Thunderdome was the 1st Mad Max movie I saw as a kid. It's one of my favorite movies and my family still quotes it today. Like, literally a few hours ago!

Tina Turner had the legs of a goddess and the face (and age) to protect them.

I've always felt that Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome was not a "wake" after the destruction of Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior, as you put it, but the reconstruction, the resurrection, the rebuilding. As Auntie Entity points out, "where there was once despair, now there is hope... civilization; I'll do anything to protect it." The first two movies dealt with living in a sadistic and violent world... now, after 15 years, the remnants of that world are left to figure out the path forward, how to rebuild... and while I know a lot of people don't like the movie once the kids show up, I always felt it was two sides of the same coin... the future. One side - Bartertown - picks up the pieces, trying to learn from the past, but ultimately still realizing that one has to accept that brutality and violence are part of the world. This is why in the end, Auntie ultimately lets Max go. She could've easily killed him, or taken him back to Bartertown to be propped up as an example or crucified or something... she doesn't. Despite her calling for "no mercy" at the start of the chase, she understands the need for it lest she and the rest of the world once again fall into chaos and destruction. The other side - the kids - also picking up the pieces, but with less knowledge and more of a clean slate. Children ARE that, aren't they? A clean start, fresh and unspoiled by the sins of the past. I always loved that sequence when they're flying over the ruins of Sydney, and the feeling of mourning reflected in their faces (and in the excellent music) as they see what once was, how those who came before them had something so beautiful and then allowed themselves to destroy it... why? And then "the tell," and how it comes full circle with a little more knowledge of what once was, but still knowing only their community, the understanding that all they have - all we have - is each other. At least, that's how I always saw it. George Miller's grief and ultimate disinterest aside, I do think he was telling an interesting story that does complete the cycle for a character like Max, which that nightmare sequence would've added to. He has become no better than a violent marauder like the ones who took his family, the ones he's been fighting... and for what? To end up alone? Scavenging? Just like Pappagallo said in Mad Max 2, "You think you're the only one who's lost something? We all have, but we haven't given up." The whole trilogy is a hero's journey, and perhaps had there been a movie or a story in between The Road Warrior and Thunderdome - something to lead more gradually into the changes in the world, then maybe Thunderdome would've made even more sense. But now with Fury Road, Max's world is not really a "linear" one - I don't think we need "canon" or a chronology to be able to tell good stories about a character in a world... the details need not match up if they service the kind of story one is trying to tell. I see the first three as a trilogy, and Fury Road as a new cycle... same character, same world, different cycle...

Less brutal or not, this is the movie which everyone quotes.

We Don't Need Another Hero is one of the best movie songs of the 80's.

Thunderdome was my favorite of all of them. Tina was epic.

Bonus fact: The small actor that plays Master was one of the circus troupe in Tod Browning’s infamous 1932 film ‘Freaks’.

I liked Beyond Thunderdome. I always thought the pilot was the same person because Max does seem to recognize him and immediately says "you have a plane and it might just save your life".

Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome is a great movie.

I loved Tina in this movie. She played the part so well. She was a better singer turned actress than Madonna.

Jedediah was played by Bruce SPENCE, not "SPENCER." A small point, but as a Bruce Spence fan, an important one. Spence went on to appear in Matrix, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Narnia, Pirates of the Caribbean, Dark City, Queen of the Damned, and too many other films to mention, as well as TV series like Farscape, Beastmaster, Legend of the Seeker, and more. He has arguably done more SF, fantasy, and other genre filmwork than any living actor.

Saw it at the theater when it came out. Excellent then and now. Big fan of the first two and was not disappointed with Dome.

Confession: this movie is kinda my favorite of the four.

Beyond Thunderdome is great.

Beyond Thunderstone was the biggest Mad Max movie in the states. In fact most of us who were kids found Mad Max through Thunderdome. This movie was also shown all over TBS, and the hit song "we don't need another hero" was all over the radio.

This is the best one in my opinion. Its were i first discovered mad max as a child. Was always on showtime and HBO

Thunderdome had great characters and good story and most important has heart.

I like Thunderdome because it swings the world towards that of salvation and civilization. The first was the decline, the second was rock bottom, and the third shows that the world could be better by the end. It's a good trilogy in that sense. Great characters and action, despite it only having one car chase. Fury Road and I think further Mad Max films will be like the new Western type where the stranger comes into town and is the catalyst towards making things work out. The kids civilization is brilliant as well.

