I had no money for the first one, claimed director George Miller. I did the second one because I wanted, hopefully, to get it right this time. Miller didnt just get it right, he made a trend-setting, era-defining movie that, to this day, is the gold standard of post-apocalyptic action movies. Be honest: how many of you prefer it to Fury Road? Whether you call it Mad Max 2 or The Road Warrior, its everything an action movie should be a simple idea, cleverly executed, that allows its colourful cast of characters room to breathe so that when all the slam-bang stuff kicks off, its difficult for the viewer not to become involved in their plight. Unlike his fellow countryman Russell Mulcahy, Miller doesnt shoot the picture like a music video but in a style somewhere between exploitation movie and Bond film. Both violent and spectacular, it could be Mel Gibsons finest hour.
Ian Watson is the author of 'Midnight Movie Madness', a 600+ page guide to "bad" movies from 'Reefer Madness' to 'Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead.'
