Why I'm rooting for Mad Max: Fury Road at the Oscars

1) I watched some 100-plus films in cinemas last year, but no film had me glued to my seat, mostly spellbound, and totally invested in the fate of the characters than Mad Max: Fury Road. I distinctly remember being so swept with the hectic pace and incessant vigour of the film that I needed the 10 minute-interval to settle down and realise the magnitude of what had unfolded in front of my 3D-glass wearing eyes.

Director George Miller with the help of stunt coordinator Guy Norris and then 70-year-old cinematographer John Seale has staged such well-choreographed and gorgeous action scenes that all the Marvel superhero flicks seem tame in comparison.

The biggest regret of 2015 is not being able to experience the film more than once on the big screen. In fact here is a plea: Dear Warner Bros, kindly release the film just in time for the Oscars.

2) Imperator Furiosa is the queen of the world. She is brave, beautiful and a fighter whose handicap is hardly a deterrent as she sets out on a noble mission. The prosthetic arm, the kohl eyes, the soot-covered forehead, the bandaged blouse and the buzz cut only add to her legend.

Oscar-winning actress Charlize Theron has brought panache to the part, making Furiosa one of the most unforgettable female characters of the last decade. Theron’s daredevil exploits on screen are a delight to behold and her gaze so captivating that it makes everyone around her look like lesser mortals including the hero, Max (Tom Hardy).

Hardy and Theron are said not to have the best time while making the film. Once the film wrapped up, decorum was restored as Hardy gifted Theron a self-portrait with the following words: "You are an absolute nightmare, BUT you are also fucking awesome."

Awesome she is. It’s the year of powerful female performances in Hollywood and it’s a pity that Theron’s work has been overlooked.

Credit goes to writers George Miller, Brendan McCarthy and Nico Lathouris for giving us a post-apocalyptic action entertainer, which may have the name of the hero in the film title, but whose emotional core is its badass heroine. It's hard to imagine the world of Mad Max: Fury Road without her.

3) It has the soundtrack of the year. Junkie XL’s over-the-top background score enlivens the crazy proceedings. The guitar and drums are used effectively to signal the persistent threat of Immortan Joe’s army. As the action escalates, the Dutch composer takes the tempo a few notches higher.

This is best experienced with The Doof Warrior, the wild man perched on a truck with his blazing guitar. A testament to Mad Max’s appeal lies in how even in a moment of high tension, the entry of The Doof Warrior manages to draw laughs. Miller may not have had a ball making the film, but he sure ensures the audience does.

4) Behind all the booms and bangs, there is a politically relevant film. An evil dictator ruling an empire full of starving slaves, an army of brainwashed soldiers and a secret prison of sex slaves whose job it is to produce a healthy male heir.

Depleting water resources and sand storms. A stark landscape in which a solitary tree turns into a thing of beauty. In the current conflict-ridden world, Mad Max's dystopian nightmare seems unnervingly real. 

5) Reviving a franchise is often seen as seen as a means by which the studio looks to multiply its fortunes. But Mad Max: Fury Road is a film which didn’t just make moolah but it did so by taking a formulaic format and pushing it to extraordinary limits.

Think of it as Rohit Shetty’s ultimate wet dream. Cars are blown up. High-octane fights occur. There is a chase in which the good gals try to outrun the bad guys with the help of precisely two good men. There is a journey with a purpose and a destination.

And then there is a twist. Chaos reigns in Mad Max, but the storytelling is straightforward. This is poetry in frenetic motion.

6) Marvel at the mad genius of George Miller. Two decades had passed since the last Mad Max adventure when Miller decided to continue the Mad Max series with a fourth instalment. September 11 attacks would cause the production to stall.

Miller would have to wait for another decade until he hit another hurdle having to move from the original location, the Australian outback, to the world's oldest desert in Namibia. Through all the setbacks, Miller persisted. That he was able to make this demanding film when he was 68 is even more amazing.

Recent news that he wouldn't like to make the fifth feature in the series while disappointing is also not surprising. Give him the Oscar already!