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Can't we just get beyond Thunderdome?
But anyway, the Lost Tribe are basically Ewoks. Let's be honest.
But anyway, the Lost Tribe are basically Ewoks. Let's be honest.
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Brilliant movie. Loved it. The two leads are both British & both played Americans very convincingly. Shades of Thelma & Louise.
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Eh, I think both Thunderdome & Fury Road are more or less tied when it comes to their world-building, as I found their portrayal of societies learning to exist in a post-apocalyptic world pretty fascinating. But, to bring this back to Max's arc, if we're comparing the two films in that regard, then Fury Road is easily the winner for me; I mean, if you look back at him throughout the series, Max goes very naturally from being a loving father and husband to anti-social survivalist loner through a series of tragic events in the first film, then in the next film, he (sort of) rediscovers his humanity by helping out some other people (even though he didn't have much of a choice in the matter), so by the time Thunderdome came around, his character couldn't do much more developing, as his redemption arc in the original trilogy was already pretty much finished by the end of the 2nd film, which is part of the reason why Thunderdome is the weakest MM, and just "the next one" in the series as far as I'm concerned. Compared to that, Fury Road proved to be the missing link, and the one that filled in Max's blanks from the previous films, both by resetting Max back to being similar to the way he was at the beginning of Warrior, while also showcasing his redemption as a human better than either that entry or Thunderdome managed to do, IMO.
WARNING: "so spoilery" spoilers below
consciously decides to be the hero and make the sacrifice for these children and in doing so, becomes both a father and a legend to them. It's beyond what he did in RW when he's left simply realizing he's been used as the tanker was full of sand. It really feels like the end of a trilogy as Max has become a willing hero and made a family, even if he doesn't get to be part of it. If anything, Fury Road maybe takes a step back from that. Though perhaps he's able to be a reluctant hero to the women in Immortan Joe's harem because he's had a taste of being the hero in Thunderdome.
To me, it's a continuous arc until you get to Fury Road when, maybe, he passes the mantle on to Furiosa?
And let me be clear, I am furious with Miller over Furiosa going forward.
As is your right.
The Star Wars franchise not turning into an allegory for the long term consequences of foreign policy seems like a huge missed opportunity.
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Well, I disagree, actually I think the plot of Thunderdome is a natural continuation of his re-discovery of his humanity, where he
WARNING: "so spoilery" spoilers below
consciously decides to be the hero and make the sacrifice for these children and in doing so, becomes both a father and a legend to them. It's beyond what he did in RW when he's left simply realizing he's been used as the tanker was full of sand. It really feels like the end of a trilogy as Max has become a willing hero and made a family, even if he doesn't get to be part of it. If anything, Fury Road maybe takes a step back from that. Though perhaps he's able to be a reluctant hero to the women in Immortan Joe's harem because he's had a taste of being the hero in Thunderdome.
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The Ewoks are basically furry little mujaheddin, and some of the best fighters in the galaxy.
The Star Wars franchise not turning into an allegory for the long term consequences of foreign policy seems like a huge missed opportunity.
The Star Wars franchise not turning into an allegory for the long term consequences of foreign policy seems like a huge missed opportunity.
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The softening and pg-13ification of Mad Max with Beyond Thunderdome is unforgivable. Everything about the movie is softened with lame kiddy ****. And not just the plot with the lame kids. Even the titular death match of Thunderdome is hampered by the campy presence of bungee cord jumps and bounces that look out of a slapstick comedy.
The world building is not of particular importance or interest as it is predicated on a goofy conflict between unimposing villains (Tina Turner vs. Master Blaster) over gas. Gas as McGuffin is significantly less dramatically weighty than escaping sex slaves (which was handled in the most tasteful way I've ever seen) and it was done better in TRW.
Like Robocop 3, it feels like execs were banking on the popularity among children and a growing toy market w/cartoon adaptations to carry them to greater economic success (which RC attempted and utterly failed at, while it seems an unresolved issue with Mad Max). Like Robocop, smoothing out the rough and brutal edges of the franchise crushes the franchise and diminishes it fully.
