One actor. Two film roles. You tell us which portrayal was the best. The most memorable. Or iconic. Or simply your favorite.
But before you pass judgment, a few words defending the “character” of each…
The case for Max Rockatansky
Gibson gives a tour de force performance in the Mad Max trilogy of films. In Mad Max he’s a fresh-faced husband and father…and stud cop. But he’s also naïve. When, because of his job, he loses all he holds dear Max exacts a terrible revenge, and his humanity slips away in the process. In the Road Warrior Max is a burnt out shell of a man, content in his vigilantism. When he stumbles upon a tiny outpost of people besieged by marauders Max—not altogether altruistically—defends them. It is only in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome that his humanity returns in toto. After being taken in by an abandoned group of children Max selflessly helps deliver them to safety. His character has come full circle.
The case for Martin Riggs
The buddy cop movie was pretty much perfected in the Lethal Weapon films. Devastated by the loss of his wife, narcotics officer Martin Riggs is at the end of his rope. No one wants to work with him—including the “too-old-for-this-shit,” soon-to-be-retired homicide detective Roger Murtaugh. From the outset the only thing that keeps Riggs from eating a bullet is his job. But in partner Murtaugh (and his welcoming family) the mentally unhinged outcast finds the stability, camaraderie and love he so desperately needs. Danny Glover’s by-the-book family man and Mel Gibson’s suicidal lone wolf: It’s a mismatch made in heaven!
Now that you’ve heard the arguments for both it’s time to render your verdict!