The Road is a post apocalyptic movie based on a book by Cormac McCarthy and directed by John Hillcoat (The Proposition, 2005).
Following an unexplained cataclysm leading to the death of most of the worlds population and all animal and plant life, “The Man” (not Samuel L Jackson, but the exceptional Viggo Mortensen) or “Father” and the “Boy” travel towards the sea looking for food to survive and some small hope for a future.
The Road is a very bleak tale set against a backdrop mostly drained of colour and life. Trees are dead and just waiting to fall, the sky is stained a permanent grey and every day Earth gets colder.
As Viggo’s character and the boy (Kodi Smit-McPhee) make their journey they must forage for food in ghostly derelicts and shelter from the cold and periodic earthquakes. Any sense of order has disintegrated along with any hope for humanity and with the animals gone many of the planet’s survivors turn to cannibalism. Viggo must also therefore protect his boy from these twisted people they meet periodically on their journey.
The Road hinges on the relationship between father and son, passing on survival skills and ultimately doing what is right in a world where morals and order have otherwise completely gone out the window.
As in the novel, nobody has a name save for Robert Duvall’s character, a blind old man who calls himself Eli. It is this encounter and then later the scene with a thief that really stand out. Charlize Theron’s character – Viggo’s partner/wife and the boy’s mother is also fleshed out on screen in the form of flashbacks, building on what we glean from the book.
Ultimately The Road is a good adaptation of a great, stark book, which to read feels un-filmable. As a result Hillcoat had a very difficult task on his hands but has made a very admirable and watchable effort. Though the magnetism between viewer and character may be less electrifying in the film adaptation, most fans of the book should like this too. If doom and gloom isn’t your bag though, steer well clear!
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