Plot: What’s it about?
With The Road Warrior, Australian director George Miller had proven the financial viability of his epic science fiction series and helped to make Mel Gibson a star. The film improved on the original Mad Max in nearly every way and helped to develop the post-apocalyptic gasoline starved universe that Beyond Thunderdome takes place in. Road Warrior is my favorite of the three films, but Beyond Thunderdome in many ways is the most inventive and the most fully realized.
The plot of the film revolves around our hero Max (Mel Gibson) from the previous films. In this film we find Max riding in an automobile carried by camels through a desert. After a daring theft of his property by a pilot and his toddler partner in crime, Max is forced to enter Barter Town to try to retrieve his property. Once in Barter Town, Max is not given a very kind welcome and soon comes face to face with the villainess Aunty (Tina Turner.) Aunty enlists Max to help her to take down Master Blaster, a midget with a symbiotic relationship to a gigantic human being. Master Blaster is in charge of keeping the city supplied with energy through his way of refining methane from pig shit. The only way that Max can defeat them is through battle in the Thunderdome, a cage equipped with bungee cords and weapons.
This is only the first third of the movie. The rest involves a tribe of children who live in the sand and their dependence on Max to lead them to the old cities that e sited before the war that destroyed the planet.
If the film sounds crazy, it absolutely is. Personally, I couldn’t have been happier with the film. It loses the grittiness of the first two films to appeal to a larger audience. I think that it feels the closest of the three films to a Spielberg or Donner production. It’s fun and safe for the kiddos.
Out of the three films this one has the most to offer visually. There is a lot going on at all times on screen. The Thunderdome scene was just plain fantastic and worth the price of admission alone. Obviously, a film starring Tina Turner is easily going to be the most eighties of the trilogy. I didn’t find this to be a bad thing, personally, and my five year old son loved this movie more than you can believe. If you are worried if it holds up, don’t be. It is still a blast.
Video: How’s it look?
Out of the trilogy of films this is probably the best looking transfer. Colors are crisp and fine detail is excellent. There is a lot to see on screen and it really pops in Blu-ray. Even though I prefer the way that the original Mad Max was shot, this film looks the best on Blu-ray. The scenes in the desert in particular look absolutely fantastic. Nothing bad to report here minus the occasional drop in quality due to limitations at the time (a few issues in darker shots.)
Audio: How’s it sound?
Mad Max:Beyond Thunderdome is incredibly bombastic for a film that was released thirty years ago. Surround activity is consistent and present. Kudos to Warner on the fantastic job they have done here. I found myself consistently impressed with the Dolby Digital-HD track. Engines sound good, the score sounds great, and dialogue is crisp. This is great stuff.
Supplements: What are the extras?
Unfortunately they did not provide any features except for the trailer. Bummer.
- Theatrical Trailer
The Bottom Line
The Road Warrior may be the best of the trilogy, but Beyond Thunderdome may is the most inventive. I highly recommend taking the journey presented here, and it is a journey that is for the most part kid friendly. Some fans may be disappointed to lose the grittiness, but the film somehow is still just plain great. I mean, how many films can introduce a character like Master Blaster? Go out there and get it!
