Third time seeing Furiosa! Thoughts, in no particular order:
(Spoilers below)
I like how gender sort of evaporated in the wasteland. Like yeah, if you're healthy and female in the Citadel your career options are predetermined and pretty limited, and the Wasteland across the board is hypermasculine. But that masculinity doesn't appear limited to cis men: for example, the History Man offers to help Furiosa become not a History Woman or a History Person, but a History Man specifically. Also, Mr. Norton is female-presenting the entire movie, but after she wins her bike she is referred to by the make of her bike and a masculine honorific, almost as if to drive home a point to her new hordemates. Idk if there's an underlying message in all this, I just think it's cool that gender in the wasteland seems to be inherently fluid and situational.
What language were the Vuvalini speaking? You know, when the Vuvalini general tells Mary Jabassa that no one can know of the Green Place.
I paid attention to Mr. Harley this time, he does appear to have a soft spot for Furiosa. Now I want more fics of him and Mr. Davidson interacting with little Furiosa, being the cool uncles or even springing her and bailing from the Horde to go raise her as a bandit.
Did anyone else notice during the first attempt on the Citadel when Dementus is giving his "surrender or I will burn down your village" speech, the Octoboss is leaning back with his feet propped up on his gas tank? 1) Kleut is one lanky mfer. 2) This is clearly not the first time the Octoboss has heard this speech and he's expecting to get to hang out and enjoy the spectacle.
I love how the final act mirrors the first act. A handful of bikers pursued through dunes by an implacable Vuvalini who snipes them one by one. The pursuer has to commandeer a tire to keep going; a bike is crippled by the removal of a tire. The attempt to use a sandstorm for cover. Use of a rifle scope to watch the fleeing bikers. Attempted flight on foot. A slow death involving a tree as the result of failed escape. The first shot of Furiosa's Odyssey is of her picking peaches and offering one to a friend; the final shot, before it becomes Fury Road, is of her picking peaches and offering them to the wives. Visual poetry, man. I will take the weird pacing if that is what it takes to get us that thematic mirroring.
The Organic Mechanic was definitely cooking one of Dementus' dogs when Furiosa commandeered Scrotus' car.
When we first see the House of Holy Motors, the Head Blackthumb is assisted by a little old man with a tricked-out rolator. Later, when Furiosa has lost her arm, we see someone pulling what appears to be the tricked-out rolator out of storage and her building her prosthetic from one of the grabby arms on it.
From the first moment we see him, Smeg is low-key mimicking Dementus' look and actions. I think his function in the Horde is as Dementus' fool or jester.
Furiosa is wearing Dementus' cape when she first corners him. By the time she drags him back to the Citadel, it's gone. His mantle of hate and grief falls on her and she ultimately rejects it.
The Lone Warboy survived all the way through the 40 Day War! During the first attempt on the Citadel, he hooks a chain to the trailer with Furiosa and the History Man; Dementus and co manage to get it back and drive off, but the Warboy is pulled back up. We see him periodically in the background right up until Furiosa commandeers the Cranky Black, you can tell it's him because his build is so distinctive and he's got a scar from the arrow.
I really liked that one brakeman with the red beard, his face was covered during half his scenes but he seemed like a very normal person living in the Citadel, occasionally sticking up for Furiosa. I like how his humanity showed past even the Pyramid Head-looking costume. My headcanon is that he was friendly towards Furiosa from the time she became a dogman and recognized her all the way through; he's got a soft spot for his mute friend who occasionally wanders off and comes back a different gender.
