Cringing through the 2nd half of Thunderdome

[toecutter]

Toec utter;





At last we meet.





An interesting point in the post right at the top of this pile which I believe is incorret and noone has picked up on.





When Max brings nathan into the compound and the man asks about the woman, that we know was violated and executed, Maxs reaction is not one of indifference.





It is the reaction of a man who has seen horror too many times.





You can deal with it, but it doesnt mean you dont feel it.





Its the reaction that soldiers, ambulance crews, police and firefighters experience.





What makes Mad Max a great film instead of a B action flick is 'acting'.





It is without doubt Gibsons finest work until at least 'we were young'. Gallipoli and Year of Living Dangerously were also very good, but they were made by experienced film makers and there were many experienced actors on board. A group effort. MM1 was largely carried by Millers novel techniques and Gibsons acting.





So when Max says 'it was quick', its not what he says, but how he emotes without emoting ie acting.





If you cannot see that, then your basis of beliefs about max are questionable.














The ORIGINAL Toe Cutter

[nelson]

thanks, thats the point I was trying to make. He hadnt lost total compassion.

[The US Bloke]

Perhaps Max was also trying to instill upon "the man" a tougher edge or courage that people (like Max) employ in times of crisis. Maybe he was relaying a kind of strength that Max himself had to develop during his time of loss.





Or maybe Max just didn't want to get into it with a total stranger. It's a real drag to have to tell a guy "hey, your babe was just triple teamed by a bunch a big sweaty dirtbags, and finally, pinned to the very mantle of the Earth with a crossbow. Have a better one, bub!"

[Toe Cutter]

Obviously I don't think Max was being completely indifferent to the situation. And yes, I know what line comes next ("It was quick..."). I have to remember I'm dealing with hardcore fans here. But I write big posts... so sometimes the finer details get lost in my enthusiasm for what I'm writing. I still feel though that, the Max who decides not to kill Blaster in the Thunderdome sequence is a jip.


I'm not saying this b/c the Max from Road Warrior would've killed Blaster. B/c then everyoe is just going to argue that he had changed by the time Thunderdome happened and that he had more morals now.


But I don't think that's the answer either. I think the answer lies in the rating the film had, the studio which put it out, the new tone it had, and the fact that Miller wasn't working with Byron Kennedy anymore due to his death. That's it.


You can argue all day if you like about the Max character having more morals in the third film.... but those morals may've been forced on us to suit the tone of the overall film.


I have no problem with this. I understand the broader appeal of Thunderdome. I also completely understand that Miller had more on the line... since Gibson was getting bigger worldwide as an actor and there was a bigger budget at stake.


But at the end of the day, those are the reasons why he doesn't kill Blaster. And for me, the film slowly goes downhill from that point on.


ps


As for me being the FAKE Toe Cutter... that's fine. I couldn't think of a name and felt pressured to - since I was dying to start replying to posts. So after 10 tries with 10 different attemped names, the name "Toe Cutter" finally worked. Looking back, I would've picked something less common, like "Gossling One."


- Dennis

[Mitch]

Hey Dennis/Gosling One, please fix your signature. It's a RAT circus, not a RATE circus. LOL That's the insurance biz!


No biggie, guess I have OCD when it comes to proofreading...


I guess what ruined Thunderdome for me was the overly cute kids and the lack of industrial nightmarish vehicles. Too organic for my taste. I prefer junkyard rejects to themed art cars. Again, those kids were too damned cute. Their teeth were whiter than Vanna's, everybody was attractive, no acne, decorative dirt, not grime... All too Hollywood for my taste. I was still smarting from the Ewok betrayal. Those wounds have yet to heal, MaxG.


I'm hoping for MM4 we come full circle, and Max has to defend technological innocents from mechanized gangs using the LAST Interceptor (found hidden in a cave or pieced together from scrap). Maybe it's like a typical martial arts storyline, where he has a peaceful life, even a family, has renounced violence, but is forced back into battle mode by an outside threat.


Mitch

[Uncle Entity]

Guys,


The Max seen in RW would have been able to kill BLASTER. Sure.


The Max we see in THUNDERDOME - after the Refinery happenings which changed him forever - well, it's not a MORAL Max. Max gets no moral values in the first half of MMBT. He's still an anti-hero. He resurged his feelings in RW - the will to face Humanity he was escaping from - but not his soul, not at all, not enough. AS MIller stated, from RW he learnt a man is NOT an island. You have to deal with your race to be a man. And well, Max learnt the lesson, because in the first half of THUNDERDOME He approached Bartertown and speaked a lot - communication. But he's not human... yet. You have to wait for the second, magical half of Thunderdome.


He agreed to battle in the Thunderdome, where "Two men enter, one man leaves". Max wanted to kill the bunny. He was ready. Then... the ol' good Max of the first movie awakened, you know he's ready to awake everytime "The Road Warrior" (the bad ego) use to encounter children or children-like. Blaster was like a children, and when it was revealed... Max could'n kill him anymore. Perfect. It sounds perfect to me.


As for the kids... They are cool.

[nelson]

Look at the paternal way Max treats the feral kid when he is on the bonnet and after the truck crash. Look at the expression on his face when he sees Papagallo killed. These aree not the actions of an immoral man.

[Uncle Entity]

Quote: Originally posted by nelson on 05 November 2002



Look at the paternal way Max treats the feral kid when he is on the bonnet and after the truck crash. Look at the expression on his face when he sees Papagallo killed. These aree not the actions of an immoral man.

WELL SAID !!!!!!!!!!!! He was just confused!

[MaxG]

Speaking of paternal, I have to say, that as a woman, I find that when Max shows compassion to kids or kid-like people like Blaster, it makes him seem more of a regular man and an even sexier one at that. It broadens his appeal imho by showing he has a vulnerable side.

[The US Bloke]

Maybe Max couldn't kill Blaster 'cause of his old aquaintence - Benno - from MM1. The big guy on May Swayzes' farm. He, also, was a mentally challenged character in the film.