News: GotchaMovies Movie Review: The Road

The Road Movie Poster

By Brett Fletcher
posted on Wednesday, November 18, 2009 - 12:00:00 AM

Think of The Road as 2012 with a brain and a pair of balls. Set an unspecified time with unnamed characters, director John Hillcoat's The Road follows a man (Viggo Mortensen) and his son (Kodi Smit-McPhee) trying to survive in a post-apocalyptic world filled with cannibalistic gangs and no resources. But the real reason The Road is causing hysterical hype? It's adapted from the novel by No Country for Old Men author, Cormac McCarthy--who won a Pulitzer Prize for The Road. Add a supporting cast including Charlize Theron, Robert Duvall and Guy Pierce, and The Road's an Oscar contender.

The main confrontation in The Road isn't against cannibals or hunger, it's the struggle act morally in a hopeless world. The father continually reassures his son that they are the "good guys" just trying to survive--but as the son witnesses his dad loosening his morals more everyday to survive, nothing's assured. Interestingly, for people confused by No Country for Old Men's ending, The Road might clarify McCarthy's ideas. Remember Tommy Lee Jones' character says in his dream his father was waiting for him the darkness somewhere with fire to guide the way? Well, you'll similar themes of a father's moral fire guiding his son morally in a bleak universe. However, No Country is child's play compared to The Road as the below clip shows.

Adapting a major literary work requires loads of time and talent to properly achieve; fortunately, The Road has both going for it. Originally set for November 2008 release, it was delayed (thankfully) for the filmmakers to perfect the film instead of quickly cashing in a paycheck.

Unlike the novel, The Road will expand the story and strengthen certain dramatic scenes for cinematic effect. Before anyone screams blasphemy, one should remember the novel's principle beauty was its heavenly prose, which cannot be adequately filmed. Luckily, McCarthy's knack for superb dialogue is always adaptable. The biggest alteration from the novel is the screen time expansion of the man's wife (Charlize Theron) in various flashbacks explaining background details. I'm all for this expansion because who couldn't stand to look at Mrs. Theron more?

Need more enticement? Here's an excerpt of Esquire's early review: "A brilliantly directed adaptation of a beloved novel, a delicate and anachronistically loving look at the immodest and brutish end of us all. You want them to get there—and yet you do not want it, any of it, to end... The most important movie of the year."

Of course, the final verdict will be decided by GotchaMovies!