While there are enough books dedicated to Star Wars, Alien, and The Terminator to fill an oil tanker, some sci-fi films get the short shrift when it comes to in depth examinations of their subject matter.
The Legend of Mad Max: The Complete Saga From Mad Max to Furiosa by Ian Nathan looks to rectify this error the same way that Max Rockatansky would: with an over-the-top car wreck of knowledge, photos, and insight on one of the underappreciated franchises in sci-fi/action film history.
And when I saw car wreck, I mean that in the most complimentary way possible, because these films (since George Miller’s original Mad Max in 1979) have taken road rage and the post-apocalyptical aesthetic to new heights.
Nathan’s guide to the nitrous fueled series by Miller is comprehensive, colorful, and entertaining. Each film is explored in chronological order, from the early days of Ozploitation to the mega budget reimaging and prequel.
Nathan, who has made a career out of writing about some of the most popular films and directors of all time, is again up to the task at hand, and gives each entry in the entire franchise equal representation. The stories about the cars, actions sequences, stunts, on-set antics, and plenty of colorful anecdotes about each film are equally enlightening and hilarious. As is the case with Nathan’s previous books, it is clear that the author spent plenty of time in Max’s archival sandbox, digging for the complete story.
The Legend of Mad Max is more impactful than other oral histories of similar films due to the fact that little to nothing has been written about Miller’s body of work, so even for longtime fans, the stories will be new information. There is even a whole chapter dedicated to why it took Miller so long to come back to the Wastelands (and thank God he left the penguins of Happy Feet in the rear view mirror) which helps explain the timing of his return with Fury Road in 2015.
In terms of the format and layout of the 191 page book, The Legend of Mad Max is just as bombastic as the films. The pages vary from full page production stills, variant posters, and on-set rarities with nothing more than a large black quote, to sewn together pages that resemble some of Max’s vehicles. These types of pages tell the entire story and also metaphorically resemble their subjects. There is plenty of eye candy to satisfy all, breaking up the text into satisfying bites on each page. The trim size (11″ x 8″) is large enough to allow readers to take in the images, but also avoids the problem of some coffee table editions that weigh you down and make the reading experience a little more cumbersome.
It is hard to believe that it has taken this long for Max to get the book he deserves, but just like with Fury Road, the wait is worth it. Dye your mohawk pink and get ready to revel in the high octane storytelling that Nathan provides in The Legend of Mad Max!
The Legend of Mad Max will be released in the UK on May 24 and in the States on June 18.
