Mel Gibson Movie:

				Salesrank: 268589
		Used Price: $49.98
		MPAA Rating: R (Restricted) Media: DVD

Editorial Review:
A strong candidate for the designation of most thrilling action movie ever made (the turbo-charged exhilaration of its full-throttle highway chases has never been equaled), the second part of George Miller's post-apocalyptic trilogy is also a magnificently imagined movie myth. Like the Star Wars trilogy (by that other George) the Mad Max films draw their inspiration from the works of mythologist Joseph Campbell. In the 1979 original, Max (Mel Gibson) is a policeman, the last guardian of civilization and order in a devastated world reduced to chaos. But when a leather-clad gang of sadomasochistic speed demons mows down Max's family, his remaining connections to humanity are also permanently severed. After brutally exacting his revenge, Max wanders off into the wasteland alone, "a burned out shell of a man" who (to paraphrase The Searchers) is destined to wander forever between the winds. In The Road Warrior, Max rediscovers a sliver of his shattered humanity, and a spark of redemption, when he helps an embattled colony of pioneers fight off the savages who are after that most precious of all commodities: "guzzline." Max is transformed into a legendary hero, just as Mel Gibson was catapulted to international movie stardom. With its final stirring images, The Road Warrior transcends its genre (whatever that may be--science fiction? Western? action adventure?) and becomes something timeless. It's a great movie. --Jim Emerson

Description of The Road Warrior [Region 2]:
A strong candidate for the designation of most thrilling action movie ever made (the turbo-charged exhilaration of its full-throttle highway chases has never been equaled), the second part of George Miller's post-apocalyptic trilogy is also a magnificently imagined movie myth. Like the Star Wars trilogy (by that other George) the Mad Max films draw their inspiration from the works of mythologist Joseph Campbell. In the 1979 original, Max (Mel Gibson) is a policeman, the last guardian of civilization and order in a devastated world reduced to chaos. But when a leather-clad gang of sadomasochistic speed demons mows down Max's family, his remaining connections to humanity are also permanently severed. After brutally exacting his revenge, Max wanders off into the wasteland alone, "a burned out shell of a man" who (to paraphrase The Searchers) is destined to wander forever between the winds. In The Road Warrior, Max rediscovers a sliver of his shattered humanity, and a spark of redemption, when he helps an embattled colony of pioneers fight off the savages who are after that most precious of all commodities: "guzzline." Max is transformed into a legendary hero, just as Mel Gibson was catapulted to international movie stardom. With its final stirring images, The Road Warrior transcends its genre (whatever that may be--science fiction? Western? action adventure?) and becomes something timeless. It's a great movie. --Jim Emerson

The Road Warrior [Region 2] Reviews:
Needs more special features
2009-11-11 - Great movie, fine quality, but not much more than you would have gotten on a VHS tape. Would like to see more bonus content.

Classic Movie
2009-10-22 - This review is for the Road Warrior Blu-ray edition.
This movie is a classic, the best Mad Max movie by far. The Blu-ray transfer is very good, image quality was fine. The only thing that could be improved is that there were not many extras included in this Blu-ray.

It's Blu-ray folks!
2009-09-19 - First of all, get your media straight. This is a blu-ray rating, not normal DVD!

The blu-ray quality on this movie is the best I have seen for a live-action, non-special effects movie.
The very first scene in the movie is a road moving past you at high speed as if you are straped to
the hood of a car. The picture is perfectly clear.

The movie itself is also very entertaining and fast pace.
It is a real unique movie that is hardly made these days.





Max never looked better.
2009-08-02 - I've been a fan of this movie ever since it came out. I've always been disappointed with the mediocre image quality on the DVD edition of the Road Warrior. It always lacked detail and looked grainy; I feared that the original print of the movie was of low visual quality.
I recently got a 46 inch Hi-Def LCD set and had watched the DVD on it. The image was bigger but no better.
The Blu-Ray version of The Road Warrior ( or Mad Max 2 since this is the original Australian version,) is far superior to the DVD. There is far more detail and the colors are more saturated. I found the widescreen scenes of the Aussie desert quite stunning. This film is easily worth the discounted price it sells for on Amazon.
Since this is the original Aussie version of the film, there are about ten more minutes of the movie which were trimmed out of the U.S. version. While the Aussie version doesn't move quite as quickly as the U.s. version, it is more complex and interesting.
The added detail of the Blu-Ray makes the road battle finale even more dramatic. You have to admire the fearlessness of the stuntmen as they are thrown dozens of feet through the air during those amazing crashes. As this was in the days before CGI, what we see is more or less what really had to happen in front of the camera. Obviously some scenes have dummies getting crushed under wheels, but those are brave guys driving down that narrow road with that huge tanker.
Sadly, the Special features are rather sparse. We do get a commentary track with director George Miller and the director of photography. While I could have wished for a making- of featurette, the Blue-Ray commentary is far better than the zero features of the DVD.
If you love this movie, You should see this disc.


The story of a roads scholar
2009-07-12 - Wandering through the blasted interior of post-apocalyptic, gas-starved Australia in his battered Interceptor, Max (Mel Gibson) encounters a community centered around a working oil derrick and besieged by savage outlaws who want their fuel. Events culminate in one of the greatest chases ever committed to film.

Director George Miller made this classic action film with great economy. Characters such as the Gyro Captain (Bruce Spence) and the Feral Kid (Emil Minty) are established quickly and efficiently, gaining our instant sympathy. There are also plenty of unexpected laughs and some genuinely moving moments. "The Road Warrior" is a perfect example of a cast and crew who kept their eye on the goal--non-stop thrills and excitement--but saw that as no impediment to delivering a fully rounded, character driven film. Watch for Farscape's Virginia Hey in an early role as the Warrior Woman.