Mad Max (1979) (Collector's Edition)

[dorothyv]

Question: Am I the only person who much prefers Mad Max to The Road Warrior (and, of course, to Thunderdome)? The critical consensus seems to be that The Road Warrior is a much superior film to Mad Max. But, I've always liked Max Mad more.

[cakefactory]

Mad Max isn't bad by any stretch of the imagination, it's just Road Warrior was so wildly influential with the insane vehicle and costume design and it had a much more ambitious dystopian setting and it was such a gigantic step up in terms of action scenes. Mad Max on the other hand is like any number of those revenge action flicks from the 70s and 80s (think Death Wish or Billy Jack), just amped up with the slightly dystopian setting (nowhere near what would come in the sequels) and some great vehicular action. It's certainly one of the very best of the revenge thrillers, but I think Road Warrior is one of the very best and most ambitious action movies ever made and Mad Max is simply "very good."

[MechaGodzilla]

Originally Posted by dorothyv

Question: Am I the only person who much prefers Mad Max to The Road Warrior (and, of course, to Thunderdome)? The critical consensus seems to be that The Road Warrior is a much superior film to Mad Max. But, I've always liked Max Mad more.

Road Warrior is definitely the bigger favorite, but fans who prefer the first film aren't uncommon by any stretch. Now, people like me who prefer Beyond Thunderdome...

[Thomas Guycott]

Personally, I like Mad Max's pre-apocalypse setting quite a bit more than Road Warrior's post-apocalypse one.

[Sky_Captain]

I love the dialogue in Mad Max.

[Makarov]

Problem with Mad Max is, especially the first time watching it, that I was waiting the whole time for the big traumatic thing to happen to make him Mad Max. Once it does, it's only like 10 minutes of him being Mad Max. We get so much of the bad guys ripping it up and hardly any Max being bad ass. I like it more now after seeing it a few times, but I still think the story is kind of weak because the fun stuff is at the very end.

I love the police outfits, all the car chases, and some specific scenes in Mad Max, I just feel like it's a weak story somehow. I wouldn't introduce someone to the trilogy with that movie.

The Road Warrior on the other hand has him in Mad mode for the entire movie.

[Monterey Jack]

Originally Posted by HanaBi

Family Video has the pre-order for $12.99, and free shipping with code GUYFLICK. (Escape From NY is $17.99.)

Fantastic deal. Ordered!

[RodChester]

Originally Posted by HanaBi

Family Video has the pre-order for $12.99, and free shipping with code GUYFLICK. (Escape From NY is $17.99.)

Oh man that is a great deal. I've already got this pre ordered from Shout for $14.18 though with the poster so I think I'll keep that since I'd have to pay tax on a Family Video order.

[Retroj23]

Originally Posted by dorothyv

Question: Am I the only person who much prefers Mad Max to The Road Warrior (and, of course, to Thunderdome)? The critical consensus seems to be that The Road Warrior is a much superior film to Mad Max. But, I've always liked Max Mad more.

I used to have this argument with my bro. He compared Mad Max and The Road Warrior to The Terminator and T2 in that the first film of each series was very raw and low budget compared to their more extravagant sequels. But I have always loved Max Max and T1 much more because of the reasons my bro stated. He preferred The Road Warrior. To each their own I guess.

[Monterey Jack]

Originally Posted by RodChester

Oh man that is a great deal. I've already got this pre ordered from Shout for $14.18 though with the poster so I think I'll keep that since I'd have to pay tax on a Family Video order.

I wasn't charged tax on my order.

[RodChester]

Originally Posted by Monterey Jack

I wasn't charged tax on my order.

You must not have any physical stores in your state then. Where I am from they are all over.

[schlock]

Originally Posted by Retroj23

I used to have this argument with my bro. He compared Mad Max and The Road Warrior to The Terminator and T2 in that the first film of each series was very raw and low budget compared to their more extravagant sequels. But I have always loved Max Max and T1 much more because of the reasons my bro stated. He preferred The Road Warrior. To each their own I guess.

