Mad Max: Fury Road Essay

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One of my favorite films of 2015, and the one that most exceeded my expectations, was George Miller’s Mad Max: Fury Road. While I love car chases and explosions (and Tom Hardy) as much as the next person, that was all I thought the movie would have to offer. I was wrong. Mad Max may be the title character, but the real hero of the film is Imperator Furiosa, played by Charlize Theron. Furiosa is high up in the military ranks of the Citadel, a post-apocalyptic society lead by Immortan Joe. During a simple mission to collect gasoline she veers off-road, and it is revealed that she has stolen Immortan Joe’s wives (breeders/ sex slaves). This is the central conflict that drives the narrative and initiates the chase that lasts almost the entirety of the film. Contrary to many films in this action genre, Mad Max: Fury Road contains strong feminist themes. This movie tells the story of strong and intelligent women who fight to overthrow a patriarchal society that enslaves both its men and women. It was this confronting of complex gender politics that exceeded my expectations of the film.
In her essay “Visual Pleasure and …show more content…

This couldn’t be more wrong in regards to Furiosa. It is ultimately her mission to save the wives, and Max is assigned to a more supporting role. She has agency, confidence, and capability. In fact, she even proves more capable than Max on multiple occasions throughout the film. In one scene the war rig is stuck in mud and Max is shooting a rifle at an on coming vehicle, but he keeps missing. When there is only one bullet left he gives the rifle to Furiosa and lets her use his shoulder to balance the rifle. She literally uses Max as a tripod as she shoots the target he was unable to hit. Her function is not to motivate Max’s mission; instead, he supports

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