Film opening analysis of Mad Max: Fury Road

The first film opening i analysed was the opening to Mad Max: Fury Road (00:00:00 - 00:03:04)

Mad Max: Fury Road  opens with titles and a voiceover from Max Rockatansky (Tom Hardy) talking about how the world got destroyed, setting the scene and explains what genre the film which is post-apocalyptic fiction or action. There is a transition in the credits to show footage from a documentary of a nuclear bomb effect on  some trees, it then cuts back to the credits continuing with the voiceover followed by a jump cut to an establishing shot of Max and his V8 interceptor (which is an icon of all of the previous Mad Max films, creating something recognisable for the older viewers) on a high point looking over the wasteland, this sets the scene and gives information about where the film is set. A crane shot moving down is used to bring the viewers attention to a lizard on a rock, while this is happening there is a diegetic dialogue of a girl followed by the voiceover of Max the camera then settles to focus on the lizard, the camera zooms in, to focus on max and the Interceptor. There is a jump cut to a close up of Max eating the lizard, there is not diegetic soundtrack as max packs up his things in a series of jump cuts, this tells the viewer that something bad is going to happen. There is then a close up shot of the turbocharger from the bonnet of Max's V8 Interceptor followed by another close up of the rear tyre as Max drives off. There is a tracking shot of the interceptor driving down the hill, The camera then cuts to a locked-down shot of the Interceptor driving out of view. This implies that there is something to follow to pursue Max, as the enemy cars drive over and around the camera there is a crane shot followed by a cut to a long shot of the pursuit then there is a jump cut to a closer shot of the pursuit in which the interceptor crashes, there is a tracking shot of the car as it flips. When the interceptor comes to a halt there is a voiceover from max again, a jump cut to a close up to the car door shows Max climbing out adding to the suspense of the scene as it makes the viewer concerned if he will make it out or not. A medium shot shows max crawling out of the wreckage, there is a flashback where a young girl is getting chased, it then cuts back to the scene where max is climbing out of the wreckage in which a gun is pointed at him, there is then a jump cut to a locked down shot of the landscape in which the cars and enemies drive past but the camera tracks max as he is pulled behind. A Non-diegetic soundtrack starts followed by a fade out for dramatic effect.

Mise-en-scene:

The location is post-apocalyptic Australia, there is high key lighting making everything look brighter than usual, the costumes were dark and dusty to suit the location, there is Max's iconic V8 interceptor and turbocharger in the engine making it instantly noticeable that it is a Mad Max film.

Target audience:
The target audience is anyone who is interested n the Mad Max franchise, although Mad Max:Fury Road is the beginning of a new series of the franchise. The main audience is either younger viewers or older viewers who are familiar with the old Mad Max trilogy.

Synopsis:
Years after the collapse of civilisation, Immortan Joe enslaves apocalypse survivors in a desert fortress called the Citadel. When the female warrior (Charlize Theron) leads Immortan Joe's five wives on a daring escape across the wasteland, she forms an alliance with Max Rockatansky (Tom Hardy) a lone wasteland wanderer who was captured by the Citadel. They attempt their escape in a massive armoured truck called the War Rig, trying to escape the pursuing warlord and his henchmen in a deadly high-speed chase through the wasteland.

Reflection:

I chose to analyse Mad Max: Fury Road as i am a fan of the original Mad Max trilogy, also i found the movie very good and i found all of the effects (visual, special and practical) remarkable and the amount of effort put in to making the film was stunning.