There are a multitude of meanings behind Dementus’ color-changing cape inFuriosa. Thevillain inFuriosa: A Mad Max Saga, Dementus is an unconventional leader who controls the Biker Horde in theFury Roadprequel and spends the film attempting to expand his power to other areas such as Gastown. Throughout theMad Maxfilm, Dementus is presented as a leader who commands space and attention, both in terms of personality and physical presence.
Played by Chris Hemsworth in theFuriosacast, Dementus is a very different villain than 21st-centuryMad Maxaudiences are used to from the likes ofFury Road. As opposed to Immortan Joe, who asserts his rule in the form of a more abject denial of resources while he hoards resources for himself,Dementus presents himself as a more buffoonish villain.He is a faux intellectual — the kind who refers to tears as “zesty and piquant” — and a wannabe father figure. Throughout the story, one of Dementus’ standout assets is his cape, whose changing appearance can be explored further.
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Dementus' White Cape Presents Him As A Messiah In His Furiosa Introduction
Dementus' White Cape Likened Him To A Cult Leader
When the titular Furiosa is first captured by Dementus, the character is seen sporting a white cape that is draped over his head. In an interview published byWarner Bros. Entertainment, director George Miller explained that this cape is made from a parachute, which he says “gave him some sense of majesty.” Costume designer Jenny Beaven explained that this white cape arose from “researching gurus” and figures “like Michael Jackson” who “all seemed to be in the realm of what this character was.” In her research,Beaven found gurus and “cult leaders” were often seen wearing white.
Hemsworth noted that “the cape can be used to appear like a messiah.” The actor makes a good point here, asDementus’ white parachute cape is alluring against the sandstorm-ridden environment in which he is introduced. In a wasteland, this clean, white appearance likens him to a figure like a savior, because he is almost a beacon in the brutal environs. Even how Dementus drapes his white cape appears almost Jesus-like, further cementing him as a messiah figure.
The Deeper Meaning Behind The Changing Colors Of Dementus' Cape
Dementus' Cape Changes Show His Corruption Of Power
While Dementus begins as a messiah-esque figure when sporting white, his cape does not maintain that color throughout the entire film. Later, Dementus’ cape is seen to be a vibrant red color, and eventually, it is turned more into gray. Miller justified this by explaining that “when he becomes the red Dementus, he has a red cape,” and then “when he becomes the dark Dementus, all the soot and oil and everything, it becomes basically gray.” Thus,the clean look of the cape from Dementus’ messiah days has long disappeared by the end ofFuriosa.
Dementus' cape first turns red when he is encased in a cloud of red smoke at the Citadel.
This explanation for Dementus’ evolution reveals the antagonist’s cape to be part of his spiral into evil. While he is never a benevolent figure, Dementus starts as a man who is recovering from a traumatic past — then his greed and power-hungriness distort him. As this metamorphosis occurs, so too does his cape change color.Vulturesummarized this well, writing: “Revenge and power don’t make you a better or happier person; they’re a darkness that stains your character just the same way his cape turned black.”
Why Furiosa Takes Dementus’ Cape
Furiosa Reclaims Power By Taking What Once Gave Dementus Respect
InFuriosa’s ending, the heroine ends up taking Dementus’ cape. This is a powerful decision, as it strips Dementus of the thing that gave him power. As easy as it was for Dementus to attain the respect of his followers with such an arbitrary signal of power, it was even easier for Furiosa to take that garment away from him after his death.Dead, Dementus has no power,with his cape becoming even more meaningless.
Furiosa does not vengefully kill those who surround Dementus, but takes his dead body and uses it as a fertilizer to bring more life into the Wasteland.
Reclaiming Dementus’ cape also relates to the film’s broader ending themes of taking a history of malice and transforming it into something more empowering. Furiosa does not vengefully kill those who surround Dementus, but takes his dead body and uses it as a fertilizer to bring more life into the Wasteland. As she creates literal flora, she is also the gateway to more life when she frees enslaved women from Immortan Joe. If the cape represents the misuse of power, its changing hands shows a break in a corrupted cycle by the end ofFuriosa.
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Cast
A prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road, Furiosa is an action-adventure film that tells the origin story of the headstrong and fearless Furiosa. Set shortly after the beginning of the “end of the world,” Furiosa is kidnapped and brought before a powerful warlord, now forced to work for him. To find her way back home, Furiosa will adapt to the new harsh and arid world as she grows into the Furiosa she becomes known to be.
