---
title: "Mad Max: Fury Road"
year: 2015
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/mad-max-fury-road"
fi1m_id: "mad-max-fury-road"
imdb_id: "tt1392190"
tmdb_id: 76341
wikidata_id: "Q1757288"
fi1m_score: 88
critics_score: 89
critics_reviews: 17
published: "2026-09-15"
updated: "2026-09-18T08:37:41.213825+00:00"
region: "US"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

Directed by George Miller · 2h 01m · MPA R · Action, Adventure, Science Fiction

## Identity

Mad Max: Fury Road

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/mad-max-fury-road
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** mad-max-fury-road
- **IMDb ID:** tt1392190
- **TMDB ID:** 76341
- **Wikidata ID:** Q1757288
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1392190/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/76341, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1757288

**Fi1m score: 88** · Critics 89 from 17 reviews

*In a sentence:* We spent two hours worrying about people whose driving licences we would confiscate

> George Miller’s *Mad Max: Fury Road* is an exhilarating action film whose desert chase stays clear even at its most frantic. Charlize Theron gives it purpose, though several supporting characters deserve more attention.

## Synopsis

In a post-apocalyptic desert, Rockatansky (Tom Hardy) is caught up in a convoy chase alongside Imperator Furiosa (Charlize Theron). Immortan Joe (Hugh Keays-Byrne) and Nux (Nicholas Hoult) are among the figures drawn into the struggle. Furiosa takes the lead as women challenge male control and the pursuit becomes a fight over who gets to decide their future. Vehicles and their occupants race across the wasteland, with combat leaving little room for conversation. George Miller directs, with Zoë Kravitz, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and Riley Keough among the supporting cast.

## Review

We recommend *Mad Max: Fury Road* for the rare pleasure of an action film that stays intelligible while behaving so extravagantly. George Miller makes a desert pursuit carry most of the story, and the decision suits a film about people fighting to control their own lives. Across 121 minutes, the action gives us enough to understand without stopping to explain every custom or grievance. Its limitations become obvious when we want to know more about the people.

Charlize Theron’s Furiosa gives the pursuit someone to follow with more interest than the usual concern about who will survive the next crash. She is forceful without making every moment a demonstration of strength, and her determination makes the film’s emphasis on women’s freedom convincing. Tom Hardy shares the action without demanding to be its only attraction. We found Theron the more compelling presence, though Hardy’s physical performance contributes to the sense that these people have to keep working to stay alive.

John Seale’s wide desert views leave room to see the convoy as well as the individual vehicle in danger. Margaret Sixel’s editing preserves that clarity through the chases. We can follow the threat, register a response and understand the next problem without mentally reconstructing the sequence afterwards. This makes the suspense stronger, because the danger is comprehensible. The editing gives the vehicles enough room to register as separate threats.

We flinched at the vehicle collisions. The practical stunt work makes the impacts feel heavy, and the surrounding action gives us time to understand what is at risk. Part of the pleasure comes from recognising how carefully someone has worked out the sequence of movements, even when everything appears to be going wrong. For all the frenzy, Miller keeps finding another physical complication to hold our attention.

Colin Gibson’s production design gives the vehicles a grotesque extravagance that helps explain the people around them. The machines tell us about power and vanity before the script needs to, and their strangeness keeps the desert from becoming anonymous scenery. Tom Holkenborg’s score applies its own pressure to the chases, with enough force to make the music part of their momentum. Occasionally that insistence is tiring; the action is already doing plenty to keep us alert.

The screenplay by Miller, Brendan McCarthy and Nico Lathouris is less successful with the women around Furiosa. The Wives matter to what the film is saying, but they receive too little individual attention for the group to become equally engaging as people. The simple politics are easy enough to accept; the scant characterisation is harder to forgive. More room for their differences would have helped without requiring a long pause for explanation.

Against the action genre’s habit of making destruction bigger than we can take in, Miller’s care over what we see feels refreshing. The film earns its excitement by keeping us oriented, and we share most critics’ enthusiasm for that discipline. We are less persuaded that its ideas are as fully worked out as its chases. Give it an evening when sustained action sounds like a pleasure, with no expectation that everyone will get a proper introduction.

