Mad Max 2

"The Road Warrior" redirects here. For other uses, see Road warrior (disambiguation).
"Pappagallo" redirects here. For the ice cream brand, see Pappagallo (ice cream).

Mad Max 2
Theatrical release poster
Directed byGeorge Miller
Written by
Based on
Characters
by
Produced byByron Kennedy
StarringMel Gibson
CinematographyDean Semler
Edited by
  • David Stiven
  • Tim Wellburn
  • Michael Balson
Music byBrian May
Production
company
Distributed by
Release date
  • 24 December 1981 (1981-12-24)
Running time
96 minutes[1]
CountryAustralia
LanguageEnglish
BudgetA$4.5 million[2]
Box officeUS$36 million (rentals)[3]

Mad Max 2 (released as The Road Warrior in the United States) is a 1981 Australian post-apocalyptic dystopian action film directed by George Miller, who co-wrote it with Terry Hayes and Brian Hannant. It is the second installment in the Mad Max franchise. The film stars Mel Gibson reprising his role as "Mad Max" Rockatansky and follows a hardened man who helps a community of settlers to defend themselves against a roving band of marauders.[4] Filming took place in locations around Broken Hill, in the Outback of New South Wales.[5]

Mad Max 2 was released in Australia on 24 December 1981 to widespread critical acclaim, with particular praise given to Gibson's performance, the musical score, cinematography, action sequences, costume design and sparing use of dialogue. It was also a box office success, and the film's post-apocalyptic and punk aesthetics helped popularise the genre in film and fiction writing. At the 10th Saturn Awards, the film won Best International Film and was nominated for five more awards: Best Director, Best Actor for Gibson, Best Supporting Actor for Bruce Spence, Best Writing, and Best Costumes for Norma Moriceau. Mad Max 2 is widely hailed as both one of the greatest action movies of all time and one of the greatest sequels ever made,[6] and fan clubs for the film and "road warrior"-themed activities continue into the 21st century.

Preceded by Mad Max in 1979, the film was followed by Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome in 1985, Mad Max: Fury Road in 2015 and Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga in 2024.

  1. ^ "Mad Max 2 (18)". British Board of Film Classification. 19 January 1982. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
  2. ^ Stratton, David (1990). The Avocado Plantation: Boom and Bust in the Australian Film Industry. Pan MacMillan. pp. 81–84.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference ww was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Scheib was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Mad Max 2 / The Road Warrior Filming Locations. Madmaxmovies.com. Retrieved on 18 November 2011.
  6. ^ "Readers polls". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 19 June 2018. Retrieved 4 September 2017.