I used to love flying. As a child, I used to count down the days until the next plane trip. I used to love staring out the window at the clouds as we flew over them, leaving a whole world below us. It made me feel so free. I even wrote a story about the man that grew from that little boy who loved to fly.

I’m still a window-seat guy, but flying has become little more than something I do. It’s just part of the routine. I’m home for a few weeks, then it’s back to the airport and on to the next gig. Don’t get me wrong, I like what I do and I still enjoy flying. I love to travel and never dread the next trip, it’s just that flying has lost most of the magic.

I just finished watching Up in the Air and found myself identifying with George Clooney’s character. I don’t have near the miles he does, I fly almost exclusively domestic, but something about his routine rang true with me. I think that’s where the magic of flying went. It became routine. I guess that’s what growing up is, finding your routine. It’s kind of sad really, life can be little more than finding your place in line. I think that was also the point of the movie.

I fought it for a long time, the routine. I freelanced for 5 years after graduating college. Floating from gig to gig, never knowing where the next paycheck was going to come from, never knowing what the next day was going to offer. It was kind of exhilarating. My one constant for so many years was change; change of job description, change of venue, change of locale, I even moved to New York City with no solid job lead in sight. It was fun. Little by little, change became routine. It was just something I did.

Flying for me isn’t much different from driving anymore. I do both pretty regularly now. In both cases, you’re just trying to get to your next destination as quickly as possible so you can get to whatever it is you need to do. You do everything in your power to distract yourself from the mind-numbing process of long-distance travel. In both cases, the trip becomes one long blur with sporadic glimpses of real beauty.

Some of the most beautiful things I have ever seen have been through an airplane window. Some of the most beautiful people I’ve ever met I met on the road. There’s nothing quite like driving by the St. Louis arch right as the sun is setting. There’s nothing quite like flying over a sprawling metropolis in the dead of night and watching it light up below you on the 4th of July. Yet, sadly, the more I travel, the longer the blurs become and the glimpses of real beauty are even more sporadic.

It seems that this is just what happens as we get older. We find our routine and the blurs get longer and longer. The next thing we know, we’re 40 or 50 years old and wondering where the time went. Mid-life crises are nothing more than us realizing our blurs have gotten too long and it’s time for a little more beauty in our lives.

In Up in the Air, Clooney’s job is to fire people for companies that don’t want to do it themselves. His main method of easing the pain of job-loss is to help them make the loss a wake-up call, to snap out of their routine and re-focus on their dreams. I think that was the whole point of the movie. Everyone needs to break their routine more often and remember their dreams. We need to stop and take the time to see the beauty in our lives. It’s a little cliche, but I think it’s become a cliche because of how easy it is to get stuck. It’s crazy to think how many movies center around this very phenomenon.

This movie became a wake-up call for me. I went full-time last year for the first time since college 5 years ago. In so doing, I’ve pushed away a lot of the things I enjoyed doing for things that needed to be done. I started making excuses like, “I’m too tired right now, I’ll do it tomorrow,” or “I’ve got more important things to do,” or most often, “I need to catch up on all my TV shows.” Work time was for work, and everything else was for resting and relaxing. That left no time for hobbies or work to further my dreams or develop my talents.

I’m not going to make any pledges in this post, I know myself too well for that. Just look at this site. There are pockets of consistent posts spread over the years, but the last post was much too long ago. I will be writing more, whether here or elsewhere, but the main point of this post was to process the thoughts I had after watching the movie. In college, I was required to keep a weekly “Film Journal” for a semester, where I was supposed to write about the effects any media had on me during the week; to process what I was viewing a little more actively.

At some point last year, I made a goal to do this again on this site. As this is the first one, you can see how well that goal went, but I do need to do this more. I need to quit pushing off the thoughts that race through my mind after viewing some movies or TV shows. I need to take the time to process them. I need to take the time to seek out the real beauty in my routine.

