As far as reboots go, Mad Max: Fury Road could have gone terribly wrong. The franchise still has an extremely loyal following, but in today's age of CG everything, a movie focused around car chases, explosions and post-apocalyptic scenery could have ended up looking like one giant green screen test.
Fans can be brutal - just look at the Star Wars prequels - and Fury Road could have easily gone in the same direction.
Thankfully, that's just not the case. Mad Max: Fury Road looks fantastic, and it feels like the team behind the film actually cared about keeping the feel of the universe and the characters intact - which, sadly enough, is something not often seen in the world of reboots.
It sets Fury Road apart from the majority of other reboots, and yet, it looks like it'll succeed on its own merits.
That being said, a movie can be extremely pretty and have amazing trailers, only to completely tank everything else - so, is Mad Max: Fury Road just a parade of explosions and car chases, or is it a story worth watching?
According to early reviews, it's a mixture of both - and all the better for it.
"Let's make one thing perfectly clear: Mad Max: Fury Road is a triumph on every level. It may well be the best film of 2015. Granted, it's still early in the year, but to have a gauntlet thrown down like this in May makes me excited not only to watch Fury Road again, but for the prospect that any film could come close to matching it."
That's from the Nerdist's Dan Casey, and it's a sentiment shared by many other reviewers. It's not often that a big-budget summer blockbuster like Mad Max receives such unanimous praise, but that's exactly what's happening...but why?
Then again, action doesn't work if it doesn't look good. Thankfully, Mad Max is gorgeous, as IndieWire's Eric Kohn can testify:
"Nevertheless, Miller keeps the action fluid from scene to scene, offering a bracing alternative to countless murky CGI spectacles that dominate Hollywood studio product today. In "Fury Road," special effects come secondary to the visual marvels of the color palette meted out by cinematographer John Seale at every turn...Nighttime scenes are filled with silhouettes against a landscape baked in blue. Orange-red flare guns pierce the barren sky."
Going by early reviews, Mad Max: Fury Road has managed to do what so many other reboots don't: successfully revitalize a franchise in a way that pleases older fans, works as an entry point for newcomers and pushes the envelope instead of simply retreading old ground. It's an action movie at its core, and anyone who doesn't like watching cars and bandits explode (why wouldn't you?) probably won't find much here.
However, for action movie fans - well, it looks like Mad Max: Fury Road is in a league all its own. Once again, from TimeOut's David Ehrlich:
"...Max is an enduring hero: He always knows when to drive off into the sunset. This time, he leaves a generation of blockbuster cinema choking on his dust."
Mad Max: Fury Road hits theaters on May 15.
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