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Wednesday, December 30, 2009
The Road (2009)
Posted on 5:53 PM by Paolo
'The Road' Review
By Paolo Sardinas
After 2007's No Country for Old Men, it became pretty obvious that novels written by Corman McCarthy can be successfully adapted into live film adaptations. The only problem is you have to accomplish this without deviating off track. You can't swerve off from the path that the author has already taken because, if you do, it doesn't make shit sense. Now, Australian director John Hillcoat, seems to have learned from the Coen Brother's masterpiece and has followed the same route. Adapting McCarthy's novel, The Road, into a live film adaptation. But, while following the book to almost exact precision, has been able to make craft something that can stand on its own. The Road is arguably the most depressing film of the year, but aside from the darkness it tends to be utterly brilliant.
The original novel is a shier work of art. Short, but still a work of art. Very much like the novel the story doesn't rely on exact details to engross the audience. An unnamed man (Viggo Mortensen) and his son (Kodi Smit-McPhee) are living in the aftermath of an unnamed apocalyptic event which has screwed up most of America. The exact location isn't do exact either. The two are heading on down to the South to escape the horrors of the destructive aftermath. Charlize Theron plays the man's wife and the son's mother. We find out that she is no longer with them since she committed suicide a little while back. She's only present through sets of flashbacks. During the journey the two have to face against the horrors of the wasteland, robbers, cannibals, and the overall destruction of the eco system. Yes don't worry it still is Christmas time. And while the film isn't exactly ringing holiday bells of joy, is there really any other time this movie could have been released? It’s already been postponed once before.
Visually the film is perfect. The unnamed apocalypse and the masses and masses of destruction are unbelievably believable. The sky is a ashy gray, and every corner lurks with danger. And this is more toned down than the book. Believe me, the film still maintains that "this could happen" feeling, it just doesn't preach it.
The film doesn't bore you down with a whole video montage of what happened before. It quickly jumps in and allows your imagination to do some of the work. The story, as the dark the setting is, is fairly heartwarming. A father's devoted love towards his son. They truly have nothing to live for but one another, this only makes the film more real, and it all manages to stay true to the original source material. It makes its father/son story interesting without being over the top and sappy. That would be utterly pointless considering the fact that the entire world is has gone bananas. With this tale of love, the movie manages to be dark, but not to dark, but while your heart may worm at the love between the pair, you still can't help but feel saddened by not only the events but the pair's current predicament. One which puts their life's in constant danger.
Mortensen's compelling performance is a sure bet come nominations. Though I doubt it will win. But it equally deserves as the other nominees. His sad and terrified expressions are enough to make the film utterly believable. I personally have not seen a performance this good that has made me draw a couple of tears since Will Smith's A Pursuit of Happiness. The real show stopper is Smit-McPhee who delivers the film's best performance. The sadness can break anyone's heart and the tears streaming down his face are enough to reduce the biggest and toughest audience members into tears of their own. The film's overall look, feel, and aesthetics are spot on. The makeup and costume work is very well done. The clothes are dirty, ragged, and makeshift, and the fussed hair and dirt faces are enough to make me believe that this is what the true apocalypse would look like.
For fans of the novel you will notice a difference between the dialogue from the book and the ones written for the film. Though it’s not a big deal you can obviously tell which ones are originally from the book and which aren't. But this is only a minor flaw as the actors' performances cover it up. As well made as the soundtrack was, Nick Cave and Warren Ellis composed it; it surprisingly becomes a bit redundant and overly dull as the movie progresses. That is the only real flaw of the film, seeing as how the movie, visually, was amazingly well done but the composition could have been worked on a bit more.
Looking past the slight flaws, The Road is sheer brilliance. The acting is outstanding and the visuals are wrenching. The Road proves once again that Cormac McCarthy's realistic, often grim, tales make interesting concepts for the silver screen to exploit. And as heartwarming as the father and son topic may be, don't be surprised when you leave the theater feeling a bit depressed. But don't worry it'll all go away once you reach for that box of Kleenex.
Grade: A-
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