Separated by nearly 90 years, there are two movies that I can watch again and again but are from very different era yet have similar plot lines. One the modern distopian action film Mad Max: Fury Road from 2015 and the 1926 Buster Keaton film “The General” from the silent film era.
Film maker George Miller has said he was inspired by silent films like “The General” and Harold Lloyd, and thought of each Mad Max film as if it were a silent movie. He believed that silent films developed a universal language that could be enhanced by adding sound and music. Miller was inspired by Buster Keaton’s stunt-heavy silent films.
Afterall Mad Max is a character with little dialog. He might as well be a silent film character. When he does speak it’s usually when something involving life and death such as in The Road Warrior when he says “Two days ago, I saw a vehicle that would haul that tanker. You want to get out of here? You talk to me.”
In “The General” hapless Southern railroad engineer Johnny Gray (Buster Keaton) facing off against Union soldiers during the American Civil War. When Johnny’s fiancée, Annabelle Lee (Marion Mack), is accidentally taken away while on a train stolen by Northern forces, Gray pursues the soldiers, using various modes of transportation in comic action scenes that highlight Keaton’s boundless wit and dexterity.
The movie is now in the public domain and you can watch it here:
The movie was based on true events as described by Wikipedia:
The Great Locomotive Chase (a portion of the Andrews’ Raid or the Mitchel Raid) was a military raid that occurred April 12, 1862, in northern Georgia during the American Civil War. Volunteers from the Union Army, led by civilian scout James J. Andrews, commandeered a train, The General, and took it northward toward Chattanooga, Tennessee, doing as much damage as possible to the vital Western and Atlantic Railroad (W&A) line from Atlanta to Chattanooga as they went. They were pursued by Confederate forces at first on foot, and later on a succession of locomotives, including The Texas, for 87 miles (140 km).
Because the Union men had cut the telegraph wires, the Confederates could not send warnings ahead to forces along the railway. Confederates eventually captured the raiders and quickly executed some as spies, including Andrews; some others were able to flee. The surviving raiders were the first to be awarded the newly created Medal of Honor by the US Congress for their actions. As a civilian, Andrews was not eligible.
Certainly not based on a true historical event, the Max Max Universe takes place in the near future when the world’s fossil fuel based economy collapses and the survivors for medival-like warrior classes in the wastelands.
In Fury Road a vital piece of military equipment, a War Rig, that transports breast milk for trade with Gas Town and The Bullet Farm, is stolen which touches off a large pursuit and road battle full of intense stunts, explosions, crashes and deaths.
The Ultimate Max Max collection of course is this 5 film, 4K UHD set “Mad Max 5-Film Collection – Limited Edition (4K Ultra HD + Digital)” with the following bonus features:
- Mad Max: Mad Max: The Film Phenomenon
- Mad Max: The Madness of Max
- Mad Max: Fury Road: The Tools of the Wasteland
- Mad Max: Fury Road: The Road Warriors: Max and Furiosa
- Mad Max: Fury Road: Mad Max: Fury on Four Wheels
- Mad Max: Fury Road: Maximum Fury: Filming Fury Road
- Mad Max: Fury Road: Fury Road: Crash & Smash
- Mad Max: Fury Road: The Five Wives: So Shiny, So Chrome
- Deleted Scenes
Product Overview
Mad Max
Rebel bikers combat the police in post-nuclear future where the highways are bloody battlegrounds when a gang of motorcyclists brutally murder a policeman’s family he becomes Mad Max.
Mad Max: The Road Warrior
World War III has just ended and the world’s remaining inhabitants are on a desperate, devastating, struggle to survive. Gasoline is in short supply and those remaining, turn on one another for the crude oil.
Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome
Max arrives in the vicious city of bartertown and clashes with the diabolical aunty entity. left to die in the desert, Max is rescued and mistaken for a messiah by a group of oasis orphans.
Mad Max: Fury Road
From director George Miller comes the fourth adventure in the Mad Max film series. In a post-apocalyptic world, Max teams up with a mysterious woman, Furiosa, to try and survive.
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
As the world fell, young Furiosa is snatched from the Green Place of Many Mothers and falls into the hands of a great Biker Horde led by the Warlord Dementus.
Mad Max:
EC1 – Mad Max: Mad Max: The Film Phenomenon
EC2 – Mad Max: The Madness of Max-Behind-the-Scenes Documentary of the Film That Started It All
Mad Max: The Road Warrior:
EC1 – Introduction by Leonard Maltin-An introduction by Leonard Maltin explaining the history of Mad Max Road Warrior to its fans.
EC2 – Commentary By George Miller and Dean Semler
EC3 – Road War: The Making of The Road Warrior – The world was blindsided by George Miller’s masterpiece of apocalyptic destruction: The Road Warrior. For the first time ever George Miller, Terry Hayes and star Mel Gibson tell the story of the car crushing production that redefined act.
Mad Max: Fury Road:
EC1 – Mad Max: Fury Road: The Tools of the Wasteland
EC2 – Mad Max: Fury Road: The Road Warriors: Max and Furiosa
EC3 – Mad Max: Fury Road: Mad Max: Fury on Four Wheels
EC4 – Mad Max: Fury Road: Maximum Fury: Filming Fury Road
EC5 – Mad Max: Fury Road: Fury Road: Crash & Smash
EC6 – Mad Max: Fury Road: The Five Wives: So Shiny, So Chrome
EC7 – Mad Max: Fury Road: Deleted Scenes: I Am a Milker
EC8 – Mad Max: Fury Road: Deleted Scenes: Turn Every Grain of Sand!
EC9 – Mad Max: Fury Road: Deleted Scenes: Let’s Do It
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga:
EC1 – Highway to Valhalla: In Pursuit of Furiosa – Join director George Miller, producer Doug Mitchell, actors Anya Taylor-Joy and Chris Hemsworth, and others from the filmmaking team as they take us on a journey into the beating yet poisoned heart of the Wasteland.
EC2 – Darkest Angel: Anya Taylor-Joy as Furiosa – Furiosa is an action-hero icon. How do the wrenching events of her early years shape her into a mythic Wasteland legend? Anya Taylor-Joy reveals the intense physical and mental training she undertook to step into the role.
EC3 – Motorbike Messiah: Chris Hemsworth as Dementus – Memorable villains define the Mad Max franchise, but none are as depraved as the new disruptor in the Wasteland: Dementus. Witness the creation of this cultlike leader via both George Miller and Chris Hemsworth.
EC4 – Furiosa: Stowaway to Nowhere – The Stowaway Chase is a massive, jaw-dropping action set piece. See it being made from every angle. Mastermind George Miller and second unit director Guy Norris used all the technology at their disposal to pull off this cinematic tour de force.
EC5 – Metal Beasts and Holy Motors – Monster tow trucks! Motorcycle-driven chariots! Flying bikes! Peek inside the vehicle shop on a walk-and-talk tour with Oscar®-winning production designer Colin Gibson, and see the crazy-cool designs George Miller inspires and encourages