Watching a Guy Play a Flamethrower Guitar on a Moving Truck Changed My Life

Mad Max: Fury Road is not really a traditional movie. It is a two-hour anxiety spike that takes you in a desert and makes you a native, and it is absolutely glorious.

The plot is incredibly simple. Charlize Theron (Furiosa) steals a big war rig. A very pale, very angry army chases her. They drive in a straight line for an hour. Then, they turn around. They drive back. That is the entire movie. It is basically the world's worst road trip. Nobody stops for snacks. Everyone is screaming.

Tom Hardy plays Max. He is strapped to the front of a car like a hood ornament for the first act. He mostly just grunts. I think he says maybe six actual sentences. Honestly, the vehicles have more personality than the people.

There is a car covered in spikes like a hedgehog. There is a monster truck made of other trucks. Every vehicle looks like it was built by a maniac in a junkyard. And the best part? It is all real.

No CGI, Just Adrenaline

This movie hates green screens. Director George Miller preferred to actually blow things up. Real cars fly through the air. Real stuntmen jump between them on giant poles. It looks dangerous because it was dangerous. In a world of CGI cartoons, this feels like a punch in the face. A very good punch.

We have to talk about the Doof Warrior. He is a guy in a red onesie. He is blind. He is bungee-corded to a giant wall of speakers on a moving truck. He plays a double-necked guitar that shoots fire. Does this help with military strategy? No. Is it the coolest thing ever filmed? Yes.

If you want deep philosophical conversations, go watch a documentary. If you want to see a spiky car fight a tank inside a giant tornado, watch this. It is loud. It is orange. It makes no sense. I witness it!