*Fi1m score 88, published 15 September 2026.*

## Straight answers

**How long is Mad Max: Fury Road, and what is it rated?**

*Mad Max: Fury Road* runs 2h 01m and is rated R by the MPA in the US. It is an action and adventure film.

**Where can I watch Mad Max: Fury Road in the US?**

*Mad Max: Fury Road* is available to rent from Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV from $5.99. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**What should I watch after Mad Max: Fury Road?**

After *Mad Max: Fury Road*, try [*The General*](https://film.one/film/the-general) (1926, Fi1m 91): A locomotive chase with physical comedy and unusually clear cause and effect. Then [*Sorcerer*](https://film.one/film/sorcerer) (1977, Fi1m 88): Four men, dangerous cargo and roads that make every small movement matter; and [*Run Lola Run*](https://film.one/film/run-lola-run) (1998, Fi1m 82): A woman races against the clock, with editing that makes urgency contagious.

**What order should I watch the Mad Max films in?**

Release order is the safe choice for Mad Max, and it is the order [our collection page](https://film.one/collections/mad-max) lists them in. *Mad Max: Fury Road* is number 4 of the 5 Mad Max titles on Fi1m; before it comes [*Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome*](https://film.one/film/mad-max-beyond-thunderdome) and after it [*Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga*](https://film.one/film/furiosa-a-mad-max-saga). [The full order.](https://film.one/collections/mad-max.md)