Thunderdome is the TEMPLE OF DOOM of the mad Max flicks. Not at all bad but just NOT QUITE at the same level.

Beyond Thunderdome was in theaters at the same time as The Goonies. I remember my uncle catching a ride with us when we went to see Goonies so he could see Mad Max 3

This movie also has my favorite Mad Max scene in it. When he gets to town and they ask him to remove ALL his weapons!!!! The looks on the guards faces!!!!!!

I am not your Captain Walker. I'm the man that keeps Mr. Death in his pocket.

I have one for you.....and you kind of touched on it with the PG-13 explanation: “Beyond Thunderdome is actually a children’s movie” Yep. Quite a few people think this. There is even an article written explaining this that I read years ago online. In it I seem to recall the author even finding where George Miller actually said something that even supported this. This movie is borderline silly in a lot of scenes compared to I and II and much more compassionate. Then on top of that a troop of children plus Max basically take on the town army and essentially win. So many examples. As a kid in the 80s I loved this movie.

News flash for Minty...for a lot of us in the U.S., Beyond Thunderdome was the first Mad Max movie we had seen. It played incessantly on HBO back in the day, and I was in my 20's before I even knew the other two movies existed.

Jane Fonda could not have convincingly pulled off Aunty Entity. I believe Tina Turner was not only the right choice, but the only choice.

"The knowin' and the doin' " is a phrase I still use.

I saw Thunderdome as a kid unaware of the previous existence of the Mad Max movies, therefore I loved this movie and was a childhood favorite. Another great video, thanks Minty...

This was the first of the movies that I ever saw, and I really enjoyed it. It was an iconic movie of my childhood because it inspired me to think more deeply about society.

"Bust a deal, then face the wheel!"

Beyond Thunderdome was the first Mad Max I saw in the 80's, we rented the vhs 3-4 times in a row

Bruce Campbell would have made an awesome Mad Max for TV!! Wish that was a thing! It would have been epic!

I remember Miller in an interview talking about the continuity of Mad Max beyond the first 2 movies and what he said, paraphrasing is that it is basically the same story being told over and over again by different generations word to mouth as people thousands of years ago did. So Mad Max over time basically becomes a mythical character. The story is basically the same every time but over generations of the story being told it tends to drift here and there. Basically like a game of 'Telephone' played over hundreds of years. I really liked that explanation and if you look at the series in that light, It actually makes a lot of sense.

Bruce Campbell as Mad Max would have been groovy baby!

Underrated Classic. I was lucky to see it in a Theatre.

8:45 I always assumed that the gyro captain left with those people at the end of Roadwarrior, had a child with that young girl with the Dr Seuss haircut, something happened to her, so he built a jalopy airplane, took his kid and went off into the wasteland finding Max along the way. The one thing that confused me was that max and "Jedidiah" act like they don't know each other.

"We don't need another copyright infringement." Oh, I felt that for you Minty.

I always liked this one. All of them I thought were fun, entertaining and each one brought something different to the series.

I liked the 2nd one best. But Beyond Thunderdome was still pretty decent.

My favorite line is "You can shovel shit, can't you?"

I actually saw Thunderdome first, and I thought it was strong enough to interest me in the other two. There is a huge difference in tone, but a lot can change in twenty years, so it still makes sense to me. Tina Turner was amazing, and she lent it a lot of power playing Auntie, as well as both the songs. I still watch it now and then.

I loved this movie. This one is up there with Road Warrior for me. Completely different feel with these two movies but both so good!!!!

RIP Hugh Keays-Byrne..he should’ve been in Thunderdome, might have helped it out for some people..I still love this movie

I really wanted to like Beyond Thunderdome. I was in high school when it came out. My friends and I cut school to go watch it the week it came out. Imagine being a teenager, giddy from playing hooky and watching Mad Max at a movie theatre? I think we may have even smuggled beer in! We probably looked so pathetic as we slunk out at the end. It wasn't so much bad, as just boring. The worst part were the pop songs. They kind of sucked the life out of it. With the previous movies you could imagine Mad Max as this post apocalyptic punk rock world. But Mad Max 3 was apocalyptic VH1. It's Mad Max, with my PARENTS music! Thank god Fury Road redeemed the franchise.

Wait, Fury Road was rated "R", not PG-13.

I've seen Mad Max and Road Warrior probably 50 times each. I couldnt even sit thru Thunderdome once. Bored me to death. I've never even tried to watch it again.

Still better than Smokey and the Bandit 3!

