The Art of Mad Max: Fury Road is a beautiful complementary book
If you’re lucky, you can probably still catch Mad Max: Fury Road lingering in a theater somewhere. While newer blockbusters may have turned Mad Max’s wave into a wake, as was expected during a summer of huge reboots, remakes, and sequels, the movie made its mark as an outstanding return of director George Miller. Fury Road is as much eye candy as it is an adrenaline injection, which is what makes the complementary offering The Art of Mad Max: Fury Road from Titan Books such a treat. The film’s concept art and creative evolution are what fuel the on-screen end result, and flipping through the pages of the art book just feels…right. If you were blown away by the movie, want to know more about the behind-the-scenes action, or simply can’t get enough when it comes to collecting fantastic art books, this one is a must-own.
Take a quick look inside The Art of Mad Max: Fury Road after the jump.
I haven’t read them, but I understand there’s a series of comic books that expands upon the story of The Wasteland, various characters like The Bullet Farmer and Immortan Joe, and pretty much anything you could want to know about George Miller’s post-apocalyptic world. So, I’m not sure how much of the artwork in this art book is pulled from those comics and how much is actual concept art, and if you’ve read the comics you might recognize some images and sequences. We’re treated to everything from line drawings to comic book frames, colorful paintings, annotated vehicle photos, and stylized movie stills. It’s all great stuff.
As happy as I would have been with 176 pages of nothing but pictures, the book moves through the beats of the film from start to finish, highlighting set pieces and artistic direction as events progress. It’s pretty wild to see some of these characters and locations in their various interpretations. The on-screen final product is insane already, so it’s fun to see bits and pieces pulled from sketches and early concepts. It’s the details that make the movie blow up and come to life, and some of these characters and their looks have been coming together since the ’90s! You can see a few different evolutions of Immortan Joe and Furiosa up above, and check out Nux and a vehicle concept from 1997 below.
Whether you waited the 30 years for Miller to bring Max and his madness back, watched the movie and were blown away by what you saw, are an aspiring concept artist or a drawing dreamer, or need a conversation piece for your coffee table, The Art of Mad Mad: Fury Road is the next book you should buy. My pictures don’t do justice to what’s inside. There’s plenty of insights and information about practical and CGI effects sequences, and reading up on how or why a certain shooting tactic or artificial element was used adds another layer for fans to enjoy. It’s hard to recommend something simply for being what it is without sounding like you’re gushing. You know if you want this book. Here’s a link to add it to you collection, and doing so helps the site out a little: The Art of Mad Max: Fury Road. What are you waiting for!
