Movie of the Day – The Road

One of my favorite genre of movies is the apocalyptic style movies.  I am sucker for post apocalyptic movies where the devastation and destruction of the world, city, country and society is explained through the movie and characters, rather than showing it happen.  For me the sense of figuring out what took place beforehand or wondering why society is this way is much more exciting than seeing it unfold.  Movies like I Am Legend, Mad Max, Children of Men, and in particular The Road have such a magnet for my attention.  I am not certain as to why I am drawn to this genre, but needless to say that seeing people’s interpretation of what they think the world will look like come a catastrophic event is fascinating.

One of the most impressive apocalyptic movies to come out was The Road.  This is based off the Cormac McCarthy book of the same name, this is one of the most interesting and depressing apocalyptic movies out there.  The book is also really enthralling and having read it and then seeing the movie, this is a very good adaptation.  The movie brings to life the bleak, desolate, and heavy despair of a world affected by a cataclysmic event.  Nothing is ever stated as to why the world is the way it is, which you are left to your own devices to fill in the blank.  This movie plays with the idea of hope and trying to find a better life amongst all the destruction, but one tragedy after another befalls the characters.  Hope is essentially beaten out of you but much like the characters, you are want there something good to happen and will wait and hope until it does.

Viggo is by far my favorite actor out there.  He can play these grizzled characters so well and you feel for him throughout his journey with his son who he protects against the breakdown and threat of other survivors.  Their journey is supposed to take them to the coast where it is warmer and there might be hope that other survivors have made it there.  Well they do meet other survivors but not the friendly, let’s all stick together and make it survivors.  They meet the shotgun wielding, backwoods survival, nothing left to lose people who just happen to be cannibals.  Oh and they also meet Omar from The Wire.

Now I know that this might not be your style of movie.  I certainly haven’t painted a pretty and sunny picture of the movie.  I mean who really wants to see a depressing movie about the end of the world and those that struggle to cope with the loss of society and human decency?  This is not for everyone, as evident by its lackluster box office showing and its delayed released again and again.  If you are fan of post apocalyptic movies, see this.  This is a must and Viggo (Aragorn) just absolutely nails down the character portrayed in the book.