### Reviews we read (22)

- **Radio Times** (5/5): George Miller thunders the franchise back with a bone-rattling chase through the desert, placing Charlize Theron’s Furiosa in the driving seat alongside Tom Hardy’s Max. It singles out the breathtaking practical stunts, minimal CGI, and Theron’s formidable warrior performance for praise. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-b3nvba/mad-max-fury-road/)
- **Slant Magazine**, Eric Henderson (4/4): The critic describes the film as a bugged-out hot mess-terpiece that punishes viewers with pleasure through its rubber-burning pandemonium and visual saturation while noting its elemental plot and muscular action. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/mad-max-fury-road/)
- **Time Out**, David Ehrlich (5/5): This reboot is every bit as wild, weird and mad as hoped, delivering exhilarating sustained action that feels raw and real in an age of weightless spectacles. It singles out the way the film steers the macho franchise toward a brilliant new direction emphasizing female rule and empowerment. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/mad-max-fury-road)
- **Sight and Sound**, Nick Pinkerton (95/100, inferred): The film is a single-minded manifesto on the physics of screen action, stretching the essence of earlier Mad Max chases into an epic, relentlessly kinetic pursuit across the desert. It singles out the ingenious, practical stunt work and visual details that make every moment surprising and astonishing. [Read](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/review-mad-max-fury-road)
- **Empire**, Ian Nathan (90/100, inferred): The critic hails George Miller's film as the work of a visionary, delivering a defiantly cinematic experience of maximum madness. He singles out the sustained, operatic chase sequences and symphony of destruction for particular praise. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/mad-max-fury-road-review/)
- **The AV Club**, A.A. Dowd (A-): The critic praises the nonstop vehicular mayhem and practical stunts that make it feel like the Mad Max Miller always dreamed of. They single out Charlize Theron’s Furiosa performance and the film’s clarity amid chaos for praise. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/with-fury-road-mad-max-roars-triumphantly-back-into-th-1798183780)
- **Total Film**, Jamie Graham (90/100, inferred): The review celebrates the film as a lunatic vision with some of the greatest action ever put on screen. It praises the ballistic ballet of stunts and the beauty found in the violence and desert vistas. [Read](https://www.gamesradar.com/mad-max-fury-road-review/)
- **Variety**, Justin Chang (90/100, inferred): The critic hails the film as ferocious, unfettered B-movie bliss and a powerhouse reimagining of the franchise, with exhilarating chase sequences. It singles out Charlize Theron’s Furiosa and Miller’s disciplined orchestration of mayhem for praise. [Read](https://variety.com/2015/film/markets-festivals/mad-max-review-tom-hardy-charlize-theron-1201491726/)
- **Los Angeles Times**, Kenneth Turan (85/100, inferred): The film is celebrated as an immersive, non-stop chase driven by extraordinary practical stunts and world-building. Miller is highlighted as the true star for realizing his long-gestating vision with unparalleled imagination and intensity. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-mad-max-review-20150515-column.html)
- **Little White Lies**, Adam Woodward (5/4/4): A supercharged spectacle that delivers gasoline-laced adrenaline through technical mastery in action set pieces, score and cinematography, proving a singularly entertaining modern blockbuster full of surprises despite the long wait. [Read](https://lwlies.com/reviews/mad-max-fury-road)
- **The Guardian**, Peter Bradshaw (80/100, inferred): The critic finds the film extravagantly deranged and cacophonous, a bizarre convoy chase action-thriller in the post-apocalyptic desert that is almost silent in its minimal dialogue. Charlize Theron's Furiosa is singled out for praise as the standout performance channeling the spirit of the original films. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/may/11/mad-max-fury-road-review-tom-hardy)
- **The New Yorker**, Richard Brody (60/100, inferred): The review commends the logical, suspenseful construction of the action sequences and the story's redemptive arc. It criticizes the lack of visual ecstasy and overly simplistic moral and political elements. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/richard-brody/ridin-dirty-mad-max-fury-road)
- **Screen Daily**: The film is a relentless, thrilling bulldozer of orgiastic car chases and vehicular carnage that pummels viewers into awed submission, best appreciated as kinetic visual art. It praises the stupendously physical practical effects and stunt work while noting the one-dimensional focus on action over character or emotional depth. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/mad-max-fury-road-review/5087602.article)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, Todd McCarthy: The critic calls the film a madly entertaining action extravaganza that kicks more ass than any film by a 70-year-old and praises its inventive details, real action, and Miller's direction. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/mad-max-fury-road-film-794753/)
- **The New York Times**, A.O. Scott (Critic's Pick): The critic praises the film's relentless, dialogue-light action and visual storytelling as a masterful reboot of the franchise. Miller's direction and the cast, especially Theron, are singled out for creating an exhilarating, thematically rich spectacle. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/15/movies/review-mad-max-fury-road-still-angry-after-all-these-years.html)
- **Collider**, Matt Goldberg (A): The critic calls it a potent, powerful tonic and one of the best action films in decades, a feminist blockbuster masterpiece that transforms a relentless chase into a celebration of feminism striking back against patriarchy. They single out the grotesque yet breathtaking designs, practical stuntwork, thematic richness, and performances for praise. [Read](https://collider.com/mad-max-fury-road-review/)
- **/Film**, Russ Fischer (9/10): The critic praises the film as spectacular action filmmaking that rivals The Road Warrior and redefines heroism through Furiosa's character and purpose. The reviewer singles out the clarity of the action direction, stunt work, and world-building for praise, while noting the underdeveloped Wives as a flaw. [Read](https://www.slashfilm.com/537649/mad-max-fury-road-review/)
- **Polygon**, Arthur Gies (90/100, inferred): The critic describes the film as shellshocking and audacious with incredible practical stuntwork in a relentless, artfully choreographed chase that rarely lets up. They single out its vision, economy of storytelling, and subversive focus on Furiosa's character arc and catharsis for praise. [Read](https://www.polygon.com/2015/5/14/8607723/mad-max-fury-road-review)
- **The Wrap** (90/100, inferred): The critic finds that three decades away from the series has not diminished George Miller’s skill at crafting an intense opera of violence and vehicular mayhem. The human element remains front and center amid the packed widescreen vistas and memorable visuals. [Read](https://www.thewrap.com/mad-max-fury-road-review-tom-hardy-charlize-theron-nicholas-hoult/)
- **HeyUGuys**, Nathan McVay (85/100, inferred): The critic highlights the non-stop, blood-pumping action and exhilarating visuals as a roller-coaster ride, praising the world-building, effects, and strong physical performances from Hardy, Theron, and Hoult. It is presented as the ultimate heavy-metal summer blockbuster. [Read](https://www.heyuguys.com/mad-max-fury-road-review/)
- **Deadline**, Pete Hammond: It is a thrilling adventure that makes a great summer movie and works as a standalone film. The critic singles out Charlize Theron’s kick-ass Furiosa and the stunning cinematography for praise. [Read](https://deadline.com/2015/05/mad-max-fury-road-review-tom-hardy-charlize-theron-mel-gibson-action-movie-1201424369/)
- **Den of Geek**, Don Kaye (4.5 out of 5): The critic praises the film's jaw-dropping visuals, practical effects, and feminist outlook, highlighting the action sequences and Charlize Theron's performance as standout elements. It is described as visual cinema at its finest. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/mad-max-fury-road-review/)

