Social break down in MM1

[Nikk51]

Hi - just joined this forum, there is some great info up here!

I have been recently watching all four of the films again, since Fury Road re-kindled my interest. What I find really interesting is the level of dystopian social breakdown in all the films, how it progressively gets worse with each film.

Watching the first film last night, it seems to me very little social break down has happened, outside of a general recession that has caused unemployment and some fuel shortages. Public institutions are clearly underfunded, but still exist - police, hospitals, ambulances are still clearly functioning effectively.

Outside of this money is still being used, people have jobs - there's doesn't seem to be a food shortage and society seems to be functioning normally. Shops and cafes are functioning, with people using them - trains are running. Peopele have nice houses, (ie Max) running water, power - and there is both TV and radio etc. So for me outside of the marauding gangs - I only see a hint of the more severe breakdown in the next films, a taste of things to come? Also when you compare what's happening in Places like Syria and the likes of Isis and their actions - it doesn't seem too bad at all and certainly not post apocalyptic.

In the second and following films there has clearly been an apocalypse of some kind - all public institutions have gone, money doesn't exist there is no rule of law, no law enforcement etc basically anarchy. But it doesn't seem to be the case in the first film?

[roadwarriormfp]

Hi Nikk,

There is a bit more background to MM1 in the novel which came out as the movie was released.

The oil shortage is the major cause of the breakdown of society. (Hence the opening montage in MM2 talking about the two warrior tribes who went to war, the USSR and the WEST).
Social break down had started in the MM1 world, hence the formation of the MFP.
The regular state police forces were ill-equipped and underfunded to break up the roaming gangs, whose main focus was stealing fuel.
The MFP was formed as a special federal force who was allowed to basically do anything to protect the fuel on the major highways which crossed central Australia.
There was only ever about 80 officers in total Australia wide.
In the film when you see max entering the prohibited areas, those were basically areas where local police couldnt reach, areas of lawlessness which were patrolled by the MFP.

"The last of the V8" refers to the fact that production of V8 motorcars had ceased due to the high cost/ lack of fuel supplies.

While everything did look somewhat normal if you look closer you can see things were untidy, falling apart. Yes towns existed, but only barely.

World war 3 had not started in MM1, but had started by MM2.

MM1 was never post apocalyptic. (I think this is a term used incorrectly only recently by people who havent really watched the movie or read about what Miller and Kennedy had to say about it back when it was made).

A very good Aussie movie which fits in quite well with MM1 in terms of social break down during a world wide economic collapse is "The Rover".
Its almost like a sidebar story (even though its modern).

[blastermaster]

I agree that the first film is not post-apocalyptic (rather, it's dystopian future). You could argue it is by definition pre-apocalyptic, given the opening reel of the second film makes it clear the kind of events that have transpired since the first film ended i.e. countries go to war, governments collapse. The second is based in a post-nuclear society i.e. post-apocalyptic.

Although I'm not sure about saying WWW 3 definitely hadn't started yet in MM1. I agree that is most likely the case. However one way to read the film, which fits the broader narrative, is that the people in the first have some idea what is coming (thus explaining the increased sense of anarchy). So perhaps a new World War has started and the effects of it haven't fully made their way to Australia yet.

I think charting the social break down in the films is also very interesting Nikk. In the second it's the fall-our of a nuclear war. In the third, a more concentrated effort towards renewable energy i.e. pig shit. And in the fourth the scarcity of water...

[Nikk51]

Thanks for your replies - i really like the term 'pre-apocalyptic' I think it describes the world in MM1 just right. I agree with you both that people are aware that things are falling apart, some people are still trying to hold onto more traditional 'methods' is the lawyers and beaurocrats who allow Jonny the boy to go free after the no show in court, then People like fifi who are are between the two - Ie 'do what you like as long as the paper works clean' and the toe cutter and the rest who have abandoned civilisation completely.

I think things in the rest of the world might be much worse and Australia is lagging behind in a good way, as it has always been so what self sufficient in terms of food and raw material production so can still function without trade with the rest of the world. But the world wide shortages of things like oil are catching up with it, and by the time of MM2 it's fully caught up, and by thunderdome it's fully post apocalyptic - certainly nuclear, and all vestiges of the old society are just a memory.

[Foxtrot X-Ray]

Here's another thought..

Ignoring Fury Road for the moment, I'd tend to agree that the nukes were used somewhere in between, MM1 & MM2RW.

However, if we add a couple of things to the mix, we get some... confusing results.

#1. The Comics tied into Fury Road are very possibly supposed to be Canonical and these reference events of MM1, 2 & 3, so a continuity can be applied to all four movies.

#2. Miller has been quoted as saying that Fury Road is FIFTY Years after the Nuclear war!

Max was in his early twenties in MM1, so this means that either by the time Fury Road happens, Max is in his SEVENTIES, or the Nuclear exchange occurred some ten years before he was even born. (Looks forties-ish i Fury Road)

[Taipan]

Foxtrot X-Ray check this out:

http://madmax.wikia.com/wiki/Timeline_o ... l_trilogy)

I'm not sure if I've included my recent discovery in there that Terry Hayes did not rule out the the possibility of a limited nuclear exchange in the Northern Hemisphere before the events of MM.

Australia got off easy before the events of MM, but they new what was coming, hence the increasing madness over the course of the first 2 movies until the bombs dropped shortly after MM2.

http://madmax.wikia.com/wiki/Timeline_o ... franchise)

This one will show a lot of inconsistencies between the original timeline and the rebooted franchise's timeline, incl the fact that Max is still in his mid-late 30's in Fury Road.