Comments | lauand: Mad Max 2015

lauand

Mad Max 2015

May 21, 2015 01:23

Let's face it, I went to the cinema to watch Mad Max: Fury Road for three reasons:

a) I had free tickets.
b) I'm obsessed with Tom Hardy.
c) There was this strange uproar about it being a feminist movie and I was intrigued.

I'll hide my opinion under the cut because I guess it's the polite thing to do when you write things of a certain length.

( tl;dr )

ranting

Comments 10

indelicateink May 21 2015, 23:54:52 UTC

Tom Hardy is the best.

I agree, the film was awesome and the fuss was bullshit. idk, the idea that this film is somehow aggressively and shockingly feminist is... weird. (I mean, don't get me wrong--I see it as gloriously feminist. Feminist as in "men and women are equal." But not SHOCKINGLY so?) Are we going backwards? Because Ripley in Aliens and Sarah Connor in Terminator 2: Judgement Day and fistfuls of other characters before and since have made the concept of "a woman who is as strong/formidable as a man and also not sexualized" well-trod territory. :/ I THOUGHT. I loved, loved, loved Fury Road, but honestly as it went along I was wondering wtf anyone could possibly be upset about because jfc everyone's equal in this film! And it is still very much a "Mad Max" film, he is very much central. I-- I don't get the MRA shit. I really hope it's just a small cluster of troglodytes getting way, way too much press because of the nature of the internet.

(There are so many more women-are-STRONGER-than-men-and-will-fuck-you-up films for ( ... )

lauand May 22 2015, 01:32:19 UTC

Fuck yeah, he is.

Oh, yes... I was thinking about those movies being maybe different because the female lead was alone in a world of men, but Alien II had actually a very badass female soldier and, actually, the enemy is also female (and powerful like Hell). So, yeah, nothing new. And yeah, that's exactly what I thought, that there was nothing you could feel offended about regarding gender roles. I disagree about Mad Max being very much central, though... he's badass and has his role, but all the weight of the movie falls on Furiosa. That kind of criticism to the movie from the fans of the original trilogy, I can understand. But being upset because female characters are important and actually kick ass and fight to be free or because that's actually the main plot of the movie... it's seriously disgusting, because it gives me a very distinct idea of what you really think about women and their place in your world.

(Oh, yes, definitely.)

indelicateink May 22 2015, 02:13:33 UTC

Yeah... I mean, I don't mean to understate how great this film was for being so female-inclusive and women-focused; it does not happen enough in films, this film was definitely pushing boundaries, it was amazing. I guess I'm just bitter because it's been decades, and I don't understand why we haven't moved past the "strong [EQUAL!] female character" being a novelty instead being a norm; that we're in a place where it's something people actually get upset about. And why the 4-men-to-1-woman ratio (or whatever the ratio is) is still what we've been conditioned to see as "normal" in media. Arg ( ... )

lauand May 22 2015, 12:45:48 UTC

I'm actually very hopeful about the future. I think women in movies and TV series are getting more and more importance and more and more power. But it's still not completely normal to put women as the main characters in action flicks because it's supposed to be made for men and we all like it when we can identify with the badass lead and that's easier for most people if they have the same gender as them. It happens, and it's not new, but neither is it the norm. However, I'm pretty sure that this is changing. Because the market is realizing that women actually like comic books and action movies when they are included in them as important, realistic figures. So, unless something big happens that takes down society as we know it, I'm very positive about this ( ... )

avierra May 22 2015, 00:16:07 UTC

I have to go see this movie. I have to admit, when I saw Tom Hardy was the lead, I totally thought of you. :D

The feminist angle appears to be a tempest in a teapot from the usual suspects. I don't know why they just can't refuse to see it, if it bugs them so damn much. I will never get people who simply have to shit in other people's cornflakes.

Also, the trailers I saw of Tom Hardy as MM, he does look amazingly hot. I have to say, I never noticed before. >_> But I think I am a convert now.

lauand May 22 2015, 01:03:17 UTC

Ha, ha... he's getting a lot of work, lately; he's become really popular. I also went to see Child 44 just because he was the lead actor and I ended up liking it more than I expected.

Don't expect wonders of Mad Max, though. It doesn't have an elaborated plot or insightful dialogues. It barely has dialogues at all. It's just an action flick and the focus is on the action. But maybe precisely because it's the kind of movie that doesn't lead you to reflection that I like this approach Miller had towards female characters. Traditionally, this is not a genre where women are treated as equals to men in a realistic manner.

I will never get people who simply have to shit in other people's cornflakes. XDDDDDD!!! I had never heard that saying before, but it's extremely expressive. Yeah, I don't get it, either. I think it's because ideology is always a sensitive matter. You can't leave it alone when you think something can convince others of what you are sure is wrong. Like equal rights ( ... )

erviniae May 23 2015, 21:59:25 UTC

Okay , not reading your review until after I see it BUT hell yeah, I've been a tom hardy fan since Elizabeth the virgin queen bbc series!!!!!!

lauand May 23 2015, 22:59:16 UTC

Wow. That's quite a long time... I feel like a newbie!

I tried not to make major spoilers, but it's still better if yes, you wait until you have seen it. I'm actually surprised at the amount of people interested in that movie, I would have thought violent action flicks weren't that popular (obviously I have no idea of what moves the world).

viridian5 May 24 2015, 05:01:53 UTC

Violent action movies are 90% of what a friend and I see in theaters! It's mostly the other stuff I catch on DVD or TV.

lauand May 24 2015, 11:27:12 UTC

Well, after thinking about it a bit, it actually makes sense. It makes a difference to see this kind of stuff in the big screen with an awesome sound system, it gets you in all the more. I've just never been particularly interested in this genre, so I didn't realize it had so many fans!