What A Lovely Day! - MAD MAX FURY ROAD BLACK & CHROME Review

Image by Warner Brothers

Let’s face it, 2016 has been a crapper of a year. Sure some wonderful things happened, but a lot of terrible things happened, especially the deaths of many beloved stars. Why not spend the last day of the year looking to our future wasteland with Mad Max Fury Road? But you already own the film, you say to me. Well, George Miller decided to release a Black and Chrome edition of the film. Miller has said “Overall, for me, it’s the best version of the movie. It’d be interesting to see if you agree.” So, do we agree?

I actually disagree with George Miller here. One of my favorite things about the film was the brilliant colors of the desert. The blue of the sky against the oranges and yellows were absolutely beautiful, almost like the world was highly saturated by the lack of water. Making it black and white loses that character of color and loses information. What do I mean by that? Take the sandstorm for instance.

Image by Warner Brothers

You’re able to see clearly in color that it’s a massive storm with orange turning to black clouds looming from the imposing sand storm. For me, it’s epicness is lost in black and white. It looks almost…boring. This is not to say that the whole film is like this. Black and white enhances a lot of shots too. It makes the black even darker, bringing a nice contrast to the lighter colors. Even the whites of their eyes stood out more prominently.

Besides the changed color, what does Black and Chrome bring to the table? For me, it really made me focus on the actors performances. I was able to catch more nuances while watching them since they stood out once color was taken out. Admittedly, Fury Road can be a bit distracting with everything going on. I mean, it is one of the best if not the best action movie in decades. But when you strip away the colors that draw your eyes, your eyes are instead drawn to the actors. There’s not much to look at in a black and white world.

I would recommend this version for the diehards only or lovers of black and white films. While there is beauty to black and white, I feel the film loses a vital character – the orange desert. I may be biased though as I love colors and this is currently my favorite movie of all time. What do you think? Will you watch the black and chrome edition? Let us know and be sure to buy Mad Max Fury Road on any platform!