Max Rockatansky
Encyclopedia
"Mad" Max Rockatansky, sometimes referred to as The Road Warrior and The Man with No Name, is the main character
from director George Miller
's Mad Max franchise
, appearing in the films Mad Max
, Mad Max 2, and Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome
. Max was played by actor Mel Gibson
.
s of a dystopic Australia
. Max is quiet, rarely speaking to any great extent, and never paying much attention to his steadily-increasing reputation. He and his wife, Jessie, have an infant son, Sprog.
Though the best officer on the force, he is secretly afraid that he is becoming as cold and heartless as the criminals he pursues. He reaches a breaking point when a gang of bikers known as the Zed Runners attack his partner, Goose, and burn him alive inside his own car; Max announces that he is quitting the force and goes on holiday with Jessie and Sprog. The bikers follow them, however, and eventually kill Max's wife and child. Overcome with grief and rage, he systematically pursues and kills most of the gang members. He is last seen driving out into the wasteland, leaving the fading remnants of civilization behind him.
, discovers a besieged group of people manning a remote oil drilling station and refinery
. After losing nearly all of his remaining worldly possessions, including his dog and his car, the "Pursuit Special
", Max, with few options, agrees to help the refinery's denizens to escape through hordes of marauding motorcycle gang members.
In this film, although Max has lost everything, he is able to find, at least in part, his humanity once again. However, he still cannot form any significant bonds with others and chooses to continue wandering the Earth alone.
In this movie, Max is able to finally complete the full circle. He regains his humanity and soul, once again, and sacrifices his own well being for the sake of others.
In the first film Max is 23 years old, in the third he is 41.
, though he drives a different vehicle (an MFP Interceptor) earlier in the first film. Between the second and third movies, after the destruction of the Pursuit Special, Max acquires a heavily-modified Ford F-150, which is later taken by Aunty's men, and which he uses in the climactic scene to help the children escape.
He is clad in black leather riding clothes which consist in a heavy duty jacket (after the events of the first film, he cuts off the right sleeve and added a football shoulder pad), trousers, gloves and engineer boots. In Beyond Thunderdome his clothes shows signs of damage and repairs, he wears a cowboy boot in his left foot, an engineer boot with patched sole in the other foot and doesn't wear gloves, at the beginning of the movie he adorns a turban and cloak to shield himself from desert sandstorms and also wears a black cotton tunic with long sleeves under his jacket. All of this clothing gives him basic protection against light melee weapons and threats.
Max is armed with a Smith & Wesson Model 28 revolver (which he never uses, or even draws) during his time with the Main Force Patrol, though after the deaths of Jesse and Sprog, he favours a sawed-off Savage/Stevens 311A shotgun. In the Road Warrior he wears a Sam Browne leather belt with shoulder strap, he carries a crescent wrench, a British Army knife, a lockpick, fire brigade tools, Binoculars, his aforementioned sawed-off shotgun and a Mark II combat knife in one of his boots. He gains several more weapons during the course of his time in the wasteland until it is confiscated upon his arrival in Bartertown.
In the third film Max wears two belts, one of them has ammunition shoulder straps attached to it, and is an old British police belt. Hanging below the British belt is another belt with a pocket and bullet loops and is connected to a black leather holster. He is shown to have a plethora of weapons and some tools hidden on his person, including his shotgun, a Mauser C96
, a Webley revolver, a Smith & Wesson Model 29 revolver, a crossbow
, a collection of knives, and a geiger counter all of which are confiscated. He has one hidden weapon, referred to in the novelization as his "Livesaver", being a small knife carefully concealed in the handle of a flyswatter. He also carries a naval bosun whistle, which he later uses in his fight with Blaster during the Thunderdome challenge..
Max displays fast reflexes in Mad Max 2 by grabbing a snake before it can bite him. This leads Auntie Entity to choose him to kill Master Blaster in Mad Max 3, as he was the only one to survive her "audition".
Max also displays a fair amount of mechanical and electronics ability, performing minor repairs on his own vehicle and rigging it to explode should someone tamper with his fuel tanks.
Rockatansky is a survivalist in the wasteland and can tolerate discomfort and pain in achieving a goal. But unlike many movie protagonists, Max is susceptible to realistic and sometimes permanent injury. His left knee is blown out by a gunshot towards the end of the first movie so he walks with a slight limp with the help of a leg brace in the second film. He also wears a bandage on the knee in Mad Max 3. An injury to his left eye as a result of the crash of the Pursuit Special in the second film is evident years later in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome.
ranked the character eleventh on its list of the top twenty "All-Time Coolest Heroes in Pop Culture" in April 2009. The magazine also listed the characters portrayed by Kevin Costner in Waterworld
and The Postman
as "copycat descendants" of Max Rockatansky.
