Mad Max: Fury Road without the effects is still an exhilarating ride

Mad Max: Fury Road is a pretty stellar film no matter which way you spin it — even without the special effects. A new video compilation of pre-production tests, raw footage, and behind-the-scenes takes proves how riveting this high-octane story still is without the flash of CGI.

We have ESPORTS TV to thank for cutting all of these elements together and setting it to the film’s heart-pounding soundtrack. Fury Road received an Oscar nomination earlier this year for its VFX, which relied heavily on practical effects and stunts. While it didn’t win for that category, it did take home the statuette for production design.

The film starred Tom Hardy as the eponymous drifter in the post-apocalyptic realm, while Charlize Theron stole the spotlight as Furiosa.

In the past, director George Miller described a black-and-white cut of the film as “the best version of this movie,” while other fans have pined for a silent cut. In the end, these efforts to cut out the excess “fat” go to show just how good the film is stripped down.