The Road Stars: Viggo Mortensen, Kodi Smit-Mcphee, Charlize Theron, Robert Duvall, Guy Pearce, Molly Parker, Mcheal K. Williams And Garret Dillahunt.
Directed By: John Hillcoat
Rated R. 2009 112 Min.
(Mild spoilers included in the following)
The Road is based on an award winning apocalyptic novel written by Cormac McCarthy. Having not read the book provided me with zero expectations and a fresh perspective on the film. This paid off as I felt the film was so powerfully dismal not knowing the outcome kept me interested enough to continue watching.
The tone of the film is constant fear, hunger and death at every turn. Overall brilliantly moving and yet at the same time so depressing you really have little interest in seeing it again. Its that good/bad?
During the film the two main characters never use names instead its papa and son, to the viewer its man and boy. The man, (Viggo Mortensen) and the boy (Kodi Smit-McPhee) take us on a dark trek across an America destroyed as they head south toward the coast.
Its no fun as they’re constantly on the lookout for food and roving gangs of heartless inbred cannibals. During brief bouts of sleep the man dreams of his dead wife (Charlize Theron) as we relive the last days of civilization when she gave birth to their son. In these dreams we see how the family lived in isolation surviving on limited food and bullets after the catastrophe. Its the fire of survival and guilt that drives the man to protect his son after her death as the regrets of the past eats away at the same time drives him toward reaching some kind of salvation for his son.
During the journey father teaches son there’s only two kinds of people, the good guys and the bad guys. However, along the way his son becomes aware the stress of the trip is eating away at his father. As they push on the man begins to develop characteristics that the boy questions as they encounter different people along the road.
The performances by Viggo and Kodi are Oscar worthy, moving, and incredibly touching as we see the boy teach the man the value of being human in an inhuman world. Adding the cinematography and soundtrack to the experience embraces the performances so well that they become unforgettable images that are long thought about after viewing the film.
Overall it’s a deeply emotional story. Most everyone in the theater didn’t move when the credits rolled as the final performance by Kodi was breathtaking. I give The Road a 9 out of 10.
