DVD Collectors Online

Mad Max, a review by Jon

MAD MAX (1979)
5 out of 5



Mel Gibson is Max Rockatansky, a cop in a world on the edge of the apocalypse. A brutal motorcycle gang is terrorising the roads and Max's family come under threat.

Mad Max is a low budget sci-fi classic that made a star out of Mel Gibson and deservedly so. His quiet performance of pent-up anger anchors a film that might have been a bit too off-centre to work, despite featuring some of the best chase scenes you can find. And they are brilliantly staged, the opening especially (see below. I thought it more fun than the trailer!). A chase with "I AM the Night Rider!" is already underway and Max hasn't even started his engine. His colleagues are doing their best, but get wiped out in stunt after stunt. About 10 minutes long and full of confident gags, it sets the stage for one of the best comic book heroes who was never in a comic. This is all before his family are attacked and he sets off on a revenge mission against a biker bunch that can only work in a 70s cult movie.

It's a perfect case of using what you have. The sequels would expand the story a little more, perhaps a bit too much as the apocalypse has definitely been and gone in Mad Max 2. Here, it's just a thinly veiled excuse for tearing up the road. It's fantastic!

The Car's the star: Ford Falcon


Trailer

(From Car Movie Marathon on August 17th, 2008)

The Pursuit of Happyness, a review by Rich

Pursuit of Happyness



Inspired by a true story, Chris Gardner (Will Smith) is a bright and talented, but marginally employed salesman. Struggling to make ends meet, Gardner finds himself and his five year old son evicted from their San Francisco apartment with nowhere to go. When Gardner lands an internship at a prestigious stock brokerage firm, he and his son endure many hardships, including being homeless and living in shelters, in pursuit of his dream of a better life for the two of them.

Feel good tale of a man determined to succeed and provide a better life for him and his son, gritty portrayal of sheer perseverence.
Will Smith is admirable in his role, but his son in real-life Jaden outshines him and looks like a future star unless Hollywood ruins another promising child actor. The interplay between them is clearly natural and never forced, and helps the movie tick along at a good pace.
As a viewer you can relate to the various trials and tribulations that Gardner faced, and how he overcomes adversity to obtain his 'happyness'.
A cynic might question why a man dragged his young son through homeless shelters and sleeping in toilets, when he could have taken a normal job and put a roof over his head.
But aside from this I found it an enjoyable movie, perhaps a must see, heart-warming and emotional.
 


(From Riches Random Reviews on March 18th, 2009)

"Due South" marathon, a review by Tom

4.08 Good for the Soul (1998-12-16)
Writer: Paul Haggis (Created By), Peter Mohan (Writer)
Director: George Bloomfield
Cast

(From "Due South" marathon on January 2nd, 2011)