Related Posts:

• Review: Leatherheads
• Goodbye Blockbuster, You Broke My Heart
• Megan Place Drive – A Fairy Tale of sorts
• Legends
• Transcendence

After the debacle that was Jay Leno trying to hang on to his talk show on NBC, they’re doing their darnedest to refill the 10pm time slot. That not only means a whole crop of new shows on NBC, but also a whole crop of other networks trying to jump on the opportunity. That means there could actually be some decent TV to watch in the next year. Here’s the new stuff to watch out for:

Mondays:

• The Event (NBC) – Some dude looks for his missing girlfriend and ends up uncovering THE LARGEST COVER-UP IN US HISTORY!!!!1111!!!11!!! Look, it will probably be suspenseful and all that, but they’re going to drag you along all season long, giving you little bitty clues along the way just to reveal one tiny kernel of knowledge about this “event” at the end of the season. Then they’re going to drag you along for years until you finally lose interest, at which point they’ll have “the final season” where they frantically throw pieces together in a lame attempt to tie up all the loose ends they created over the years. It’s from the producers of 24, so people are going to watch it, but don’t say I didn’t warn you 6 years from now. Premieres Sep. 20, 9/8c
• Chase (NBC) – See, they call it, “Chase” because she’s a US Marshall who “Chases” criminals. Watch Justified on FX or Hulu instead. Premieres Sep. 20, 10/9c
• Lone Star (FOX) – Lamest. Title. Ever. A con man juggles identities. Premieres Sep. 20, 9/8c
• Mike and Molly (CBS) – Another lame sitcom. As a general rule, I don’t watch anything with a laugh track. Premieres Sep. 20, 9:30/8:30c
• Hawaii Five-Oh (CBS) – Same show, different decades. Think of it as CSI: Miami done as a buddy cop show. I’ll watch at least one episode. Premieres Sep. 20, 10/9c

Tuesdays:

• Raising Hope (FOX) – The pool boy impregnates a felon. Parenthood ensues. Meh. Premieres Sep. 21, 9/8c
• Running Wilde (FOX) – This is the story of Will Arnett as a rich playboy trying to woo Keri Russell, all told through the eyes of a 12-year-old girl. From the creator of Arrested Development, this one should be good.  Premieres Sep. 21, 9:30/8:30c
• No Ordinary Family (ABC) – Julie Benz (Dexter) and Michael Chiklis (The Shield) have a pretty ordinary family. After some sort of accident, they get super powers. I’m not sure what to make of this one, but if it involves super powers, I watch at least one episode as a general rule. Premieres Sep. 28, 8/7c
• Detroit 187 (ABC) – Another cop drama. One guess where this one’s based. Premieres Sep. 21, 10/9c
  

Wednesdays:

• Undercovers (NBC) – JJ Abrams’ (Lost, Alias, Felicity) latest about a married couple that happens to be former spies. JJ Abrams could make a show about a pile of burning tires and I’d watch it at least once. I’ll be checking this one out. Premieres Sep. 22, 8/7c
• Law & Order: Los Angeles (NBC) – Yup, another one. This one has Terrence Howard (Iron Man 1, Hustle and Flow). You can thank Jay Leno. Premieres Sep. 29, 10/9c
• The Defenders (CBS) – Jim Belushi and Jerry O’Connell (Stand by Me, Jerry Maguire) play 2 Las Vegas lawyers who “play by their own rules.” If Jim Belushi and Jerry O’Connell don’t scare you away from this show, you’re in the wrong place. Premieres Sep. 22, 10/9c
• Better With You (ABC) – Another family sitcom, another laugh track. Premieres Sep. 22, 8:30, 7:30c
• The Whole Truth (ABC) – That guy from Northern Exposure and that girl from ER star in another lawyer drama. I couldn’t care less. Premieres Sep. 22, 10/9c

Thursdays:

• Outsourced (NBC) – A young, American call center manager is sent to India to train the very employees his company outsourced to. The movie was pretty funny, so the premise is good, I’ll give it one shot. Premieres Sep. 23, 9:30/8:30c
• $#*! My Dad Says (CBS) – This one’s based on a book that’s based on a Twitter feed and stars William Shatner. I’d just follow the Twitter account if I were you. Premieres Sep. 23, 8:30/7:30c
• My Generation (ABC) – The latest in High School/20-something soap operas, this one is based on the premise that a documentary crew followed a group of students in High School and then catches up with them 10 years later to see what they’re up to. I assure you, the shows a lot more fake than anyone at your High School was. Premieres Sep. 23, 8/7c

Fridays:

