By:Antawn Salinas

Twitter: @OwlFeedAntawn

Editor’s Note: Mad Max is rated R and should only be watched by viewers over 17 or those with parental permission.

Welcome to the Wasteland and all the chaos and destruction that comes with it. The Mad Max franchise is a B-movie action franchise that stars Mel Gibson (later on Tom Hardy) as Max Rockatansky and his high-octane adventures in the apocalypse.

Today I am covering the most well-known and best reviewed (before Mad Max:Fury Road that is) in the franchise, The Road Warrior, or Mad Max 2, or Mad Max:The Road Warrior. It’s a film of many names.

Released in 1981, The Road Warrior stars Mel Gibson as the title character and was directed by George Miller (fun fact: George Miller also made the family films Happy Feet and Babe: Pig in the City — let that sink in for a moment). One day, as Max was exploring the wasteland he gets caught in a war between a small community of survivors and a gang of bandits and psychopaths lead by Humungus (played by Kjell Nilsson). During his adventures, Max comes across some interesting, yet dangerous, characters, like The Gyro Captain (played by Bruce Spence), and a feral kid with a dangerous boomerang (played by Emil Minty).

One of the things I really like about the film is the atmosphere. While there is a lot of fast paced and intense action, there is no dialogue for the first 10-15 minutes. It lets the tone and scale of everything soak in. When it gets to the action, it’s how you expect it to be. It’s really chaotic and intense, with tons of psychos driving even crazier cars. It’s what this franchise is known for.

While people come to this franchise for the action, it has some decent performances. There is a reason why Max Rockatansky is one of Mel Gibson’s better roles. Max is a ex-cop who quietly wanders and explores the apocalypse with his dog and his car called the Interceptor, and Gibson plays him well. He’s an iconic action movie character.

What makes the action great is that all of it is practical. No CGI, no shortcuts, just real cars and real explosions. Because it is all practical, certain moments feel more extreme, like at the beginning when Max is standing on the top of a mountain spying on the enemies. Also because of the practicality of it, the scenes of action and violence feel more intense.

Another reason why The Road Warrior is considered the best in the franchise by many  (it has a 98% on Rotten Tomatoes) is while the first one is good, it’s light on action, and is not for everyone. The third one(Mad Max:Beyond Thunderdome) is more campy and doesn’t have same impact that The Road Warrior had with its action. The only other one in the franchise that got close to what The Road Warrior was the most recent, Mad Max: Fury Road.

If you are into this type of action film, go check it out. Check out the whole franchise while you’re at it. While The Road Warrior is the best, the others are still fun to watch and are great action movies. They are a bloody good time, and that is why Mad Max: The Road Warrior is a classic.

The Road Warrior Trailer:http://bit.ly/15IAery

Mad Max Facts:http://bit.ly/2l2NbqB