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Miller and Max: George Miller and the Making of a Film Legend
Miller and Max is the story of two heroes. One, the protagonist of the wildly successful Mad Max movies: a leather jacket–clad Road Warrior whose adventures in a dystopian future have made an indelible imprint on global popular culture. The other is the artist, George Miller, who created him: a softly spoken son of Greek and Turkish migrants whose life charts a spectacular course from a tiny Queensland town to the highest echelons of Hollywood.
George Miller would begin making his first film, Mad Max, in 1977 after privately raising $350,000 and hiring a no-name actor, Mel Gibson. Some people would be paid in slabs of beer. Edited in a kitchen, the film grossed more than $100 million worldwide and became the most profitable film ever made—a title it kept for two decades. Miller would go on to make more Mad Max movies over three and a half decades including Fury Road, which in 2016—against all odds—won a record-breaking six Academy Awards, the largest haul of an Australian film in history. In between times, with both success and failure in Hollywood and beyond, Miller’s quiet determination and audacious filmmaking is never more apparent than in the Mad Max universe.
Written with the cooperation of a role call of cast, crew, family and associates, Miller and Max gets behind the scenes and on set, as well as behind Miller’s sensible-sounding camouflage to reveal what’s really inside the man—which is more than a little Max Rockatansky.
‘A comprehensively researched and detailed dissection of the legendary Mad Max movies and of their extraordinary creator.’
David Stratton
‘A terrific achievement. An insightful, brilliantly researched and absolutely riveting account of an Australian icon and the filmmaker who created him.’
Margaret Pomeranz
About the author
Luke Buckmaster is an award-winning writer who has written about cinema since 1997. He is The Guardian Australia’s film critic, and chief critic for Daily Review.
George Miller would begin making his first film, Mad Max, in 1977 after privately raising $350,000 and hiring a no-name actor, Mel Gibson. Some people would be paid in slabs of beer. Edited in a kitchen, the film grossed more than $100 million worldwide and became the most profitable film ever made—a title it kept for two decades. Miller would go on to make more Mad Max movies over three and a half decades including Fury Road, which in 2016—against all odds—won a record-breaking six Academy Awards, the largest haul of an Australian film in history. In between times, with both success and failure in Hollywood and beyond, Miller’s quiet determination and audacious filmmaking is never more apparent than in the Mad Max universe.
Written with the cooperation of a role call of cast, crew, family and associates, Miller and Max gets behind the scenes and on set, as well as behind Miller’s sensible-sounding camouflage to reveal what’s really inside the man—which is more than a little Max Rockatansky.
‘A comprehensively researched and detailed dissection of the legendary Mad Max movies and of their extraordinary creator.’
David Stratton
‘A terrific achievement. An insightful, brilliantly researched and absolutely riveting account of an Australian icon and the filmmaker who created him.’
Margaret Pomeranz
About the author
Luke Buckmaster is an award-winning writer who has written about cinema since 1997. He is The Guardian Australia’s film critic, and chief critic for Daily Review.
275 pages, Paperback
Published November 7, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
August 6, 2020
Prior to deciding to download this book I had only watched the first two of the Mad Max films, and that was back in the early 80s. When I saw this audiobook was available from the library, I decided to watch the third and fourth films in the series before reading it. I don’t think you have to be a huge Mad Max fan to enjoy the book, but I do think you need to have watched all the films to get the most out of it.
Tempting though it is to discuss the films, this is a book review, so I’ll try to stick to the subject. A book like this is a bit of a departure for me, but it was definitely a worthwhile one. The opening Prologue had me rocking with laughter, and there was some decent humour throughout - a large part of it from the perspective of Aussie petrolheads. There were also some really interesting insights into film making, although in my case I was starting from a very low knowledge base.
One of the themes is how the imaginary character of Max Rockatansky has dominated the life of his creator, the director George Miller. I suppose this applies to anyone who creates one of these hugely successful characters. The original Mad Max was Miller’s first feature film and had a budget of A$350,000. Almost everyone who worked on it thought it would disappear without trace and that Miller would never direct another movie. Instead it become the most profitable film ever made, a title it held for nearly 20 years. Miller went on to direct not just the 3 other Mad Max features but a variety of other films, most of which were successful. For the making of Fury Road, he had a budget estimated at $150 million. Changed days.
For me the book was at its most entertaining when it described the early stages of Miller’s career. As the book says things were a bit more “gung-ho” in the 1970s and a lot of corners were cut in making the first film. It makes for a great story.
The audio version I listened to was narrated by actor Paul Johnstone, who actually had a small part in the first Mad Max. I thought he did a great job with the narration.