I saw the original Mad Max and the original The Terminator on their original release before the sequels came out, so I loved both of the original films already. But when Road Warrior and T2 were released, I was also floored by both of them as well, in a much grander scale kind of way. Bigger scale, bigger effects.

But after years and years of watching films where excess is the only goal, and CGI and special-effects trump over any story, I now seem to gravitate towards the earlier films. Although I thought it was great at the time, I don't think I can even watch T2 again; just like Aliens has lost its sheen. The stories and ideas were just more important and crucial in the earlier films. I still love Road Warrior, though, as it's all in-camera and real stunts - but at this point, I have more affection for Mad Max, low-budget warts and all.

[Blu-21]

I've always loved Mad Max and was always iffy about The Road Warrior even as a kid. Mad Max is just so much more entertaining with great colorful characters and memorable dialog, as well as impressive stunts for its budget and a simple but satisfying plot. The film feels more alive and just flows better with the tighter pacing.

[Geoff D]

Originally Posted by Retroj23

I used to have this argument with my bro. He compared Mad Max and The Road Warrior to The Terminator and T2 in that the first film of each series was very raw and low budget compared to their more extravagant sequels. But I have always loved Max Max and T1 much more because of the reasons my bro stated. He preferred The Road Warrior. To each their own I guess.

Interesting you should mention Mad Max and Terminator in the same breath, as I've always regarded their respective second movies as being big budget remakes of the first (Mad Max 2 even feels like a partial reboot thanks to the amping up of the post-apocalyptic setting). Mad Max 2 didn't have quite as much cash spent on it as T2 though, and without a computer-generated pixel in sight it's still got a crazy looney-tunes vibe to the action scenes. I do prefer MM2 to the first one but only just, as it's still a terrific film.

[dallywhitty]

I prefer Mad Max and The Terminator to their respective sequels for the same reason: they're grittier and more grounded. It's a pretty close call, though, as The Road Warrior and Judgement Day are both really good.

Originally Posted by Makarov

Problem with Mad Max is, especially the first time watching it, that I was waiting the whole time for the big traumatic thing to happen to make him Mad Max. Once it does, it's only like 10 minutes of him being Mad Max. We get so much of the bad guys ripping it up and hardly any Max being bad ass. I like it more now after seeing it a few times, but I still think the story is kind of weak because the fun stuff is at the very end.

Another reason I prefer the first film. The Road Warrior has Mel portraying the cold, largely-silent badass whereas he's more human in the original.

[StingingVelvet]

I get why people compare sequels so much but at the same time they're such different movies. Terminator is amazing for different reasons than why T2 is amazing. Same for Mad Max and Road Warrior.

The craziest is when people have fights about Alien and Aliens. They're pretty much completely different genres.

[Brian81]

Originally Posted by dallywhitty

I prefer Mad Max and The Terminator to their respective sequels for the same reason: they're grittier and more grounded. It's a pretty close call, though, as The Road Warrior and Judgement Day are both really good.


Another reason I prefer the first film. The Road Warrior has Mel portraying the cold, largely-silent badass whereas he's more human in the original.

I agree.

Mad Max pulls on the heartstrings. You see the events that make him "Mad Max". It's kind of like the original RoboCop.

[AintNoSin]

Originally Posted by Brian81

Mad Max pulls on the heartstrings. You see the events that make him "Mad Max". It's kind of like the original RoboCop.

The great thing about both movies is that you can see either one and enjoy it without the other, but they both enhance each other.

The Road Warrior puts and exclamation point on Mad Max, while Mad Max gives you a deeper understanding of the character in the second movie.

[Terrorfirmer]

does anyone know anything about this release? is it Scream Factory's or is mgm re-releasing the same day?

http://www.amazon.ca/Mad-35th-Annive...ad+max+blu+ray

[UniSol GR77]

Originally Posted by AintNoSin

The great thing about both movies is that you can see either one and enjoy it without the other, but they both enhance each other.

The Road Warrior puts and exclamation point on Mad Max, while Mad Max gives you a deeper understanding of the character in the second movie.

Finally a meaningful opinion.