I loved beyond Thunderdome. It was the first one that I saw, and was what inspired me to watch the first two.

Ol' Mints upping the production quality for 2021! No really, keep up the good work. Most of these "Top 10" formats always have the SAME tired material that people usually already know. You always have info no one else has and many times things I didn't know. Been watching for years now and your output never falters. Keep it up my man!

The two pilots are twins. "It's never twins." - Sherlock

Beyond Thunderdome is actually my favorite mad max movie.

We don’t need another Hero is on my playlist. Love that track. And the Bartertown theme. Love the sax. The metal sounds. The whole thing. This one of my favourite flicks. I like fun movies. Fun and silly. And Mel Gibson before we went crazy

Beyond the thunderdome was the first of the series that I saw, so I loved it. Tina Turner was so great in it.

Ladies and gentlemen ,boys and girls dying time here

What's really funny is the kids in the movie try to leave their radiation free clean water filled Paradise for an old rusty City and somehow see it as an improvement.

I like to think that the characters Bruce played in The Road Warrior and Beyond Thunderdome were one and the same and he was stunned to see Max running through his home. He wouldn't have recognized Max in Thunderdome's opening scene with Max swaddled up against the wind and sand. Therefore, he had waylaid Max without knowing who he was. Later, with Max's hair cut, his face visible and his MFP jacket clearly visible the pilot was caught flat-footed and perhaps tried to play off the transgression from the opening scene.

So many good quotes from this movie even today. I still hear “two men enter, one man leaves.” Echoed in many settings. But “dying times here” is probably up there with “ya killing me smalls!”

When this came out, nobody I knew, me included, had even seen the first two movies. So, we watched Beyond Thunderdome as a stand-alone. I didn't see the other two until at least a decade later.

I always felt Max's story didn't end in 2, if he had gone with the settlers at the end maybe but he's still the warrior of the wastelands, still by himself. Here at the end he goes back to the feral kids to be their guide and protector, he's finally found a purpose and family again "We're all going to stay right here, we're all going to live a long time and we're all going to be grateful" (notably he says 'We'). We see Max gradually regain his humanity, refusing to kill Blaster and then sacrificing himself at the end, the Max of the first movie is back. Also we see civilization which had crumbled in the first movie beginning rebuild itself, Aunties creation of Bartertown is rough and ready but it IS the future, a return to commerce and the rule of law. In MM4 we start seeing the return of human rights.

I always felt that Thunderdome was just one of the many adventures of Max. This one wasn't as crazy as the last two but who knows what the next one would bring.

I like how he describes Beyond Thunder Dome as the wake of the Mad Max 2 explosion.

Minty could pass as a road warrior. He just needs a Mohawk and a black leather motorcycle suit with football shoulder and knee pads.

8:14 We don't need another copyright infringement! Haha Hilarious!

All three originals stand on their own, and they can be watched separately without the need for each other. Watching all three takes us on a journey through a post apocalyptic world that descends into chaos, and then tries to claw its way back towards civilization with the help of our hero.

I noticed in the background a Black Widow Matchbox Car and it got me thinking. I vote for a, "10 Things You Didn't Know About the Toys in My Background shots". Every year you can do a new spot on more items as you add and subtract to your background toys, books, etc.

I remember reading a movie magazine when MM3 came out that talked about an unexpected issue that came up when the location set of the crashed 747 (built for the film) wound up in the approach pattern of a major airport. Passengers looked down and saw what looked like a plane crash, causing distress and questions that the airlines couldn't answer. Even the pilots, seeing the set, would call in reports of a downed airliner to the airport causing more confusion.

Happy new year all, and God bless to anyone reading this. May you all have a better year than the last one. We are all living history and will all be part of this shit storm in the books. Be safe and keep your loved ones close....

Minty, you've only gotten better with time. Please, keep up the good work. Loving it. Even the way to remix themes to sidestep copyright crap. Nice.

that’s the thing about 80s movies....most of them were inadvertently geared towards kids...even the R-Rated ones had this silliness to them that i wouldn’t have liked if i was an adult back then

"I'm the man who keeps Mr. Dead in his pocket".

Happy New Year. Have a good one , Minty.

Dude, I love the videos and you definitely helped through 2020. Great entertainment when I wasn't working during the shit show we all call 2020!