• School Pride (NBC) – Another feel-good makeover show. This one gets students and faculty to rebuild their own schools. And they say TV never amounts to anything good. Premieres Oct. 15, 8/7c
• Outlaw (NBC) – Jimmy Smits was a Supreme Court Justice until he quits and goes to private practice, then you get another Lawyer drama. Yay! Premieres Sep. 15, 10/9c
• Blue Bloods (CBS) – Tom Selleck and Donnie Wahlberg are cops in NYC. I like this cast, but CBS has already given it the Friday night death-toll that NBC gave Southland once upon a time. Give it the fair shot CBS didn’t. Premieres Sep. 24, 10/9c
• Body of Proof (ABC) – Something about a neurosurgeon and a car accident. I got bored halfway through the description. Premieres this Fall [no date yet, always a good sign]

Sundays:

• Sunday Night Football (NBC) – It’s in no way a new show, but I’m putting it here so you remember to tune in to watch the Cowboys stomp all over the Redskins in the Season Premiere. Premieres Sep. 12, 8:15 EST

Noteworthy New Cable:

• Boardwalk Empire (HBO) – Steve Buscemi stars in a Prohibition-era gangster epic based in Atlantic City. It’s written by one of the guys that did Sopranos and the pilot’s directed by Scorcese. Premieres Sep. 19, 9/8c
• The Walking Dead (AMC) – Based on a graphic novel about a guy that wakes up from a coma after a Zombie Apocalypse, this show looks like a modern-day Western … with zombies. Does it get any better? Premieres in October
• The League (FX) – It’s not new, but I came into this one late and I loved it. It follows a group of 30-something men that play fantasy football together. It’s a little bit crude, but most women won’t like it anyway, as they thing football and its fantasy spawn is the devil. Premieres Sep. 16, 10:30/9:30c
• Conan (TBS) – It’s a long, painful story, but Conan O’Brien is now on cable, where he will be free to serve the comedy gods however it pleases him. If the last month or so of his stint on The Tonight Show was any indication, this is going to be the talk show to watch. Premieres Nov. 8

Related Posts:

• This Spring in Television
• This Fall in Television – Update

Don’t worry, you didn’t miss anything last week. This week is even worse.

In Theaters:

• Resident Evil: Afterlife – Milla Jovovich stars in a video game. You better believe they made it 3D.
  

Last Week:

• Machete – Moments of glorious gore spattered across a lame plot line.
  
• Going the Distance – “I’m a Mac” is in a long-distance relationship with the little girl from E.T. I liked one of the guys in the trailer, but Drew Barrymore cancels out any positive this thing had going for it.
  
• The American – It’s supposed to be a throwback to the old-style cinema starring George Clooney. Most reviews I’ve read say it’ll throw you right back to your pillow.
  

On Video:

• Killers – Ashton Kutcher is a secret agent man. It also stars Katherine Heigl. That’s 3 strikes.
  
• MacGruber – Probably your best chance at something decent to watch this week, but that’s not saying much. Be warned, it’s supposed to be pretty crude.
  

Last Week:

• Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married Too? – His movies will always be successful, I will always wonder why.
  
• Marmaduke -  A live-action talking dog.
  

Related Posts:

• This Week in Movies – 7/3/09
• This Week in Movies – 6/1/09
• This Week in Movies – 5/29/09
• This Week in Movies – 5/19/09
• This Week in Movies – 5/11/09

As always, let me know if there’s anything else you’d like to see on this site in the comments below (I know, I know, everyone liked Favorite Video Friday, but it’s very time consuming. I’m trying to bring it back, but it may be a while still).

Related Posts:

• Review: Inception
• This Week in Movies – 8/2/10
• Review: The Road by DrChocolate
• Review: Robin Hood by DrChocolate
• This Week in Movies – 5/17/10

We’re officially in the suck. There won’t be anything good coming out for a while, but here we go anyway.

In Theaters:

• The Last Exorcism – All we can hope for during the movie dead season is a few good horror flicks. This movie brings no such hope.
  
• Takers – It’s got Paul Walker, T.I., Chris Brown, and Hayden Christiansen. That’s 4 strikes. It also has Stringer Bell, but I assure you, this is not The Wire.
  
• Avatar (Limited) – They brought it back to select theaters so the few shmucks like me who missed it in theaters the first time can finally give James Cameron their money. There’s still no 3D Blu Ray version, so if you want to see it as James Cameron intended, now’s your chance.
  