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
from director George Miller
George Miller (producer)
George Miller is an Australian film director, screenwriter, producer, and former medical doctor. He is most well known for his work on the Mad Max movies, but has been involved in a wide range of projects, including the Oscar-winning Happy Feet and "Babe" family films.Miller is the older brother...
's Mad Max franchise
Mad Max (franchise)
The Mad Max franchise refers to a series of futuristic films, taking place in the "Mad Max Universe", that tell a story of breakdown of society, murder, and vengeance. The first Mad Max was an Australian action film directed by George Miller and written by Miller and Byron Kennedy, released in 1979...
, appearing in the films Mad Max
Mad Max
Mad Max is a 1979 Australian dystopian action film directed by George Miller and revised by Miller and Byron Kennedy over the original script by James McCausland. The film stars Mel Gibson, who was unknown at the time. Its narrative based around the traditional western genre, Mad Max tells a story...
, Mad Max 2, and Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome is a 1985 Australian post-apocalyptic film directed by George Miller and George Ogilvie, written by Miller, Doug Mitchell and Terry Hayes, and starring Mel Gibson and Tina Turner. It is the third installment in the action movie Mad Max franchise...
. Max was played by actor Mel Gibson
Mel Gibson
Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in...
.
Mad Max
In Mad Max, Max Rockatansky is a Main Force Patrol officer fighting for peace on the roadRoad
A road is a thoroughfare, route, or way on land between two places, which typically has been paved or otherwise improved to allow travel by some conveyance, including a horse, cart, or motor vehicle. Roads consist of one, or sometimes two, roadways each with one or more lanes and also any...
s of a dystopic Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. Max is quiet, rarely speaking to any great extent, and never paying much attention to his steadily-increasing reputation. He and his wife, Jessie, have an infant son, Sprog.
Though the best officer on the force, he is secretly afraid that he is becoming as cold and heartless as the criminals he pursues. He reaches a breaking point when a gang of bikers known as the Zed Runners attack his partner, Goose, and burn him alive inside his own car; Max announces that he is quitting the force and goes on holiday with Jessie and Sprog. The bikers follow them, however, and eventually kill Max's wife and child. Overcome with grief and rage, he systematically pursues and kills most of the gang members. He is last seen driving out into the wasteland, leaving the fading remnants of civilization behind him.
Mad Max 2 (aka The Road Warrior)
In this film, set less than five years after the first film, Max, while wandering the wasteland of the outbackOutback
The Outback is the vast, remote, arid area of Australia, term colloquially can refer to any lands outside the main urban areas. The term "the outback" is generally used to refer to locations that are comparatively more remote than those areas named "the bush".-Overview:The outback is home to a...
, discovers a besieged group of people manning a remote oil drilling station and refinery
Refinery
A refinery is a production facility composed of a group of chemical engineering unit processes and unit operations refining certain materials or converting raw material into products of value.-Types of refineries:Different types of refineries are as follows:...
. After losing nearly all of his remaining worldly possessions, including his dog and his car, the "Pursuit Special
Pursuit Special
The Pursuit Special is the fictional model of car driven by the officers of the fictional MFP in the Mad Max franchise of films.-Mad Max:...
", Max, with few options, agrees to help the refinery's denizens to escape through hordes of marauding motorcycle gang members.
In this film, although Max has lost everything, he is able to find, at least in part, his humanity once again. However, he still cannot form any significant bonds with others and chooses to continue wandering the Earth alone.
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome
In this edition of the Mad Max series, it has been eighteen years since Max Rockatansky left his life behind him following his revenge killings of the Toecutter and his gang, and his later defeat of Humungus. Since that time he has wandered through the outback, scavenging whatever he needed for survival. His hair has grown long, and very few remnants of his old police uniform remain recognizable.In this movie, Max is able to finally complete the full circle. He regains his humanity and soul, once again, and sacrifices his own well being for the sake of others.
Physical appearance
Max Rockatansky is a man of average medium height, with a strong, lean build.In the first film Max is 23 years old, in the third he is 41.
Equipment and clothes
During the first two films, Max makes use of a Pursuit SpecialPursuit Special
The Pursuit Special is the fictional model of car driven by the officers of the fictional MFP in the Mad Max franchise of films.-Mad Max:...