## Details

- **Director:** George Miller
- **Director:** George Miller
- **Writer:** Nico Lathouris, George Miller, Brendan McCarthy
- **Cinematography:** John Seale
- **Editor:** Margaret Sixel
- **Music:** Junkie XL
- **Production design:** Colin Gibson
- **Costume design:** Jenny Beavan
- **Producer:** Doug Mitchell, George Miller, P.J. Voeten
- **Cast:** Tom Hardy as Max Rockatansky; Charlize Theron as Imperator Furiosa; Nicholas Hoult as Nux; Hugh Keays-Byrne as Immortan Joe; Josh Helman as Slit; Nathan Jones as Rictus Erectus; Zoë Kravitz as Toast the Knowing; Rosie Huntington-Whiteley as The Splendid Angharad
- **Runtime:** 2h 01m
- **Certificate (MPA):** R
- **Release (the US):** 15 May 2015
- **Genres:** Action, Adventure, Science Fiction
- **Part of:** [Mad Max](https://film.one/collections/mad-max.md) · 4 of 5
- **Also in:** [Best Picture winners](https://film.one/collections/oscar-best-picture.md) (Nominee, 2015); [Golden Globe Best Drama winners](https://film.one/collections/golden-globe-drama.md) (Nominee, 2015)
- **Budget:** $150 million
- **Box office:** $379 million
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MonFNCgK4WE

## Where to watch in the US

- Amazon Prime Video: rent $5.99, uhd
- Apple TV: rent $5.99, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: buy $14.99, hd
- Apple TV: buy $14.99, hd

*Checked 2026-09-15.*

Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, ID, IE, IL, IN, IS, IT, JP, KR, LT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PH, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, TH, TR, UA, US, VN, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## Awards

- Academy Awards 2016: Best Cinematography (nominated); Best Director (nominated); Best Picture (nominated); Best Visual Effects (nominated); Best Costume Design (won); Best Film Editing (won); Best Makeup and Hairstyling (won); Best Production Design (won); Best Sound (won); Best Sound Editing (won)
- AACTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role 2015: AACTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role (nominated)
- AACTA Award for Best Cinematography 2015: AACTA Award for Best Cinematography (won)
- AACTA Award for Best Costume Design 2015: AACTA Award for Best Costume Design (nominated)
- AACTA Award for Best Direction 2015: AACTA Award for Best Direction (won)
- AACTA Award for Best Editing 2015: AACTA Award for Best Editing (won)
- AACTA Award for Best Film 2015: AACTA Award for Best Film (won)
- AACTA Award for Best Original Music Score 2015: AACTA Award for Best Original Music Score (won)
- AACTA Award for Best Original Screenplay 2015: AACTA Award for Best Original Screenplay (nominated)
- AACTA Award for Best Production Design 2015: AACTA Award for Best Production Design (won)
- AACTA Award for Best Sound 2015: AACTA Award for Best Sound (won)
- FIPRESCI Grand Prix 2015: FIPRESCI Grand Prix (won)

## If you liked this

- *The General* (1926), Fi1m 91: A locomotive chase with physical comedy and unusually clear cause and effect. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-general.md)
- *Sorcerer* (1977), Fi1m 88: Four men, dangerous cargo and roads that make every small movement matter. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/sorcerer.md)
- *Police Story* (1985): Physical danger and comic timing, with action that remains easy to follow.
- *Run Lola Run* (1998), Fi1m 82: A woman races against the clock, with editing that makes urgency contagious. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/run-lola-run.md)
- *The Raid* (2011), Fi1m 83: Close combat replaces the convoy, with equally careful attention to physical danger. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-raid.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/mad-max-fury-road