Watch these older movies instead:

• Scott Pilgrim vs. the World – The director of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz leaves Simon Pegg and Nick Frost behind to bring us a stylized comic action movie starring Michael Cera. I haven’t seen it, but I feel like I’m in his debt after he allowed me to bask in the glory of his first two movies. I’ll be seeing this one.
  
• Piranha 3D – The B-Movie is back and in glorious 3D. This gimmick of a movie is what the gimmick of 3D was made for. That said, as with most B-Movies, expect lots of blood and gratuitous sex, violence, and nudity.
  
• Salt – I figure if you have to watch a dumb action movie, it might as well be this one. Just don’t watch the Expendables, I’m begging you.
  

On Video:

• The Back-up Plan – J-Lo. That’s all I have to say about this one.
  

It’s worse than I thought, there was nothing really worth watching that came out on video since my last post, so just use DrChocolates recommendations below if you must watch something. Or check out my other site, GuessWhatTotallyBadAssThingIJustFoundonInstantWatch.com and watch something on  Netflix’s Instant Watch.

In other news, I’m thinking of keeping a list of all the movies I watch and my brief thoughts about each. I’ll post it somewhere on this site, so be on the lookout.

Related Posts:

• This Week in Movies – 1/19/09
• This Week in Movies – 4/21/08
• This Week in Movies – 3/31/08
• This Week in Movies – 9/7/10
• This Week in Movies – 8/2/10

An Education

If you haven’t rented this you need too. It’s whip smart, hilarious and touching. The incomparable Nick Hornby has written the smartest script I’ve seen on screen in ages and Carey Mulligan absolutely shines. A true cinematic gem. Rent. Now.

Fantastic Mr. Fox

Never been the biggest fan of Wes Anderson’s self-referential irony. His films always seem so self-satisfied. Working from a Roald Dahl book always helps, but I found this to be immensely entertaining. I laughed heartily from beginning to end. Visually delightful with superb voice work. I was thoroughly charmed by this film. Enormously recommended.

Green Zone

Matt Damon and Paul Greengrass team up again for the action and it’s not as Bourne as you’d think. Exciting and tense, it’s better than I expected based on the buzz about the film. It’s dogmatic in its simplistic take on Middle Eastern politics and the outcome is a little anti-climatic, but it’s still a very solid action flick worth a rental.

Edge of Darkness

Mel may be insane, but I’ve always liked his work, both behind and in front of the camera. This isn’t his best thought. He’s good in the prototypical “Mel as a wronged man on a mission of violent retribution” role but the movie acts as if it has big secrets to spill but every reveal and twist can be seen from five miles out. Mediocre, revenge flick with solid direction at best. Danny Huston and Ray Winstone (each with their trademark imposing physicality’s) are wasted here too.

Hot Tub Time Machine

Meh. Hilarious first 30 minutes then it just runs out of bubbles (pardon the pun). The characters begin to grate and the 80’s references begin to feel shoe-horned in. Unnecessarily crude too. There is a fabulous bit of stunt casting, paired with a hysterical running joke, involving Cripsin “George Mcfly” Clover. It’s almost worth it for the Glover scenes but just watch The Hangover again to see this type of story done much better.

The Wolfman

I’m a sucker for old timey goth-monster-horror flicks but the plodding start had me reaching for the off switch. Be patient though. The film soon opens up and is actually quite a bit of fun (the campy climatic fight is a treat) and amusingly gory. The real reason to watch this is the art direction though; it has a superb smoky-velvety late 1800’s London gothic atmosphere, which suits Emily Blunt splendidly. I want to watch it again, sounded turned down, with a mix of Type O Negative, Pornography-era Cure, and Paradise Lost playing in the background. Recommended if you can get through the first 30 minutes or so. Cool end title sequence to boot.

50 Dead Men Walking

I promised a full-length on this previously, but let this suffice: It’s a slick (in the best way possible) action thriller involving The Troubles. The British Intelligence recruits a nicely unglamorous Jim Sturgess to do dangerous double agent duty inside the IRA; a strangely be-wigged Ben Kingsley is his handler. Based on a true story it’s gripping and entertaining. A nice companion piece to Hunger because it obviously sympathizes with the British and shows some of the harsher realities of life inside the IRA. Sturgess and Kingsley’s development of a father-son like bond sounds a completely wrong note however. It’s still very recommended.

