Mad Max (1979)
In a not-too-distant dystopian future, when man’s most precious resource — oil — has been depleted and the world plunged into war, famine and financial chaos, the last vestiges of the law in Australia attempt to restrain a vicious biker gang. Max (Mel Gibson), an officer with the Main Force Patrol, launches a personal vendetta against the gang when his wife (Joanne Samuel) and son are hunted down and murdered, leaving him with nothing but the instincts for survival and retribution.
Mad Max was reviewed previously here.
The Road Warrior (1981)
After avenging the death of his wife and young son at the hands of a vicious gang leader, Max (Mel Gibson) drives the post-apocalyptic highways of the Australian outback, fending off attacks from nomadic tribes that prey on outsiders. Falling into an encampment led by the relatively peaceful Pappagallo (Mike Preston), Max at first schemes to steal their oil, but soon becomes the group’s reluctant defender against the hulking Humungus (Kjell Nilsson) and his ruthless marauders.
While Mad Max was a momentous achievement on such a small budget, George Miller returns to this world eager to show off what he can do with more resources at his disposal. It is amusing to think that many American audience members sought out this film not knowing it was a sequel, but judging on its own it is easy to see why it became a worldwide success. The film is gigantic, loud and ambitious, but it never sacrifices intelligence for something more superficial and fleeting. Director George Miller proves once again why he should be considered one of the all-time greatest action directors, perfectly establishing this wasteland which has naturally evolved from the events of the first film. The world is in decay, and those who have been strong enough to survive are not the most reserved types. From virtually the moment you say go, the film rarely lets up in terms of its impressive action set pieces. What sets Miller apart from other storytellers is his ability to paint a picture through visuals rather than expository dialogue. Action is a form of storytelling in his hands, and he captivates with each “word.” Cap this off with some outrageous villains and a Mel Gibson still in our good graces and you have something truly special in the action genre. An undisputed classic.
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985)
In the third of the “Mad Max” movies, Max (Mel Gibson) drifts into an evil town ruled by Turner. There he becomes a gladiator and gets dumped in the desert where he is rescued by a band of feral orphans who have been looking for help for years. When several of them take his appearance as a sign and go off into the desert, he follows them back to the town.
If the Mad Max series continued to do the same thing with every entry, it would not have the staying power it does. The Road Warrior was a nice step from Mad Max, but Beyond Thunderdome was where this series needed to go next. The movie is still full of thrills, but it deepens what we know about the character of Max Rockatansky as well as the world he inhabits. Many fans of the franchise view this particular entry as lesser or too watered down compared to what we had gotten up until this point, but Miller is clearly crafting some of his most inventive moments when he enters the titular Thunderdome. This is a more considered film, showing what happens to Max when he no longer has gas to speed to where he wants to go and what might happen if society tried to reemerge from the ashes. One of the great things about Max is the way he always tries to shy away from the world to succumb to his grief, but he is needed in this world. This is part of what makes the divisive segments with the feral children more palatable – it deepens Max as a character. Throw in Tina Turner playing a role to eleven, and you have a classic action film that stands comfortably with the other entries in the series.
Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)
Haunted by his turbulent past, Mad Max (Hardy) believes the best way to survive is to wander alone. Nevertheless, he becomes swept up with a group fleeing across the Wasteland in a War Rig driven by an elite Imperator, Furiosa (Theron). They are escaping a Citadel tyrannized by the Immortan Joe (Keays-Byrne), from whom something irreplaceable has been taken. Enraged, the Warlord marshals all his gangs and pursues the rebels ruthlessly in the high-octane Road War that follows.
For in-depth thoughts on Mad Max: Fury Road, please see my colleague Tia Fabi’s previous take on it here.
Video Quality
First things first, all four films in the Mad Max Anthology are included with a single 4K UHD disc for each film without any accompanying Blu-Rays. The Road Warrior and Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome have been newly remastered from 4K scans of the original camera negative and serve as a significant step up from their previous Blu-Ray releases. The previous releases were acceptable in their day to various degrees, but Warner Bros. completely knocks the video portion of the set out of the park this time around with these new 4K UHD Blu-Rays. The 4K UHD disc for Mad Max should be nearly identical to the Kino Lorber release from last year in terms of quality, except that release featured Dolby Vision while this new disc does not. Finally, Mad Max: Fury Road recycles the same 4K UHD disc that has been on the market for the past five years that still packs a wallop. These new releases arrive with a stellar 2160p/HDR transfer that are sure to please longtime fans of the series. In an effort to not duplicate descriptions, I will largely attempt to group the films together while pointing out noticeable differences.
As the series progresses, the video quality gets even stronger, but the initial installment offers a surprisingly robust transfer given the lower quality of the cheap film stock. Things dramatically improve even further as Miller gets a larger budget to work with, allowing these films to wow at every turn. The filmic quality is preserved for all the movies in the set with natural grain that yields an eye-popping amount of detail. There does not appear to be even a hint of artificial sharpening with detailed textures coming through in all of the expected places such as costumes and the various post apocalyptic settings. If you ever go back to the Blu-rays, the film will look lifeless in comparison to the almost three dimensional production design on display. Skin tones also look nice and natural throughout with an impressive amount of detail on display on the performers faces from the fresh-faced Mel Gibson of Mad Max to Tom Hardy in Fury Road.
