Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981)
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100% of critics liked it
(36 reviews) -
76% of users liked it
(75,832 ratings)
Director George Miller's follow-up to his own 1979 hit Mad Max is proof that not all sequels are inferior to their originals. If anything, this brutal sci-fi action film is even more intense and exciting than its predecessor, although the state of its post-apocalyptic world has only become… More Director George Miller's follow-up to his own 1979 hit Mad Max is proof that not all sequels are inferior to their originals. If anything, this brutal sci-fi action film is even more intense and exciting than its predecessor, although the state of its post-apocalyptic world has only become worse. Several years after the deaths of his wife and child, Max (Mel Gibson) has become an alienated nomad, wandering an Australian outback that has fallen into tribal warfare conducted from scattered armed camps. After a road battle with psychotic villain Wez (Vernon Wells), Max meets up with the odd Gyro Captain (Bruce Spence), who takes him to the camp of a sympathetic group led by Pappagallo (Mike Preston). As Pappagallo's people are camped at a refinery, Max plans to take their oil -- more precious than gold in this world -- but eventually joins them to fight a band of marauders led by the evil Humungus (Kjell Nilsson). The stunning climax features a heart-pounding chase scene involving an oil tanker-truck and a frenzied rush for the coast, with Humungus and his forces in hot pursuit. Nilsson is a scary villain, with huge muscles and a sinister pre-Jason hockey mask, but the stunt work is the key here, and it is more flamboyantly dynamic than ever, edited at breakneck pace and staged with manic fury by Miller and stunt coordinator Max Aspin. Savage and kinetic, Mad Max 2 is a must-see for action buffs. ~ Robert Firsching, Rovi
- Directed By
- George Miller
- Written By
- George Miller
- Genres
- Action & Adventure, Mystery & Suspense, Science Fiction & Fantasy
- In Theaters
- Dec 24, 1981 Wide
- Studio
- Warner Bros. Pictures
Critic Reviews
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Richard Corliss, TIME Magazine
Exhilarating entertainment -- and a textbook for sophisticated, popular moviemaking.
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James Berardinelli, ReelViews
A straightforward action/adventure film, filled to the brim with over-the-top chases and stunts.
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Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
A film of pure action, of kinetic energy organized around the barest possible bones of a plot.
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, Variety
Director Miller keeps the pic moving with cyclonic force, photography by Dean Semler is first class, editing is supertight, and Brian May's music is stirring.
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Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader
For pure rhythm and visual panache, Miller has few real competitors; the climactic chase, with its deft variation of tempo and point of view, is a minor masterpiece.
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Cast
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Mel Gibson
as Mad Max
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Virginia Hey
as Warrior Woman
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Syd Heylen
as Curmudgeon
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Emil Minty
as Feral Kid
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Kjell Nilsson
as Humungus
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Max Phipps
as Toadie
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Vernon Wells
as Wez
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David Slingsby
as Quiet Man
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Steve J. Spears
as Mechanic
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Bruce Spence
as Gyro Captain
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Harold Baigent
as Narrator
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Tyler Coppin
as Defiant Victim
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Max Fairchild
as Broken Victim
- Annie Jones
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William Zappa
as Zetta
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Guy Norris
as Mohawk Biker with Bearclaw
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Arkie Whiteley
as Lusty Girl
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David Downer
as Nathan
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Jimmy Brown
as Golden Youth
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Michael Preston
as Pappagallo
- Mike Preston



