Blu-Ray Review: ‘Mad Max’ is Still Powerful, But Release Disappoints

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CHICAGO – It’s funny to me that there’s probably going to be an entire generation that sees Mel Gibson as a message-leaving lunatic and won’t fully understand how he became one of the biggest stars in the world. In the ’80s and most of the ’90s, he was at the top of the celebrity game and it all started with Max Rockatansky, the actor’s breakthrough role in “Mad Max,” now available on Blu-ray for the first time.

HollywoodChicago.com Blu-Ray Rating: 3.5/5.0
Television Rating: 3.5/5.0

A number of ’80s action classics are now available on Blu-ray but few play as well or look as good as George Miller’s excellent “Mad Max.” If the film hadn’t been followed by an even-better sequel in the amazing “The Road Warrior,” “Mad Max” would be more appreciated for being a truly landmark action film. If you do pick up and watch “Mad Max” on Blu-ray, keep reminding yourself that the film came out in 1980, a few years before action-heavy experiences like this were commonplace. “Mad Max” looks like it could still come out today because it influenced so many films that came after it, although it’s somewhat sad to think how much of it would be CGI were it remade in 2010.

Mad Max was released on Blu-ray on October 5th, 2010
Mad Max was released on Blu-ray on October 5th, 2010
Photo credit: Fox

Gibson stars as Officer Rockatansky, one of the few remaining good guys in a post-apocalyptic nightmare, fighting against a savage motorcycle gang. That’s about it. The film is mostly an excuse for amazing car chase sequences, explosions, and bad-ass Gibson behavior. What’s most notable about “Mad Max” is the incredible stunt work, an art that seems to be fading away as even car commercials use CGI instead of real drivers.

“Mad Max” looks amazing in HD and if you love the film then the Blu-ray release is worth picking up for that reason alone but the special features are undeniably lackluster. Most damagingly, neither Gibson nor Miller pop up in any way. The commentary features some of the talented tech team and they appear again in the featurette “Mad Max: The Film Phenomenon” but the extras feel incomplete without the two people most propelled into stardom by the film. It is nice to have all the previously-available special features included on the DVD version of the film packaged with the Blu-ray, but given the film’s 30th anniversary, it would have been appropriate for Mel or George to sit down and comment on the film that helped make them who they are today. Then again, maybe Gibson doesn’t particularly like who he is today and might not want to be associated with the word “Mad.”

Special Features:
o Filmmaker Commentary by Jon Dowding, David Eggby, Chris Murray & Tim Ridge
o Documentary: “Mad Max: The Film Phenomenon”
o New-To-The-U.S. Original Australian Language Track
o Two theatrical trailers
o TV Spots
o “Mel Gibson: The Birth Of A Star” Documentary
o Theatrical Trailers”Road Rants” Trivia & Fun Fact Track
o Photo Gallery

“Mad Max” stars Mel Gibson. It was written by James McCausland and George Miller and directed by Miller. It is rated R and runs 93 minutes. It was released on Blu-ray on October 5th, 2010.

HollywoodChicago.com content director Brian Tallerico

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

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