A solid four stars for this one.
Tempting though it is to discuss the films, this is a book review, so I’ll try to stick to the subject. A book like this is a bit of a departure for me, but it was definitely a worthwhile one. The opening Prologue had me rocking with laughter, and there was some decent humour throughout - a large part of it from the perspective of Aussie petrolheads. There were also some really interesting insights into film making, although in my case I was starting from a very low knowledge base.
One of the themes is how the imaginary character of Max Rockatansky has dominated the life of his creator, the director George Miller. I suppose this applies to anyone who creates one of these hugely successful characters. The original Mad Max was Miller’s first feature film and had a budget of A$350,000. Almost everyone who worked on it thought it would disappear without trace and that Miller would never direct another movie. Instead it become the most profitable film ever made, a title it held for nearly 20 years. Miller went on to direct not just the 3 other Mad Max features but a variety of other films, most of which were successful. For the making of Fury Road, he had a budget estimated at $150 million. Changed days.
For me the book was at its most entertaining when it described the early stages of Miller’s career. As the book says things were a bit more “gung-ho” in the 1970s and a lot of corners were cut in making the first film. It makes for a great story.
The audio version I listened to was narrated by actor Paul Johnstone, who actually had a small part in the first Mad Max. I thought he did a great job with the narration.
A solid four stars for this one.
May 30, 2017
It is what it is, a 300+ page book about the making of all four Mad Max movies. If that makes your palms sweat with anticipation then this is a 5 star book for you. If it doesn't then of course this isn't for you
But fuck man, it was for me!
But fuck man, it was for me!
December 30, 2017
More like a series of decent articles than a cohesive book. It essentially tells the story, or some story, of each movie. It never deals with any bigger picture of the them as a series, nor does it dig beneath the surface, artistically or personally, for Miller or anyone else. That said, the story is all solid, and includes a substantial number of entertaining anecdotes.
October 13, 2017
Easily digestible book, whilst the information was at times quite surface level, it's still very enjoyable to read.
Would have much preferred in depth knowledge from Miller himself, or more information in general, as it feels like it does skip over a lot.
Nonetheless, there is still plenty of insights to whet the appetite, and it comes recommended!
Would have much preferred in depth knowledge from Miller himself, or more information in general, as it feels like it does skip over a lot.
Nonetheless, there is still plenty of insights to whet the appetite, and it comes recommended!
July 4, 2017
Great stories about an Australian legend and that crazy Mad Max. I really enjoyed reading about the absolutely bonkers antics that went on during the filming, particularly the first film where safety wasn't really even a consideration.
September 13, 2023
A lot of crazy and fun stories from the making of the Mad Max films. They just don't make pictures like this anymore, and we are a little poorer for it. Albeit, probably safer.
June 14, 2019
A fun overview of the Mad Max films, filled with on-set and behind-the-scenes stories, but hampered by a lack of first-hand interviews with any of the main creators. If you love the movies, this is worthwhile, but leaves you wishing Miller, Gibson, Hardy, etc. were more than quotes from other sources.
February 9, 2018
Great for stories from the crew, but the book left much to be desired with regard to details about George Miller himself.
I've read worse. And better.
I've read worse. And better.
March 8, 2019
Mad Maxology All Shiny and Chrome
A Review of Miller and Max (Kindle Edition)
Don’t let the title of my review deceive you. Miller and Max written by Luke Buckmaster (who’s name sounds like something from a Mad Max version of Star Wars) is not just a shiny surface survey of the Mad Max series and its beloved director but rather is an engrossing, well researched, detailed, and furiously paced loving tribute to George Miller, Byron Kennedy, and the Mad Max films produced to date of the publication in 2017. Normally one of the common problems with film books like this is they don’t quite know where to focus, either on the filmmaker or the films. But this one is expertly crafted by Australian film critic, Luke Buckmaster, striking a perfect balance between the stories that comprise the making of the films and using George Miller as the thread that interweaves and holds the book together.
If you are a furious fan of the Mad Max series, do not pass this up. You must read this book. It should be required reading for all true Mad Maxology students. The book starts out with brief but essential biographies of both George Miller and Byron Kennedy, the masterminds behind Mad Max. This start is very important as it will form the front of bookends leading to a satisfying conclusion. We then get a thorough write up on the making of the first MAD MAX (1979) film. This section makes up about 1/3 of the book, which is justified. What I like about this section is there is very little rehashing of stories from past Mad Max making of documentaries or reviews, which have usually either superficially praised the film like a big commercial or trashed it unfairly. The stories are fresh and original. We also get lots of quotes from everyone who was involved with the difficult production. Finally, you get some new perspectives on the film that made me appreciate it even more. The fact that the film reverses the traditional plot structure, starting with an exciting crescendo and ending with an anticlimactic decrescendo bang is something that I shamefully under appreciated during my many viewings . The same thing happens with the character of Mad Max who goes against the normal grain of character development from nice guy cop to “mad” vigilante.
