Movie Review: The Road

Based on the Pulitzer Prize winning novel by Cormac McCarthy, The Road is about a father and son who fight to stay alive in a post-apocalyptic future. For the main characters, food is scarce and the probability of coming across cannibalistic gangs is high. The world has been torched. Everything is burnt and damp and the weather is cold and wet. The father and son are a symbol for humanity, but as the father struggles to stay alive he looses his way about what is right and what is wrong. Innocence is left in the hands of a child who has no memory of the world that lived before him. The film stars Viggo Mortensen, Charlize Theron, Robert Duvall, Guy Pearce, and Molly Parker.

The adaption doesn’t take much liberty away from the novel, and does a good job of following along with the narrative set by the book. The first one third of this film is powerful, especially in the scenes with Charlize Theron. She does a wonderful job, and the filmmakers made good decisions with painting a grey murky pallet that can be contrasted to the colorful and sunny images of Viggo Mortensen’s memory.

However, it felt like the movie got a little lost along the way somewhere near the end. The sotry line stays intact, but some the underlining feelings of paranoia and the pain of starving are not as illustrated as perhaps they could be. In the book, the characters are much more lost and the fear of death is much more present. It is hard to view the film separate from the book. But the film is so close to being spot on. It is like a well served dish that needs just a little extra pepper.

None the less, the film does have the bleak tones and saturated colors and mood that the book represented. Anyone who sees the film and enjoys it should defiantly read the book as well. There is a trailer out now for the film that makes it look like an uplifting feel good movie of the year. Don’t be miss lead by this type of advertising. People who go to the film with that type of mind set will surely be disappointed. People who have read the book, or are just looking for a different and thought provoking film with certainly enjoy it.

This film is in very limited release, opening at only 111 screens. But last weekend it managed to take in $1.5 million dollars. I hope that it's platform release does well and that it opens in more areas.

Grade: B