Mad Max 1: The denial of the apocalypse.
Mad Max is set
Just Before the End with the twist that many characters don't actually see the end coming. While all the characters can see that things are clearly going downhill there isn't the sense of dread one would expect with an impending apocalypse. Instead everyone seems to be treating the situation like the area is going downhill in the midst of a depression. This is most notable with the MFP. Macafee (the chief of the force) knows things are falling apart and that he doesn't have the man power to deal with them. But he seems to view it as a rise in crime rather than the fall of civilization. When one of Toecutter's gang is released most of the MFP complacently (though relunctantly) follow the ruling of the court without even trying to gather evidence. Even with their lack of manpower getting rid of Toecutter would be worth the effort seeing as they are known to be attacking members of the MFP. Also while Macafee tries to cultivate Max into a symbol of heroism there's no real urgency to it. It seems less like he's trying to turn Max into a legend to save civilization and more to turn Max into a symbol to restore trust in the MFP. When Max retires he gives Max a few weeks leave instead of insisting they go after Toecutter's gang or that Max remain in a protected area. There's still a mentality that criminals would never be insane enough to actively go after law enforcement. Max similarly brushes off the threat and goes on vacation with his family. While they receive a wake up call when Jessie nearly gets accosted Max still allows Jessie to go out of his sight multiple times. Ultimately no one realizes the threat Toecutter represents until Max has lost his family. At this point Max goes from having little fear to no hope. He goes on a
Roaring Rampage of Revenge and by the end of it leaves his friend Goose (who he basically said was no longer the man he knew) and his wife Jessie to presumably die of their injuries. This essentially represents Max giving up on the dying husk of civilization. Max possibly could have used this moment to rebuild the MFP and civilization but he instead forsakes everything. It takes the events of the sequels for him to become the hero Captain Macafee was looking to create.