The HDR provides colors that pop off the screen with a wondrous vibrancy that make this set a real visual treat. This set brings a tear to your eyes from the moment you set eyes upon the yellow Interceptor. Every film in this set is filled with vibrant, desolate locations and vivid, earthy colors when it comes to the costumes and production design. Every time you see flames flowing freely, you will find yourself grinning as they leap off the screen. Black levels are incredibly deep without giving way to any unwanted crush. Likewise, the white levels hold together beautifully with not even an ounce of blooming at any point. There is no hint of obvious compression artifacts, banding or other digital anomalies to be found. This transfer allows a lot of texture and depth to shine through in the production design. Every film in this set is bound to impress in their 4K presentation.
Audio Quality
For thoughts on the audio for Mad Max, please see our previous review here. This Warner Bros. release includes the original Australian track in DTS-HD 5.1 and 2.0 Master Audio.
The remaining three films in the 4K UHD Blu-Ray set offer a slick upgrade in the form of a mostly impressive Dolby Atmos presentation that handles the action incredibly well. Fury Road is the same killer track that was released previously, so most thoughts will be focused on the new discs for The Road Warrior and Thunderdome. The tracks are not just impressive because they are loud or busy, what truly impresses is the nuance that is employed in the sound design. Directionality of sound is never an issue with this film series, although some fans may take issue with some of the added and changed sound effects in the new Atmos mix for The Road Warrior and Thunderdome. Again with these two films, the dialogue mostly comes through clearly but there are a few moments where vocals can sound a bit scratchy when they are reproduced.
The momentous scores fill the room in a way that never fails to stir something deep inside of you. The track offers expert level immersion into the various lands so that even the subtlest elements are represented. The Atmos presentation takes full advantage of the expanded channel allotment. Height channels greatly impress when it comes to rounding out the action. All of the sounds are balanced well during the action sequences from the explosions to the roar of the vehicles. The many set pieces and other smaller kinetic moments provide an incredible amount of activity in the low end. The concluding film of this set especially allows you to marvel at the sonic assault on display. The audio presentation will delight those wanting to show off their surround systems.
Unfortunately, this set is not without a serious issue that Warner Bros. is currently working to correct. On The Road Warrior disc, the company intended to include the original 2.0 and 5.1 audio tracks in addition to the Atmos track for audio purists who wanted to listen to the film as was originally conceived without the new sound effects. Instead of the original tracks, both of these mixes on the disc are a fold down of the Dolby Atmos track with the updated sounds. Warner has taken note of this issue quickly and has put in place a replacement program for those who wish to hear the original audio. Please see the official statement from the studio below:
Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has taken immediate steps to correct the unintentional audio file error on Mad Max 2 The Road Warrior and Mad Max Anthology 4K UHD products. The company has recalled all inventory currently in stores and the manufacturing of new discs has begun. Replacement discs will be made available for consumers who purchased the affected product. Due to concurrent supply chain delays, replacement product will become available in mid-January. For more information and to receive a replacement disc, please contact customer support at [email protected].
Special Features
Mad Max (1979)
There are no special features provided on this disc. It is to be expected that Kino Lorber would not want to share their supplements, but it is still a bummer for those who do not have that release that there is nothing here.
The Road Warrior
- Introduction By Leonard Maltin: A nearly four-minute vintage introduction from the film critic in which he discusses the release history of the franchise in the United States.
- Audio Commentary: Director George Miller and Cinematographer Dean Semler reminisce about the production of the feature as relative newcomers to the process, shooting on location, details about some of the performers, filming the stunts and more that make for an entertaining listen.
- Road War – The Making Of The Road Warrior: An excellent new 49-minute documentary in which many of the key creatives offer insights into the creation of this sequel including the story structure, the role of Mel Gibson, the location shooting, filming the action scenes, the wild production design and more. It is so heartening to hear about all of these people discussing the property with such passion after all of these years.
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome
There are no special features provided on this disc. This is pretty much in line with the original Blu-Ray release, but at least that had the Theatrical Trailer included.
Mad Max: Fury Road
There are no special features provided on this disc. This is a bit disappointing since the original release had some pretty great special features on the Blu-Ray disc. Including this as well as the Black-and-Chrome version of the film, even if only on Blu-Ray, would have made this set feel more complete.
Final Thoughts
The Mad Max Anthology contains some of the most thrilling action films that have ever been put to screen. From Mel Gibson to Tom Hardy, the character of Max is the stoic, reluctant hero you love to see fighting back. While certain audiences may disagree, there are no real low points when it comes to this franchise. Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has released a 4K UHD Blu-Ray set that features a (mostly) fantastic A/V presentation and a few great supplement features for only one of the films. There are ways this set could have been improved, but at least Warner Bros. is working to correct the audio issue on The Road Warrior. By and large, fans should be very pleased with this collection even if they might need to hold on to some older releases if they want all of the special features. Highly Recommended
Mad Max Anthology is currently available to purchase on 4K UHD Blu-Ray.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the 4K UHD Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this set free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
