There’s nothing car builders love more than a “Mad Max” theme. Everyone loves to take a car, jack it up on some big tires, paint it black, and weaponize it. But when they do, are they really thinking about “Mad Max”?
Propmakers, when working on actual films, have to consider the narrative of their props. Should a sword be old and rusted, for infantry, or new and shiny for royalty? Should Frodo’s mithril coat be heavy and encumbering, like the expectations placed upon him, or light and airy to represent the aid he’s given on his journey? Every prop tells a story – the story of a character, of a world, and of the object itself. Adam Savage calls it “the history of an object, extant on its skin.”
So let’s think about those three considerations for story – character, world, and object – within the context of “Mad Max.” We’ll start broad and go narrow, so we’ll kick things off with the world: The setting, the reality, of the “Mad Max” franchise.
Max’s world changes from film to film, with the first movie happening Next Sunday A.D. and each successive film showing a few more years of apocalyptic decay (the actual nuclear apocalypse happens between the first and second or second and third movies, depending on who you ask). Most folks aim their builds at the world from the second or fourth movies – where there’s “barely one of anything” to quote production designer Colin Gibson. This is a world of scarcity and violence.
This is apparent in Max’s own Interceptor. The headlight covers are left cracked and broken, since there aren’t spares that Max could use to replace them. The front air dam has been stripped off, the rear holds massive fuel tanks, and the supercharger is controlled by a switch. Max never knows where he’ll next find fuel, so he needs to both store all he can carry and use as little as possible. To stay still in this world is to die.
Next we’ll touch on character, and this is a tricky one. A character doesn’t necessarily have to be beholden to the world in which they live. Max certainly is, a cop-turned-survivor who lives out of his old police cruiser, but someone like Immortan Joe isn’t — he has plentiful resources while others have few.
Yet, still, Immortan Joe’s Gigahorse works within the context of the “Mad Max” apocalypse. Joe may have access to car bodies and V8 engines, but he doesn’t have paint or wax. His car isn’t adorned with frivolities beyond the rear flags (to ensure he can be found in a battle) and weapons (to ensure he wins that battle). Everything else, from the doubled-up bodies to the extra-tall ride height, are to show off Immortan’s power as ruler of the wastes.
Finally comes the story of the prop itself, and for this one I want to talk about a prop that isn’t a car at all – it’s Max’s outfit. The iconic black leather getup isn’t just ratty because it looks cool, but because of the damage it’s accumulated over the course of the films. In the first, it’s a relatively pristine police uniform, but damage amassed over the films wears on the material through every fight scene. Even his leg brace comes from a wound sustained in the first movie – the prop tells the story of everything it’s been through.
With all this in mind, let’s take another look at this Mercedes-Benz 300E currently for sale on Cars and Bids. The fact that it’s a Mercedes from the 1990s, rather than an Australian vehicle from the ‘70s or earlier, actually isn’t a mark against the build – “Fury Road” subtly updated the films’ timeline and included ‘90s vehicles like the R32 Nissan Skyline. In fact, a Mercedes base vehicle could be used to show off its occupant’s wealth, as in the People Eater’s Limousine.
This car would have to have a wealthy occupant, of course, given both the severity and the style of its mods. The entire body of this W124 has been transplanted onto the running gear of an ML430 SUV, which wouldn’t be a small task in the post-apocalypse, and the sides have been adorned with engine parts of all things – grievous excess in the scarcity of post-apocalyptic Australia.
But, while Immortan Joe’s showiness was purposeful, the greeblies on this Mercedes feel random. There are cylinder heads, oil pans, a wholly inaccessible axe, and what appears to be an ammo can with a lawn mower pull starter attached to the side. In a world that’s all about function, these pieces have none – they’re just there for looks. The effort expended on this Mercedes is truly incredible, but the end product doesn’t feel like it belongs in the world of “Mad Max” to us. That focus on form over function is why.
When making your next “Mad Max” build, really think about what the car is meant to say – who owns it, what they’ve been through with the car, and the world in which they live. I assure you, answering some basic questions on characterization will help inform your entire build process. By the end, you’ll have a completed build that truly feels like it belongs in the “Mad Max” world.