The second section of the film deals with MAD MAX 2: THE ROAD WARRIOR, focusing heavily on the incredible stunts that saturate the film. I especially enjoyed the chapter dealing with the truck driver who drove the rig and overturned it in the intense climactic final action sequence.
The third section combines some extremely hilarious and illegal antics of the production crew with Miller’s soul discovering stories from during the making of MAD MAX: BEYOND THUNDERDOME. We get an insight into how George’s sense of storytelling evolved through his interaction with the Aboriginal tribes of Australia during his time seeking permission to film on sacred tribal lands.
The final section dives furiously into the latest film to date, MAD MAX: FURY ROAD. This section is as exciting as the film, telling a story rooted in a long development stage and ending with the long editing process. While most writers called the twenty year period prior to the film’s release “development hell,” Buckmaster’s version sounds more like development purgatory, where Miller’s ideas had lots of time to fully form and gestate, birthing the masterpiece that Fury Road is.
The book ends with a return to George Miller’s hometown of Chinchilla for the first showing of Fury Road, bringing the saga to a satisfying close.
My only negative criticism is regarding the Kindle eBook. There are quite a few grammatical errors, mostly weird extra words that pop up every now and then that makes no sense. These can be a little distracting during the read. I’m not sure who’s to blame but a thorough reread by an editor could clean those mistakes up. Being that this is billed as a high quality Kindle version with all the bells and whistles, it should be cleaned up and sent as an update to those who already purchased the Kindle Edition.
A Review of Miller and Max (Kindle Edition)
Don’t let the title of my review deceive you. Miller and Max written by Luke Buckmaster (who’s name sounds like something from a Mad Max version of Star Wars) is not just a shiny surface survey of the Mad Max series and its beloved director but rather is an engrossing, well researched, detailed, and furiously paced loving tribute to George Miller, Byron Kennedy, and the Mad Max films produced to date of the publication in 2017. Normally one of the common problems with film books like this is they don’t quite know where to focus, either on the filmmaker or the films. But this one is expertly crafted by Australian film critic, Luke Buckmaster, striking a perfect balance between the stories that comprise the making of the films and using George Miller as the thread that interweaves and holds the book together.
If you are a furious fan of the Mad Max series, do not pass this up. You must read this book. It should be required reading for all true Mad Maxology students. The book starts out with brief but essential biographies of both George Miller and Byron Kennedy, the masterminds behind Mad Max. This start is very important as it will form the front of bookends leading to a satisfying conclusion. We then get a thorough write up on the making of the first MAD MAX (1979) film. This section makes up about 1/3 of the book, which is justified. What I like about this section is there is very little rehashing of stories from past Mad Max making of documentaries or reviews, which have usually either superficially praised the film like a big commercial or trashed it unfairly. The stories are fresh and original. We also get lots of quotes from everyone who was involved with the difficult production. Finally, you get some new perspectives on the film that made me appreciate it even more. The fact that the film reverses the traditional plot structure, starting with an exciting crescendo and ending with an anticlimactic decrescendo bang is something that I shamefully under appreciated during my many viewings . The same thing happens with the character of Mad Max who goes against the normal grain of character development from nice guy cop to “mad” vigilante.
The second section of the film deals with MAD MAX 2: THE ROAD WARRIOR, focusing heavily on the incredible stunts that saturate the film. I especially enjoyed the chapter dealing with the truck driver who drove the rig and overturned it in the intense climactic final action sequence.
The third section combines some extremely hilarious and illegal antics of the production crew with Miller’s soul discovering stories from during the making of MAD MAX: BEYOND THUNDERDOME. We get an insight into how George’s sense of storytelling evolved through his interaction with the Aboriginal tribes of Australia during his time seeking permission to film on sacred tribal lands.
The final section dives furiously into the latest film to date, MAD MAX: FURY ROAD. This section is as exciting as the film, telling a story rooted in a long development stage and ending with the long editing process. While most writers called the twenty year period prior to the film’s release “development hell,” Buckmaster’s version sounds more like development purgatory, where Miller’s ideas had lots of time to fully form and gestate, birthing the masterpiece that Fury Road is.
The book ends with a return to George Miller’s hometown of Chinchilla for the first showing of Fury Road, bringing the saga to a satisfying close.