Thunderdome was the first Mad Max movie I saw. Dad had it on Laserdisc and felt that it would be the safe one for me and my sister to watch (I was 7 or 8 at the time). It would later evolve into me growing to love the Mad Max series, then also into my eventual love of the Fallout series from playing the 1st and 2nd one at my friends house, and eventually the whole post-apocalyptic genre of film and media entirely. Even though it might be considered the odd one out of the Mad Max series, it will always will have a place in my heart just because of that, and I can still recite Master's plea to the Thunderdome crowd when Max knocks Blaster's helmet off from heart lmao

One minor thing that bothers me about Mad Max 3 is the exile scene with the horse. That horse is too valuable to throw away like that. Horses can be used for travel, work, and in a worst case for calories.

Love the rage shirt. So many memories of late night listening back in the day. I had to check if it was still a programme that was on because I haven't watched free to air in years. Glad to see that it is. Also, nice review ;-)

For my age watching Thunderdome for the first time back in the day... this was my introduction to Max. I absolutely LOVED this movie growing up. I love it to this day. Awesome video, Minty and a Happy New Year to you, your family and to everyone around the world.

Thank You - you cleared the mystery about composer BRIAN MAY - Not being the guitarist for QUEEN. A 42 year old mystery no one could help me with. You are the Best! Btw at work around the time of the film whenever there was a shouting match at work people would chant " Two men enter, one man leaves."

Another FunFact: Tina Turner wasn't the only singer/actor to be in this film. Lead singer of the Aussie band Rose Tattoo; Angry Anderson, played the part of Ironbar.

Jepp, No. 2 is the best of the Series. But Thunderdome wasn't that bad. And Tina was a hell of a 'Villian' ;-)

This one left me wanting more road warrior at the time but has since become appreciated for its unique perspective. Good on ya

Ah, Minty, you did it again: reminded me---by mentioning "We don't need another hero"---of how much I liked this movie and "Road Warrior." I just ordered DVDs of both---after watching and listening to Tina's music video, of course. Stay safe, everyone.

I remember going out to Kurnell to view the crashed plane set.

The visual style of the movie was unrivaled. Then again, it was more a post-apocalyptic movie for children than the other entries.

Minty, Fury Road was rated R in the US

The chase scene in the end is incredible nice shot, the thunderdome fight is amazing and it has the best lines worthy to quote, from the whole series.

A couple years after this there was another cult classic called 3 o’clock high. Happy New Year minty!!!

"Who runs Barter Town?" "MINTY."

Side bit of trivia. "Master" is played by the same actor who played Angeleno in "Freaks." One of us. One of us.

Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome is one of those movies that when watched even today it still holds up due to atmosphere.

It was different for sure but still an acceptable 3rd entry. As a kid it was Awesome! I had a crush on Tina from way back and this just pushed that crush to a new level. Cast well, great look, the vehicles and costumes were on point. Given the time frame in between 1st and 3rd movies, I would say it was perfectly done. I was never a fan of goofy comedy tucked into violent movies, but this is one of a million that did that. I haven’t heard anyone say Auntie Entity for ever! Thank you.

Nice, insightful review and analysis Minty. We disagree about the subjective "Which one I liked the best..." but absolutely agree that MM3 is more of a dramatic psychological treatise whereas the previous two, for me at least, were pretty much all about gratuitous violence with nothing else much to see. Best review yet Minty, keep up the good work.

Great work as usual Minty...can you do Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, Full Metal Jacket or The Marathon Man next. Cheers keep up the good work mate 👍

A happy New Year! to you Mr. Minty. I enjoy the tidbits of information you give in these videos for these movies.

“We don’t need another hero!”

I think his name is Spence without the “r”

The best of all Mad Max movies; story, music, characters, ambience, production... all great.

Minty, the sax solo on we don’t need any other hero is the same sexy sax guy from the Lost Boys intro!

The Gyro Pilot, Bruce Spence - when did he add an "r" to the end of his surname?

Thunderdome is the only one in the series that I liked. It’s a frequently re-watched favorite.

Thank you for your advice, Minty. Recently watching your video on the Mad Max movies, I felt nostalgic and bought a DVD with the movies The Road Warrior (excusez, Mad Max 2) and Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. With your advice, I learned to appreciate the Thunderdome more than before, even though it's still at number 3 on my list. Good work, Minty!

I always enjoyed it, there are scenes that are unforgettable. The kid doing the stick up with two guns, the rifle longer than he was tall. Then running telling his dad they were dead meat, when the dad realizes it he like I tried to tell ya. When Max first gets to Barter Town and is told to check his weapons in, and about a minute later he’s done, and has a pile on the desk with everyone looking like is this really happening.