repeat that mistake with his wife. He wants to tell her how much she means to him. Great stuff.
Looking forward to watching more.
Paeter talked about the difference in setting between the first and second movies. I originally saw Mad Max 2 in my early teens, and didn't see the first one until my late teens / early 20s. I remember watching it and asking my Dad "When is the apocalypse going to happen?" He answered "This is set after the apocalypse." But Mad Max 1 didn't meet any of my expectations of a post-apocalyptic world. There was still civilisation. There were towns. People lives in houses with running water and electricity. They went to work. They bought icecream at he shop.
Having re-watched the first one, and the opening of the second, here's my head-canon take on things.
Mad Max 1 is set very early in the post-apocalypse. I'd suggest that nuclear weapons have not fallen on Australia. But the federal government has fallen. People have rioted and anarchy is starting to spread. I imagine that it's worst in the big cities like Melbourne and Sydney. Max lives in a country town (probably in New South Wales). Similar kind of place to where my wife grew up. While there is no government running things anymore, the anarchy hasn't fully spread to the country yet. There is still the sembellance of a police force. The people at the power stations still show up for work and try to keep things running. But the gangs are starting to take over. Soon, people will stop showing up for work at the power station and the services we take for granted will disappear.
After the death of his wife and child, Max heads deep into the outback (which explains the difference in vegetation and scenery). Maybe by this point there have been nuclear weapons used in Australia.
At the very beginning of Mad Max 2, we see a sign for Mundi Mundi lookout. This gives us an exact location for this movie. And it's really deep in the outback - the middle of nowhere.
Think of Mad Max 1 taking place somewhere in the green. (maybe between Dubbo and Wagga Wagga). And then Mad Max 2 out in the yellow bit near Mundi Mundi Lookout.
Anyway, it's all starting to come together a bit better in my mind now.
Speaking of the first film, what really struck me was how Max and his wife were portrayed as so devoted and in love with each other. I just thought it was a beautiful portrayal of marriage. The affection was so tangible between those two. And there was a very nice character scene between them where Max admits he was never able to talk to his father about his feelings, but he doesn't want to repeat that mistake with his wife. He wants to tell her how much she means to him. Great stuff.
Looking forward to watching more.
