Not condoning his character but Toecutter is far more empathetic than Max, the hero of the story.
Max abandons Goose and his own wife whilst they’re suffering in hospital.
Yet, for all his faults, Toecutter stays loyal to Johnny and grieves for The Nightrider.
It’s probably been discussed before and there’s a reason for it.
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FFS
A troll would say 'this movie sucks' without providing evidence or offering an interesting analysis. And quite clearly I stated that I don't condone Toecutter's behavior. I agree, this is one sadistic individual. I'm not condoning his behaviour but my initial opinion still stands.
Max abandons Goose when he visits him in hospital. This is made explicit when Goose's burnt hand reaches out towards Max. Max's initial reaction is to run away. He declares, "That thing in there is not Goose". Max hurriedly escapes down the hallway leaving the other Bronze in despair. Look at how Roop angrily reacts to Max's decision when he slams his fist into the air. Max's lack of compassion and empathy is clear.
The same scene is reflected in Max's reaction to his own wife's condition at the end of the film. She too is last seen on a hospital bed, disfigured by the criminal antics of Toecutter. Max does not comfort Jessie. Instead he stares blankly like a zombie outside the hospital ward. Though he is compelled to seek to avenge his family, Max shows no compassion. Again, like with Goose, he flees the hospital never to return.
Compare this to Toecutter. Toecutter seeks to avenge the death of The Nightrider. He openly shows respect and reverence to who he was. He deliberately intimidates the Station Master because of his derisive, "didn't leave much of him". He is also quick to make sure The Nightrider's name is remembered by all. In a later scene, Toecutter sits with the deceased in the back of a ute with a small crucifix in his hand. He oversees his gang paying their respects to their fallen comrade as they pass them on their bikes.
The Toecutter's loyalty is also demonstrated in his treatment of Johnny. Johnny is a fool and a possible love interest for Toecutter. When he stays with the brutalized couple in the FJ Holden, Toecutter asks Bubba to retrieve him. Bubba initially refuses but obeys his leader's orders when Toecutter states "It's for me". Here Toecutter demonstrates empathy for an individual who lacks maturity and discipline. He could've easily abandoned him but instead shows his loyalty to a fellow gang member.
Remove any type of morality or lack of morality these characters have. Max abandons his friend and his lover in their time of need. Toecutter demonstrates an empathy for his own family members.
(I love this movie)
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How about this to further support my argument that Max shows little empathy.
Max is a neglectful father.
The first time we see Max and his son is after the death of The Nightrider. Max sips beer in the kitchen. He blankly stares into the distance whilst his son sits perilously on the bench. Max is far more interested in the contents of his glass than the presence of his child. Max is not looking at his wife playing the saxophone as she is clearly in the bedroom.
Cut to the morning after when Max allows his son to play with his gun. Again, like in the previous scene he doesn’t have any eye contact or interaction with the child.
Two thirds into the movie, Max is on vacation. Yes he shows love towards Jessie but the child is nowhere to be seen. Max buys a dog. Max has a picnic. Max jumps into the river but the child is absent. This is quite strange considering his speech how he never told his father that he loved him.
The only time Max actually holds his child is 1:00hr into the film where takes the boy from Jessie’s lap placing him into the back of the panel van. At May’s country retreat, he would rather spend time fixing the car than to supervise his child.
I’m suggesting that if he had taken better care with parental supervision, Jessie and his son may be still alive.
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Um, what part of "mad" in Mad Max don't you understand? The guy had lost it, people let alone cops don't just go all vigilante when their friends and/or family get killed.
Toecutter wanted Johhny back because if had left him there at the cop shop he would be a liability, he could have turned states evidence. That didn't happen because the gang saw that "nobody showed", and that Johhny was with them so he can be trained.
And as you all know, Johnny had a habit of always talking too much, the only reason Max and Goose even knew that he was connected with the gang was when he repeatedly kept screaming out "The Nightrider!" when he got busted after the rape.
And that red car that looked like it had been "chewed up and spat out" is definitely not an FJ Holden, looks more like a Chevrolet Impala, could be wrong.
Um, what part of 'empathy' don't you understand? Don't be clouded by the immoral behavior of the villain.
I never questioned Max's responses to Goose and his wife. He's mad, it's in the title, duh.
But if you can't see that Toecutter is more empathetic to his comrades than Max is to Goose and his wife then you are blind.
"Toecutter wanted Johhny back because if had left him there at the cop shop he would be a liability"
Toecutter asks Bubba to retrieve Johnny even before the Bronze arrest him. He clearly is grieving for The Nightrider. There is no implication yet that Johnny will be a liability.
You are right that it's a Chevrolet
http://madmaxmovies.com/mad-max/mad-max-cars/chevy-impala/index.html
Max abandons Goose when he visits him in hospital. This is made explicit when Goose's burnt hand reaches out towards Max. Max's initial reaction is to run away. He declares, "That thing in there is not Goose". Max hurriedly escapes down the hallway leaving the other Bronze in despair. Look at how Roop angrily reacts to Max's decision when he slams his fist into the air. Max's lack of compassion and empathy is clear.
Toecutter shows emotion to a dead body. Max doesn't stick around while his friend and lover are dying right in front of him. You can’t refute this.
Empathy is to identify with another person's situation and feelings. Toecutter grieves and shows respect to a fallen comrade. Max either flees or aggressively retaliates when he faces death. If Max shows any grief or empathy it manifests itself into revenge. Whereas Max's actions are ego driven, Toecutter shares his feelings of loss with others.
It is also interesting to note that Max doesn’t stay to watch Johnny die. Max relishes in his revenge but he chooses to flee the scene before the car ignites. Again, he abandons a living person and escapes before their inevitable death.
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I always thought Goose was dead and they were just trying to fool Max with some other living burn victim, hence Roop being annoyed like they'd been found out.
As for Jessie, yeah I always found that a bit odd. You'd have thought he'd hang around to be with her until the end before charging off on his rampage. Perhaps she'd died and we just weren't told, but that would be lazy of the writer.
...then whoa, differences...
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I'm serious. At that point they were still desperate to get Max to stay on, and they would have tried anything.
All this from memory, but I did see it a few times:
Max: 'That thing in there, that's not the Goose, no way...'
Max walks out.
Roop gesticulates and smacks his leg with his glove like they hadn't pulled it off. And the way the others looked at him when he did that.
That's always been my take on it. Maybe it's just one of those things I thought first time and it stuck like that in my head every time since, but there you are.
As for Jesse's death, sure the film doesn't dwell, but maybe him on the phone with a muted voice from the speaker hinting at bad news while the vengeance music starts heating up would have been right in the style of the rest of the movie.
...then whoa, differences...
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Yeah well my theory doesn't have a lot of legs when you try to figure out what their endgame was going to be with the crispy fried stranger. But it's movie land and a lot of things don't make complete sense so I'll stick with it for now.
...then whoa, differences...
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The body switch theory had me in stitches. :D
shareAre you out of your gourd? People like that don't have empathy. Loyalty maybe, but not empathy. If they were capable of such a thing they would do such things to other people. Are you one of those people who try to make even the most evil monsters sympathetic? These things, I won't dignify them by calling them people, were parasitic scum feeding on the decent parts of society that were still left in that world. If you want to have sympathy for someone feel it for Max's wife, child and dog who certainly didn't deserve to be hunted down, brutalized and in at least two of the cases murdered by malicious, psychopathic thugs.
I Am Who I Am.
Your approval isn't required.