How Science Fiction Failed Us – Mad Max
September 8, 2010 - By Phineas Delgado
As I started running out of ideas for “How Science Fiction Failed Us” it occurred to me that there was a wealth of inaccurate futures built by the Science Fiction movies and shows of the past. The only question I had left to answer was, “Where do I begin?” That answer seemed simple enough to me. I needed a movie that spawned a franchise; one that was timeless and produced a viable star actor. I wanted to start off with a movie that I couldn’t possibly spoil: Mad Max.
Before you scoff (or you young kids ask “Mad who?”) allow me to explain a little about my choice. Mad Max may not be space opera, or have lasers or even flying cars. In fact, the opening sequence indicates that the events in the movie take place only “a few years from now,” it’s clear that we’re still at the end of the 70’s, what with all the Ford Falcons on the road. Imagery aside, though, this movie could easily take place today, or a “few years from now”, given the circumstances. Let’s set up the background a bit. Most of us have seen Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome if for no other reason than to see Tina Turner in it. If you get Mad Max and expect to see the post-nuclear world of Thunderdome, you’ll be disappointed. This takes place before all of that.
The opening scene features a good old fashioned car chase, but you have to listen closely to the radio to figure out what’s going on. An MFP (Main Force Patrol… can it get more generic?) cruiser is chasing, unsuccessfully, after an escaped criminal, who goes by “Night Rider” (and is either wasted on Meth, or just completely off his toast). What’s great is that the whole time the chase is going on, even as new MPF cars and bikes join in, you can see who you can only presume is Max getting himself and his car ready for the inevitable call for help. Once he joins the chase, it’s over relatively quickly. Seems to me, in the future, the only way to stop runaway drivers is to force them into crashing, which in this case killed for crazy Night Rider and his skank punk girlfriend.
So we have our first view of this future world. There seems to be plenty of gas still (which we know will be a problem soon, because in the second movie, Max tried to barter for Gas, and by Thunderdome he’s using camels), and there is at least some semblance of law enforcement. Or is there? The MFP isn’t identified as being affiliated with any particular government. And some of them actually seem to be pretty bloodthirsty themselves. This lack of presence is felt in the next sequence when Night Rider’s biker family, which seems to have no name and is led by the deranged “Toecutter”, pulls into a sleepy little town. When one young couple sees the sort of mayhem going on, they try to leave, only to be pursued by the gang’s youngest and presumably newest member, Johnny the Boy and a few others. After demolishing a beautiful 60’s era Chevy Impala, the scene cuts away to Max and his partner Goose as they come across the carnage of the car. They spot the young man, sans pants (and in a fit of realism THIS reporter didn’t need, an apparently bloody rear region) running into a field, obvious so distraught he didn’t want to risk further damage to his hindquarters by stopping for the police. They eventually find the girl and a high Johnny still at the scene. But since no one will testify against Johnny, he’s allowed to go free, but not until Goose and he exchange threats.
The rest of the movie plays out like you’d expect. The bikers make good on their threat to kill Goose (they run him off the road and while he’s trapped inside, light the wreck on fire). Max, fearing the levels of his own rage, tells Fifi (yes, the police chief’s name if Fifi… and in this scene, he’s holding a watering can in one hand, a cigar in the other, while he argues with Max bare-chested with a black scarf and leather pants… draw your own conclusions) that he wants to quit. Fifi sends Max on vacation, but even when they get away, guess who’s there? That’s right, Toecutter and his band of ne’er-do-well miscreants. And what do they do? You guessed right again (probably because you’ve seen the movie). They chase after and eventually run down Max’s wife and son, leaving their crushed bodies on the pavement. Want to guess what happens next?
Well, suffice it to say that Mad Max wouldn’t be Mad Max if he didn’t get MAD, right? This is where they lose me. The previously well-organized (even though nameless) bikers suddenly split into small easily managed groups and Max picks them off easily after commandeering a super-charged “Pursuit Special” (the same car he still has in the second movie).
Certainly a dystopian outlook if there ever was one. But for being the progenitor of one of the most well known and beloved Science Fiction franchises, and some would argue the genre of cyberpunk, there is little fiction and even less science. Rather, this movie seems to play on fears already well established in the late 70’s; oil shortages, high crime rates (particularly roaming biker gangs), and an overall breakdown of law and order. The technology seems on par, and aside from a scene where the bikers steal gas from a moving tanker, you don’t really notice anything that would allude to the total breakdown we witness in the second movie. As a Prequel, this movie is great. It gives us a window into a beloved characters past; one that is only touched on in the sequels. As one of the noted grandfathers of modern cyberpunk, I can’t give it a passing grade. The truth is, The Road Warrior is the movie that is what we think of when we think of Mad Max, so credit should be given where credit is due.
In the end, I give Mad Max 2 geeks out of 5, even though I consider this a must-see movie for any fan of Thunderdome or The Road Warrior. Check it out for yourself and let me know what you think, but I’m pretty sure you’ll find that car chases in the Outback don’t make for good Science Fiction.
