There’s a very, very loose chronology connecting the original Mad Max trilogy, and while we’re supposed to assume this is the same guy each time, every installment is more-or-less standalone. All you really need to know about Max though is he’s a man who’s distilled himself into one single instinct: survive. There’s definitely not a ton of backstory on the guy in Fury Road, as the character has been the star of three Mad Max movies prior to this one.
He’s “mad” (at least in this movie) because he’s certifiably insane. Max Rockatansky (somehow still the least silly name in the film) is a former police officer turned drifter, wandering the wasteland after the death of his wife and child. So who is this Max guy, and why is he so mad? So if you’re wondering what the hell an Imperator is, and why this Max guy is so angry, we’ve got you covered. That being said, the movie spends approximately 14 seconds explaining anything before all hell breaks loose, so it’s pretty easy to miss a ton of director George Miller’s rich (and utterly insane) worldbuilding. Mad Max is all anyone is talking about this weekend, and for good reason (spoiler alert: it’s pretty mindblowing).