, though he drives a different vehicle (an MFP Interceptor) earlier in the first film. Between the second and third movies, after the destruction of the Pursuit Special, Max acquires a heavily-modified Ford F-150, which is later taken by Aunty's men, and which he uses in the climactic scene to help the children escape.
He is clad in black leather riding clothes which consist in a heavy duty jacket (after the events of the first film, he cuts off the right sleeve and added a football shoulder pad), trousers, gloves and engineer boots. In Beyond Thunderdome his clothes shows signs of damage and repairs, he wears a cowboy boot in his left foot, an engineer boot with patched sole in the other foot and doesn't wear gloves, at the beginning of the movie he adorns a turban and cloak to shield himself from desert sandstorms and also wears a black cotton tunic with long sleeves under his jacket. All of this clothing gives him basic protection against light melee weapons and threats.
Max is armed with a Smith & Wesson Model 28 revolver (which he never uses, or even draws) during his time with the Main Force Patrol, though after the deaths of Jesse and Sprog, he favours a sawed-off Savage/Stevens 311A shotgun. In the Road Warrior he wears a Sam Browne leather belt with shoulder strap, he carries a crescent wrench, a British Army knife, a lockpick, fire brigade tools, Binoculars, his aforementioned sawed-off shotgun and a Mark II combat knife in one of his boots. He gains several more weapons during the course of his time in the wasteland until it is confiscated upon his arrival in Bartertown.
In the third film Max wears two belts, one of them has ammunition shoulder straps attached to it, and is an old British police belt. Hanging below the British belt is another belt with a pocket and bullet loops and is connected to a black leather holster. He is shown to have a plethora of weapons and some tools hidden on his person, including his shotgun, a Mauser C96
Mauser C96
The Mauser C96 is a semi-automatic pistol that was originally produced by German arms manufacturer Mauser from 1896 to 1937...
, a Webley revolver, a Smith & Wesson Model 29 revolver, a crossbow
Crossbow
A crossbow is a weapon consisting of a bow mounted on a stock that shoots projectiles, often called bolts or quarrels. The medieval crossbow was called by many names, most of which derived from the word ballista, a torsion engine resembling a crossbow in appearance.Historically, crossbows played a...
, a collection of knives, and a geiger counter all of which are confiscated. He has one hidden weapon, referred to in the novelization as his "Livesaver", being a small knife carefully concealed in the handle of a flyswatter. He also carries a naval bosun whistle, which he later uses in his fight with Blaster during the Thunderdome challenge..
Abilities
Max's most apparent skill is combative driving. At the time of Mad Max, he was considered the "top pursuit man" in the MFP. He can easily pursue or evade gangs in the wasteland, whether overrunning another vehicle at high speed or ramming vehicles off the road. This skill is apparent with trucks as well as automobiles. He drives a tractor-trailer truck after sustaining serious injuries in Mad Max 2. He can also shoot accurately with one hand while driving with the other.Max displays fast reflexes in Mad Max 2 by grabbing a snake before it can bite him. This leads Auntie Entity to choose him to kill Master Blaster in Mad Max 3, as he was the only one to survive her "audition".
Max also displays a fair amount of mechanical and electronics ability, performing minor repairs on his own vehicle and rigging it to explode should someone tamper with his fuel tanks.
Rockatansky is a survivalist in the wasteland and can tolerate discomfort and pain in achieving a goal. But unlike many movie protagonists, Max is susceptible to realistic and sometimes permanent injury. His left knee is blown out by a gunshot towards the end of the first movie so he walks with a slight limp with the help of a leg brace in the second film. He also wears a bandage on the knee in Mad Max 3. An injury to his left eye as a result of the crash of the Pursuit Special in the second film is evident years later in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome.
Reception
Entertainment WeeklyEntertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
ranked the character eleventh on its list of the top twenty "All-Time Coolest Heroes in Pop Culture" in April 2009. The magazine also listed the characters portrayed by Kevin Costner in Waterworld
Waterworld
Waterworld is a 1995 post-apocalyptic science fiction film. The film was directed by Kevin Reynolds and co-written by Peter Rader and David Twohy. It is based on Rader's original 1986 screenplay and stars Kevin Costner, who also produced it. It was distributed by Universal Pictures...
and The Postman
The Postman (film)
The Postman is an American post-apocalyptic epic film based on the 1985 novel of the same name by David Brin. It was filmed in northeastern Washington , Fidalgo Island, Washington, central Oregon and Tucson, Arizona, and was directed by Kevin Costner, who also stars in the film...
as "copycat descendants" of Max Rockatansky.