MOVIE REVIEW: The end of the world has always been a popular avenue for movies for decades and seems to be trying to make a comeback with Knowing, 2012, the upcoming The Book of Eli, and now The Road — based on the Pulitzer Prize winning novel by Cormac McCarthy, author of No Country For Old Men.
The film centers a father (Viggo Mortensen) and his son (Kodi Smith-McPhee) who must travel south to the open shores of the Atlantic Ocean for safe haven after an unknown cataclysmic event torched the planet while fighting cannibals, hunger, and the growing cold climate.
The Road isn't your typical drama nor your usual end of the world flick. But, it's slow-paced (not painstakingly though) but with some riveting acting and unforgettable images. The story of the two main characters are told through short flashbacks but nothing is explained in details. Yup, you will have to connect the pieces yourself, but there's really nothing complicated.
The movie wanted to stay as close to the novel's intention of focusing on the father and his son's journey rather than going into intimate details of their past. In other words, it will rely on the audience's intelligence to put the rest of story together.
Robert Duvall, Guy Pearce, and Charlize Theron are credited but their roles are small and have very limited screen time. Duvall plays an old nomad, Pearce a family man with a rifle, and Theron as the father's wife.
I've always heralded Mortensen as one of the best and underrated actors around, and his portrayal of the over-protective but dying father is one of, if not, his best performance ever. His ability to extend his character's emotions through the tone of his voice, the obvious and subtleties of his body language, and eyes is just utter brilliance.
The casting of Smith-McPhee as his son was spot-on also. This kid delivered acting chops rarely seen from any young actor but especially from a 13 year-old.
While there are no explosions, car chases, or martial-arts fight scenes, The Road is a delicate but bold investigation of the human heart and spirit as well as the dark tendencies of our survival instincts.
So is the movie worth the ticket price and wasting almost 2 hours? Absolutely! That is if you fancy heart-wrenching but outstanding drama.
The Road (2009) (Dimension Films). MPAA rating: R for violence, disturbing images and language. Running Time: 1 hour, 53 minutes. Now Playing.
ACTING: A+
STORY: BORIGINALITY: B+
SCORE: B+
STUPID LEVEL: 1/10
VERDICT: A tear-jerker with teeth
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