captivating work of art (even devoid of CGI) “Mad Max: Fury Road”. Observing the end result, refined flawlessly in terms of every minuscule detail, you might not immediately recognize the challenges and accuracy involved in crafting each set piece, nor the vision and skill necessary to render them as a cohesive epic on the large screen. Miller, a director with half a century of experience, understands how to bring that to fruition. Yet, throughout the actual filming process, this might not be apparent, even for the actors who are integral to it.
Tom Hardy (who appeared in a little-known sci-fi film with Kelly Reilly at the beginning of his career) was among those who struggled to envision or acknowledge the genius required for Miller to realize his vision during that time. He felt frustrated and uncertain while shooting, but during a press event in 2015 at Cannes (as reported by Variety), he openly apologized to Miller for “being shortsighted” after experiencing the film for the first time.
He elaborated, “The most exasperating thing for me or the toughest aspect [of filming] was attempting to comprehend what George wanted from me at any moment, minute by minute, so I could fully [realize] his vision. I became frustrated, and there was no way that George could have conveyed what he envisioned in the sand while we were out there. Because of the extensive effort necessary to make everything that was incredibly intricate appear so straightforward — which is how I perceived it — which was an unrelenting onslaught of complexities distilled into a relatively linear narrative… I recognized [Miller] was exceptional, but I didn’t grasp how exceptional until I witnessed it.”