Fury Road not only acts as course correction, but it seems to understand what worked conceptually about BT and make it work for the franchise through grit, visuals and bravura.
The world building is not of particular importance or interest as it is predicated on a goofy conflict between unimposing villains (Tina Turner vs. Master Blaster) over gas. Gas as McGuffin is significantly less dramatically weighty than escaping sex slaves (which was handled in the most tasteful way I've ever seen) and it was done better in TRW.
Like Robocop 3, it feels like execs were banking on the popularity among children and a growing toy market w/cartoon adaptations to carry them to greater economic success (which RC attempted and utterly failed at, while it seems an unresolved issue with Mad Max). Like Robocop, smoothing out the rough and brutal edges of the franchise crushes the franchise and diminishes it fully.
Fury Road not only acts as course correction, but it seems to understand what worked conceptually about BT and make it work for the franchise through grit, visuals and bravura.
Last edited by ThatDarnMKS; 01-13-21 at 07:13 PM.
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The softening and pg-13ification of Mad Max with Beyond Thunderdome is unforgivable. Everything about the movie is softened with lame kiddy ****. And not just the plot with the lame kids. Even the titular death match of Thunderdome is hampered by the campy presence of bungee cord jumps and bounces that look out of a slapstick comedy.
The world building is not of particular importance or interest as it is either predicated on a goofy conflict between unimposing villains (Tina Turner vs. Master Blaster) over gas. Gas as McGuffin is significantly less dramatically weighty than escaping sex slaves (which was handled in the most tasteful way I've ever seen) and it was done better in TRW.
Like Robocop 3, it feels like execs were banking on the popularity among children and a growing toy market w/cartoon adaptations to carry them to greater economic success (which RC attempted and utterly failed at, while it seems an unresolved issue with Mad Max). Like Robocop, smoothing out the rough and brutal edges of the franchise crushes the franchise and diminishes it fully.
Fury Road not only acts as course correction, but it seems to understand what worked conceptually about BT and make it work for the franchise through grit, visuals and bravura.
The world building is not of particular importance or interest as it is either predicated on a goofy conflict between unimposing villains (Tina Turner vs. Master Blaster) over gas. Gas as McGuffin is significantly less dramatically weighty than escaping sex slaves (which was handled in the most tasteful way I've ever seen) and it was done better in TRW.
Like Robocop 3, it feels like execs were banking on the popularity among children and a growing toy market w/cartoon adaptations to carry them to greater economic success (which RC attempted and utterly failed at, while it seems an unresolved issue with Mad Max). Like Robocop, smoothing out the rough and brutal edges of the franchise crushes the franchise and diminishes it fully.
Fury Road not only acts as course correction, but it seems to understand what worked conceptually about BT and make it work for the franchise through grit, visuals and bravura.
