Rotten Tomatoes Score: 98% It is one thing to create a worthwhile sequel almost thirty years after the last instalment, but it is another thing entirely to reboot a beloved franchise with a new leading man and somehow turn out what is very arguably that of a fully-fledged masterpiece. And that, essentially, is what George Miller - a man in his 70s, mind - has done with Mad Max: Fury Road, perhaps the best action movie ever made. And who'd have thought it to be possible in this day and age? Surely this remake had "dud" written all over it? Not so: by looking to the past and employing traditional, practical effects in favour of overblown CGI, hiring Tom Hardy in place of Mel Gibson, and loading his movie with a feminist subtext (brilliantly emphasised by Charlize Theron's badass Imperator Furiosa), Miller defied all expectations, crafting a motion picture that is far better than it has any right to be: a kinetic tone poem, equally artful and visceral. It rarely happens in Hollywood.
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
