The world of 1979's huge international box-office hit, "Mad Max," is not the same world inhabited by Max or anyone else in the sequels. It is desolate to be sure but there are a trifle few businesses running (eateries, gas stations) and it is seemingly somewhere in the middle of the Australian Outback. No nuclear war has occurred (not until "Beyond Thunderdome") but there are criminal elements ruling the road, namely biker gangs with names like Toecutter and Night Rider. The leather-suited cops (Main Force Patrol) are doing their part to protect the roads from these nutty biker gang members - they get their jollies from driving enormously fast speeds on the road trying to outrun the police. That is until they clash with Max (Mel Gibson), a highway cop who is as nutty as they are when it comes to fierce, unrelenting speeds.
Gibson's Max in this film is a fairly restrained piece of acting, nowhere near the madman we see in later entries. To be fair, I don't think Max adopted a "I am mad as hell and can't take it anymore" attitude in the sequels, more so in the "Lethal Weapon" movies. Max is depicted here as a family man with a wife and a child, living near a sandy beach (the other cops don't seem to have any family). He has a different attitude on the highways to seemingly nowhere, ready to take on anyone that causes havoc. At home, it is sweet and cuddly with his very tender-hearted wife (Joanne Samuel, playing the most pleasant person in the entire movie) who can't always tolerate Max putting his life on the line.
Ultimately, "Mad Max" becomes a solid revenge movie with the most thrilling chase scenes ever seen until "The Road Warrior." The cars and motorcycles barrel into any and anything in the distant road in scenes that look like they were filmed at an actual demolition derby. Max suffers some wounds, like a gunshot to his knee, and is ready to kill all these marauding bikers without a hint of remorse (Toecutter's demise happens when he collides with a semi-trailer truck - lesson is keep your eyes on the road). "Mad Max" is memorably sloppy and grungy in the best sense of the word (independent films always have a little less finesse), and never has a dull moment. I would dub it as one of the best exploitation movies ever made with vehicle stunts that will make your eyes pop out like Toecutter's.