My only negative criticism is regarding the Kindle eBook. There are quite a few grammatical errors, mostly weird extra words that pop up every now and then that makes no sense. These can be a little distracting during the read. I’m not sure who’s to blame but a thorough reread by an editor could clean those mistakes up. Being that this is billed as a high quality Kindle version with all the bells and whistles, it should be cleaned up and sent as an update to those who already purchased the Kindle Edition.
May 20, 2024
This is lots of fun for Mad Max fans, with some good inside stories of the filming of Australia's most gonzo film franchise.
Alas, the amount of detail and insight seem inversely proportional to the quality of the movies themselves, so 'Beyond Thunderdome' gets too much play, while 'Road Warrior' fans get short shrift.
And, by the end of this, the whole, 'I can't believe we did all that #@$% stuff and lived' gets a bit repetitive. It's much more compelling for the first film, done with limited money and no experience. They had to take crazy risks to pull off 'Mad Max'. By the time you get to 'Fury Road', with that budget, it's a lot less rock n' roll.
Still, this book is a lot of fun for fans, and highly readable.
Alas, the amount of detail and insight seem inversely proportional to the quality of the movies themselves, so 'Beyond Thunderdome' gets too much play, while 'Road Warrior' fans get short shrift.
And, by the end of this, the whole, 'I can't believe we did all that #@$% stuff and lived' gets a bit repetitive. It's much more compelling for the first film, done with limited money and no experience. They had to take crazy risks to pull off 'Mad Max'. By the time you get to 'Fury Road', with that budget, it's a lot less rock n' roll.
Still, this book is a lot of fun for fans, and highly readable.
July 9, 2022
A fair to good exploration of the Mad Max movies. I liked the second half of the book better than the first half. Perhaps it's just easier to research and write about newer movies than older ones. Had Miller himself cooperated with the author, this probably would have been a four-star book. Having said that, I did learn a lot about the somewhat enigmatic Miller, and given there's so little about Mad Max and Miller out there, it is essential reading for fans.
September 23, 2017
Like many people, I am a fan of the Mad Max series. So I was looking forward to reading this biography about Max Mad director George Miller by Luke Buckmaster. And it is as thrilling as the films. Miller is an icon and a genius and his films are crazy and brilliant, and his life and career are chronicled in fantastic detail here. I'm still reading it (it is one to savour), but relish it so far.
January 11, 2020
Witness!
We know who you are bronze!
You wanna get it out of here? You talk to me.
There is no tomorrow-morrow land!
My name is Max. My world is fire and blood.
Four films. Four great films that changed action movies forever. This is the story of their director and their creation.
Witness.
We know who you are bronze!
You wanna get it out of here? You talk to me.
There is no tomorrow-morrow land!
My name is Max. My world is fire and blood.
Four films. Four great films that changed action movies forever. This is the story of their director and their creation.
Witness.
February 16, 2022
Expansive, Insightful, and [ very ] worthwhile
Only reservation might be ratio of content invested w each film, specifically the first sequel.; The Road Warrior (1981) is terribly sparse (especially when compared to those counterpart installments)
Only reservation might be ratio of content invested w each film, specifically the first sequel.; The Road Warrior (1981) is terribly sparse (especially when compared to those counterpart installments)
Read
August 26, 2023I really enjoyed this overview of the Mad Max franchise. After reading this and Buchanan's book about Fury Road, I definitely want to go back and learn more details about the origins of the Byron Kennedy/George Miller movies that kicked it all off.
May 27, 2024
A good look at the history of George Miller and the Mad Max movies that goes from the first film up to the premiere of Fury Road. A must read for fans of the series and for anyone interested in the nuts and bolts of filmmaking
October 31, 2019
The five stars belong to George Miller, Byron Kennedy, and Max Rockatansky.
September 24, 2024
Amazing, well-written, exhilarating book recommended to anyone who likes the Mad Max movies or is interested in the craft of making films. What a blast!
Did not finish
December 26, 2024DNF audiobook about 30 minutes in. Not interesting me.
October 27, 2025
I saw The Road Warrior, as we call it here in the States, in its initial theatrical release. I was eighteen and on LSD and I have been somewhat fixated on this series ever since. I'm a little prone to persistent obsessions, anyway, and this one was certainly reignited by the 2015 release of Fury Road. I can't think of another series of movies that has continued to improve in this way, becoming more monumental, more mythic with each iteration. Where the first movie had tipped its hat to Bullit and The Wild One and the second to John Ford, Fury Road was riffing on Homer and the Bible. It remains the most thrilling of the series to me, but Furiosa is arguably a better movie, since it has some dynamics. Fury Road is so relentless as to be exhausting, even for the superfan.
