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Mel Gibson’s policeman-turned-vigilante returns in this sequel from Mad Max director George Miller. The Road Warrior takes place years after the events of the first film, plunging the Australian outback further into a post-apocalyptic, sci-fi setting. In a script that harkens back to westerns like The Magnificent Seven or High Plains Drifter, Max (Gibson) makes a deal with a small community built around a precious oil refinery. They’ll give him a considerable supply of gasoline if he’ll help them escape a biker gang that lays siege to their makeshift town.
The Road Warrior is often regarded one of the greatest action films of its era, featuring groundbreaking car chase choreography and stunt work. The lengthy climax is a thrilling chase through the desert involving multiple vehicles, motorbikes, and a tanker truck. Cars burst into flame, characters battle on moving vehicles, stunt men fly head over heels through the air, and there’s even a strange gyrocopter flying around adding another layer to the action. It’s a breathtaking sequence that would go unmatched in the annals of cinematic history until Miller returned to the franchise to top himself with 2015’s Mad Max: Fury Road.
Gibson’s Max is given a scant but effective character arc. He begins the film as a ruthless loner, but over the course of the film, he regains a little of the humanity the apocalypse has taken from him. Gibson is reticent, stoic — exactly what the character needs to be. Bruce Spence gets the biggest supporting role as the eccentric gyrocopter pilot who ingratiates himself to Max, despite how badly Max treats him at first. Young Emil Minty leaves an impression as a feral boy who’s deadly with a boomerang. A couple of villains are also memorable, including Vernon Wells as a mohawked biker seeking vengeance for his dead lover, and Kjell Nilsson as the masked, muscular Humungus, leader of the baddies.
Personally, I prefer the original Mad Max over its more sensational sequel. The first film is more emotionally engaging and narratively shocking, gaining something by being more grounded in reality. The Road Warrior is much more of a comic-book movie. The switch in genre is a bold and interesting choice, but the story isn’t terribly engaging. The wild characters and depiction of post-apocalyptic living keep it interesting, though, until you arrive at the final twenty minutes and that outstanding tanker chase sequence.
With Virginia Hey (Farscape), Michael Preston, Max Phipps, and music by Brian May.