Movies - TV
Mad Max Ending Explained: Becoming The Road Warrior
By ERNESTO VALENZUELA
The first film in the “Mad Max” series finds dystopian society on the brink of collapse, with only a handful of law enforcement agencies, like the Main Force Patrol, still active. Max Rockatansky (Mel Gibson) starts out as a reserved member of the MFP, holding on to the small semblance of order and sanity he has left.
When Max engages in a chase with a car thief, resulting in the thief's death, it sets Max on a collision course with a savage biker gang led by Toecutter and his young ward, Johnny the Boy. Max's cast of allies is also introduced, while Toecutter and his gang represent the violent world Max is trying to ignore, to his own detriment.
Eventually, Max's ally Goose is burned alive, Max's wife is left unresponsive, and his child dead, all by the hands of Toecutter’s gang. Max now becomes "the road warrior," donning his MFP gear and taking the rare V8 interceptor vehicle to hunt down and kill those responsible, saving Johnny the Boy, Goose's murderer, for last.
Ultimately, Max handcuffs Johnny's leg to a car leaking gas, leaving Johnny with the option of cutting off his leg or dying in the inevitable explosion. Either Johnny makes a drastic change, or refuses to be part of the new world by dying; this choice echoes Max’s options to either stay ignorant or to cut off a part of his sanity, turning him into the Road Warrior.