I learned about this book from a movie podcast that I was listening to once upon a time. The podcast was made by a couple of ordinary Australians with no other qualifications than that they love movies. It was amateurish and charming and they had a lot of smart things to say. While Miller and Max is written by a for-real journalist (film critic for the Australian Guardian), it shares those qualities. I think maybe it was written over time, because the prose and the structure get more professional as the narrative proceeds. The story kinda meanders to begin with and the early chapters are replete with irrelevant detail and frequent bits of Australian slang that I had to look up.
My favorite chapters were about the making of the first three movies. It was the seventies and and early eighties and the film industry in Australia was just getting started. Most of the government-funded movies that got made at that time were art-house, literary productions like My Brilliant Career. No one there knew how to make action movies and, I think, maybe, no one anywhere had ever made a movie like this one, so the Kennedy-Miller production team were flying by the seats of their pants. A lot of super-dangerous stuff got done without, so to speak, any adult supervision. There was no safety oversight, no craft-service, no one to direct parking at location shoots even. Plus, a TON of drugs and drink. Apparently, the actors who played Toecutter's gang lived and rode motorcycles and partied hard together for weeks before shooting to prepare for their roles. That was a fun thing to learn.
Less fun to learn was how much of a dick George Miller is. Mad Max, filmed on a shoestring, was a global blockbuster. It held the title of Most Profitable Movie Ever for twenty years. George Miller and his partner Byron Kennedy became millionaires but they didn't share any of the bounty out with the rest of the cast or crew. At a pre-production meeting for the Road Warrior, to the horror of everyone at the conference table, Miller suggested amputating a dog's leg because he thought it would look cool if Max's dog-companion had three legs.
George Miller likes to make a big deal of his "hypnogogic" inspiration, but he apparently doesn't scruple to steal ideas outright. Many have noted similarities between the Crack in the Earth sequence in Beyond Thunderdome and Riddley Walker , a post-apocalyptic tale from the eighties told in a sort of degraded English that was noted children's author Russell Hoban's most successful novel for adults. Not long before getting started on Thunderdome, Miller and Kennedy had dinner with Hoban and discussed making a film of his novel. He never heard from them again and it sure seems clear that they copped a lot of "the knowin' and the doin' and the tellin'" in that segment of the movie from his splendid book.
I learned about this book from a movie podcast that I was listening to once upon a time. The podcast was made by a couple of ordinary Australians with no other qualifications than that they love movies. It was amateurish and charming and they had a lot of smart things to say. While Miller and Max is written by a for-real journalist (film critic for the Australian Guardian), it shares those qualities. I think maybe it was written over time, because the prose and the structure get more professional as the narrative proceeds. The story kinda meanders to begin with and the early chapters are replete with irrelevant detail and frequent bits of Australian slang that I had to look up.
My favorite chapters were about the making of the first three movies. It was the seventies and and early eighties and the film industry in Australia was just getting started. Most of the government-funded movies that got made at that time were art-house, literary productions like My Brilliant Career. No one there knew how to make action movies and, I think, maybe, no one anywhere had ever made a movie like this one, so the Kennedy-Miller production team were flying by the seats of their pants. A lot of super-dangerous stuff got done without, so to speak, any adult supervision. There was no safety oversight, no craft-service, no one to direct parking at location shoots even. Plus, a TON of drugs and drink. Apparently, the actors who played Toecutter's gang lived and rode motorcycles and partied hard together for weeks before shooting to prepare for their roles. That was a fun thing to learn.
Less fun to learn was how much of a dick George Miller is. Mad Max, filmed on a shoestring, was a global blockbuster. It held the title of Most Profitable Movie Ever for twenty years. George Miller and his partner Byron Kennedy became millionaires but they didn't share any of the bounty out with the rest of the cast or crew. At a pre-production meeting for the Road Warrior, to the horror of everyone at the conference table, Miller suggested amputating a dog's leg because he thought it would look cool if Max's dog-companion had three legs.
George Miller likes to make a big deal of his "hypnogogic" inspiration, but he apparently doesn't scruple to steal ideas outright. Many have noted similarities between the Crack in the Earth sequence in Beyond Thunderdome and Riddley Walker , a post-apocalyptic tale from the eighties told in a sort of degraded English that was noted children's author Russell Hoban's most successful novel for adults. Not long before getting started on Thunderdome, Miller and Kennedy had dinner with Hoban and discussed making a film of his novel. He never heard from them again and it sure seems clear that they copped a lot of "the knowin' and the doin' and the tellin'" in that segment of the movie from his splendid book.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews