A terrible sense of amorality clings like a rash to Mad Max, which is the core reason it’s still shocking to watch today. George Miller’s 1979 classic is considered a violent film but the vast majority of that violence is only implied – such as during its gut-busting finale, when Mel Gibson’s titular road warrior gives a bad guy the chance to save himself only by hacking through his own ankle.
In terms of graphic violence, Mad Max pales in comparison to Miller’s earlier work Violence in the Cinema … Part 1, his 1972 short film that had a rare screening at the Australian Centre of the Moving Image on the weekend, as part of Melbourne international film festival. Like most shorts from that era, it looks homemade and scratchy, though its rudimentary production values can’t disguise a hint of Miller’s bravado. It also stands apart from others in that it’s absolutely disgusting – the kind of incendiary early work one might expect from provocateurs like Lars von Trier or Harmony Korine.
