Reel Critics: Hell Hath No Fury like ‘Mad Max’

In “Mad Max: Fury Road,” director/writer George Miller has given us the fourth installment to his “Mad Max” post-apocalyptic saga and it was worth the 30 years wait. In a word: Wow.

Max Rockatansky (Tom Hardy, in the role that made Mel Gibson a star) was once a policeman and is still haunted by the wife and daughter he couldn’t save. Now just trying to survive in a desolate, dusty world, he is captured and used as a walking blood donor and hood ornament for a feral “warboy” named Nux (Nicholas Hoult).

The warboys live in a citadel under the rule of a half-man, half-machine named Immortan Joe, who sends them out to bring back Imperator Furiosa (Charlize Theron) who escaped in a souped-up big rig.

The film is made up of incredible chase sequences in vehicles that look like they were put together by a crazed welder. The stunt work (some it by the Cirque du Soleil troupe) and special effects are mind-blowing, like the sight of a guy playing a flame-throwing guitar while zooming across the desert chained to a bus.

But the movie is not just about ultra-violence: It’s actually got messages of female empowerment and indeed, Theron is the real star. It’s a gutsy, soulful performance. In the title role, Tom Hardy’s brooding face and growl convey a wealth of emotions even when hidden by an iron mask (shades of his role as Bane in “The Dark Knight Rises”).

Not for the meek at heart, “Mad Max: Fury Road” is a fast and furious adventure that takes the action film and raises it to an art form.

— Susanne Perez

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‘Perfect Pitch 2’ hits right note for teens

“Perfect Pitch 2” is the sequel to the surprise hit of 2012. Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson and Brittany Snow reprise their roles as sorority sisters in college who form an a capella singing group. Hailee Steinfeld joins the vocal crew as a legacy who hopes she can make the team.

Together they perform in several high-energy song and dance numbers that are well choreographed. But the contrived competitions and empty headed plot are impossible to take seriously. The lame story and obvious lip synch format undermines any claim to credibility. The result is a musical comedy that would appear ridiculous to most middle-aged adults.

However, the college-based scenario offers more than enough suggestive situations and spicy talk to titillate teenage girls. My screening featured several groups of six or more tweens who clearly love this franchise and enjoyed the crazy dancing and racy dialogue.

It might be mindless and vapid to an older crowd. But its $70-million opening weekend shows the producers have clearly hit the bull’s-eye of their target audience with this lively juvenile romp.

— John Depko

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JOHN DEPKO is a retired senior investigator for the Orange County public defender’s office. He lives in Costa Mesa and works as a licensed private investigator. SUSANNE PEREZ lives in Costa Mesa and is an executive assistant for a company in Irvine.