Film Review: Mad Max (1979)

The film Mad Max was an Australian independent action film that was released in 1979. It quickly became so popular in the U.S. that it was almost immediately deemed a “classic”, spawning numerous sequels and even being brought back into the light of a modern audience by the release of the newest instalment in the series Mad Max: Fury Road starring Tom Hardy instead of Mel Gibson as Max.
The film Mad Max was an Australian independent action film that was released in 1979. It quickly became so popular in the U.S. that it was almost immediately deemed a “classic”, spawning numerous sequels and even being brought back into the light of a modern audience by the release of the newest instalment in the series Mad Max: Fury Road starring Tom Hardy instead of Mel Gibson as Max.

This movie was entertaining to watch, but not necessarily for the reasons the film had intended. The action scenes were very well done, with car chases, explosions, and the standard action fare. However, the acting style within this film is highly outdated and just appears cheesy in the eyes of a modern audience. Because of this kind of acting and dialogue, it was difficult to take the serious moments of the film seriously at all. If you add to this the long sections during the first half of the movie that have little to no action to speak of, it becomes more of a drawn-out comedy. That is until the last half hour which is pure, high-intensity action.