More on Mad Max: Fury Road
Sep. 7th, 2015 03:40 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kaberettI was accidentally up til 1am keyboardsmashing with my largest smallcousin about this film, you see, because she finally saw it, and two things Occurred to me that I want to toss out to a more general audience.
The first is about form, and function, and value. It's hard to keep a polished surface in the desert; the War Boys are anointed shiny and chrome; Furiosa has a decorative spanner strapped to her arm; metal is valuable and valued and sought after.
And it's in that context that Furiosa (who is good enough that she gets to have enough metal to make her arm; who is good enough that she gets enough metal to decorate her arm; who is good enough that she has her own War Rig that is undeniably unmistakably hers, from her arm painted on the cab door to the kill switches) takes engine grease and paints the top half of her face black, in contradistinction to the War Boys' shiny grille mouths. This is one of the ways in which she sets herself apart and declares herself and her allegiances, and I have a lot of feelings about it.
***
The second is about trauma. Specifically, it's about what happens when (and I am choosing to believe that this one is a when not an if) Max visits the Citadel, he pitches in (because that's what you do), but he's surprised and afraid and unsure when the job he gets given is to oversee the War Pups and the younger War Boys, and he is even more startled to discover that he's really good at it. Because, see, he's got pretty horrifying PTSD, and as we know some of it's around failing children, but the point is that every single one of those kids has had a violent, traumatic, neglectful, abusive childhood, and Max -- he's violent and he's brutal but he chose gentleness. He's good to them and he's good for them and recovery is never, ever linear, but once he's through the initial moment of terror he's cautious and he's gentle and he shows them that for all they've been taught so far they can choose another way.
Inside the Citadel, his name's Reliable.
The first is about form, and function, and value. It's hard to keep a polished surface in the desert; the War Boys are anointed shiny and chrome; Furiosa has a decorative spanner strapped to her arm; metal is valuable and valued and sought after.
And it's in that context that Furiosa (who is good enough that she gets to have enough metal to make her arm; who is good enough that she gets enough metal to decorate her arm; who is good enough that she has her own War Rig that is undeniably unmistakably hers, from her arm painted on the cab door to the kill switches) takes engine grease and paints the top half of her face black, in contradistinction to the War Boys' shiny grille mouths. This is one of the ways in which she sets herself apart and declares herself and her allegiances, and I have a lot of feelings about it.
The second is about trauma. Specifically, it's about what happens when (and I am choosing to believe that this one is a when not an if) Max visits the Citadel, he pitches in (because that's what you do), but he's surprised and afraid and unsure when the job he gets given is to oversee the War Pups and the younger War Boys, and he is even more startled to discover that he's really good at it. Because, see, he's got pretty horrifying PTSD, and as we know some of it's around failing children, but the point is that every single one of those kids has had a violent, traumatic, neglectful, abusive childhood, and Max -- he's violent and he's brutal but he chose gentleness. He's good to them and he's good for them and recovery is never, ever linear, but once he's through the initial moment of terror he's cautious and he's gentle and he shows them that for all they've been taught so far they can choose another way.
Inside the Citadel, his name's Reliable.
(no subject)
Date: 2015-09-07 03:46 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2015-09-08 03:38 am (UTC)Ooh. *nods*
(no subject)
Date: 2015-09-08 11:43 am (UTC)like, one little War Boy lashing out and pushing another because he's scared and you respond to fear with aggression, and Max puts a short end to that by crouching in front of the little boy who's crying in fear/anger, and gets a push as well bc they were taught to make people respect your space. but Max just says, "Nup, use your words. Why you angry?"
and he monosyllabic talks the kid through why he's angry, and brings the two together with one of those patented apologies on both sides thing.
basically i love dad!max, and someone will have to fight me to make me believe he won't always try to make things better.
(no subject)
Date: 2015-09-11 02:27 pm (UTC)!!!! ♥