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My problems with Thunderdome:
A/ What MKS said about the cutesy stuff. Again, it's not a deal-breaker. If this was the only Mad Max movie in existence, the kids would make me cringe but I'd be mostly fine with it. But following the previous two films it's too much of a shift in attitude for me. And in the most badass series known to man, is there a LESS badass moment than
B/ Tina. Gawd bless 'er, she's an awesome lady, and I don't really care about "acting skills" in Mad Max movies. But she is 100% American and a giant pop star (that year), so I can imagine some studio suit persuading Miller to put her in. Let's face it, there is no other year in history where she gets cast in this movie. Huey Lewis and David Lee Roth were also big that year, so I guess I should be thankful they went with Tina. I could be way off, maybe Miller specifically wanted her, but the point is she takes me out of the movie, and that world. I just don't think she was a good fit. (If they wanted a pop star in the cast, imagine Bowie as Aunty Entity! YES)
C/ The Mullet
D/ The Power Ballad
A/ What MKS said about the cutesy stuff. Again, it's not a deal-breaker. If this was the only Mad Max movie in existence, the kids would make me cringe but I'd be mostly fine with it. But following the previous two films it's too much of a shift in attitude for me. And in the most badass series known to man, is there a LESS badass moment than
B/ Tina. Gawd bless 'er, she's an awesome lady, and I don't really care about "acting skills" in Mad Max movies. But she is 100% American and a giant pop star (that year), so I can imagine some studio suit persuading Miller to put her in. Let's face it, there is no other year in history where she gets cast in this movie. Huey Lewis and David Lee Roth were also big that year, so I guess I should be thankful they went with Tina. I could be way off, maybe Miller specifically wanted her, but the point is she takes me out of the movie, and that world. I just don't think she was a good fit. (If they wanted a pop star in the cast, imagine Bowie as Aunty Entity! YES)
C/ The Mullet
D/ The Power Ballad
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Side note but, I'm still surprised we got cartoon adaptations of Rambo and RoboCop. I mean, what was up with that? 
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Side note but, I'm still surprised we got cartoon adaptations of Rambo and RoboCop. I mean, what was up with that?
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Vampyr, 1932
It has been many years since I'd last seen Vampyr, and in my memory it was a silent film. Imagine my shock when there was dialogue!
Allan Gray (Julian West) stops for the evening at an inn in a small village. Through a series of bizarre encounters and visions he ends up in the manor home of a man, the man's two daughters, and the manor's servants. It soon becomes clear that one of the sisters, Leone, is under the thrall of a vampire. Allan and the servants must work to free her from the evil creature.
It may be true that this is not a silent film, but nor is it a "full" sound film. I read that this is because Dreyer, the director, had to record any dialogue in three different languages, and thus tried to limit the amount of speaking. But though the film's sparse dialogue may have been a pragmatic, logistical decision, the result is a film that feels like an eerie hybrid between two types of films. For a long stretch it will seem like a silent film, only to have someone suddenly speak. In other moments, a character will say something, only for it to be followed by an unnatural silence. This neither-here-nor-there aspect of the film is a perfect match for the otherworldly, dreamy atmosphere of the story.
The film's main selling point is its visuals, of course. There is a lot of impactful, memorable imagery crammed into the short runtime. A quick google search will reveal that a TON of people really like the fetishistic image of the young woman bound with black cord (I wonder why . . . ?), but I was largely impressed with the effects and the framing of the different sequences.
On the effects front, there are some really great moments. One of the film's visual themes is shadows, and they are used in pretty much every way possible. Often characters are preceded into the frame by their shadows. But in other moments, characters become disconnected from their shadows. In another scene, Allan spots shadow creatures slinking along the grass. The shadows are not only capable of looming ominously, it's never totally clear when they might take on a life of their own.
In terms of the framing, I was very struck on this viewing by the way that the characters, and especially Allan, so often seem to be cowering in the lower half of the frame. This forces their eyeline up (often looking at something that we, the viewer, cannot see), and gives an almost perpetual sense of fearfulness to the different scenes. There is a disorienting sense of unpredictability in terms of where characters are in relation to one another. A hand might suddenly intrude into the frame offering a cup of tea. In one scene, Leone's sister rushes to a window only for Allan to suddenly appear beside and behind her. People, or creatures, might emerge from anywhere, and it creates an effect that is unsettling.
Julian West, who plays Allan, is perfect casting. He hits just the right notes as someone who wants to do the right thing, but is in totally over his head. As he stares at one incomprehensible horror after another you can practically see the wheels turning. Allan is the film's hero, but in many scenes he is more a witness than anything else.
My complaints about this film are relatively minor. There is a lot of exposition delivered by characters reading a book about vampires, which is a bit dry. I also struggled at times to keep track of who certain characters were (various henchmen, I guess?) and the exact nature of the vampire's operation.
Overall, a great film and incredibly engaging visually.
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