The Twilight Saga: Eclipse

I know. I know. I know. What do you care, you already know if you’re going see this or not, right? Anyway, it’s not any better than New Moon was, but it’s nice that they finally got a director who can do a solid action scene. Some cool fights. Repetitive plot conflicts are seriously tedious. Apparently the beloved Jacob (Taylor Lautner) is a manipulative stalker who should be red flagged as a potential date rape perp. Bryce Dallas Howard falls flat on her face, big miscast. Kristen Stewart is getting better but the real star of this series is the effortless Billy Burke as her dad. Not terrible but not …oh whatever.

Related Posts:

• Review: The Road by DrChocolate
• Review: Robin Hood by DrChocolate
• Review: Date Night by DrChocolate
• Review: Shutter Island by DrChocolate
• Review: Moon by DrChocolate

Before I say anything about Inception, you should know that I recommend going into this movie completely blind, with as little expectation as you can, so that you can get the full experience and be able to lose yourself completely in the world that Christopher Nolan (Dark Knight, Memento, The Prestige) created. I recommend you watch the movie, preferably in IMAX (as portions were shot in 65mm, standard is 35mm), before you read this review. You will not be disappointed, I consider this the best movie of the year. There will almost definitely be spoilers below.

There is a movement in the Film World (as well as the Art World) called Post-Modernism. Inception is a textbook example of this movement. It’s more subtle than say, a Woody Allen or a Charlie Kaufman movie, but it is definitely Post-Modern. Any Post-Modern film can be characterized by a “self-referential stance” that cues the spectator “to read the narrative as something other than a sequential development toward some transcendent truth.” (Schatz, Thomas. “Annie Hall and the Issue of Modernism.” Literature/Film Quarterly X (1982): 180-187.) In other words, the film will constantly provide clues to cue the spectator to the fact that many of the subjects within the movie address the movie itself as well. This is often done to pull the viewer out of the movie at specific points in order to allow the viewer to question or analyze the subject at hand. The more the viewer realizes that he/she is watching a movie, without leaving the movie world, the more he/she is able to control the viewing experience and bring something valuable out of it.

When training Ariadne (Ellen Page) in the clip above, Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) states that we never really remember the beginning of a dream, that we always end up right in the middle of what’s going on. Nolan does the same thing with Inception, he throws us right into the middle of a two layer dream, instantly transporting us into his world, only allowing us to question it at specific points. Nolan is the architect. His goal is to plant a single idea in each viewer’s mind, that they will take with them upon leaving his world.

Ariadne’s training provides all the clues to decoding this world. In it, we are told that only subtle familiarities are allowed when constructing a dream. Too many or too much, will cause the dreamer to realize he or she is dreaming. Inception is littered with these subtle familiarities. The cast is dotted with actors and actresses Nolan has worked with before (Michael Caine, Cilian Murphy, Ken Watanabe). The music used to “kick” the dreamers out of their dream state is “Non je ne Regrette Rien” by Edith Piaf, who Marion Cotillard, Mal in the movie, played in La Vie en Rose. Even the suspenseful “Braaaahm” sound played before each “kick” is just a slowed down version of that song. This is all on purpose. It serves to make the film world familiar to us without taking us out of the movie altogether.

In the training, Cobb also states that the architect must be sure not to break too many laws of physics in the dream world as that too will make the dreamer aware of the dream and in turn, pull him/her out of the dream world. Nolan applied this to his world by limiting the amount of CGI used in the film. A large majority of the effects in the film were done in-camera by the amazing Wally Pfister, also a familiar from his past work. The train that came barreling down the road was simply an 18-wheeler with a train facade. The elevator scenes were done by constructing a horizontal elevator shaft in an old airship hangar. The bar in Robert Fischer’s (Cillian Murphy) 2nd dream level was built on a hydraulic lift, allowing it to be raised up to 30 degrees. The hallway where Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Leavitt) fights a security guard, jumping from wall to ceiling to floor and back was an elaborate set built to rotate a full 360 degrees. No wires were used in that scene, the actors had to just time their jumps with the rotation of the set. (American Cinematographer, Journal of Motion Imaging, July 2010) All of this was done to make the viewer aware he/she is watching a movie, without pulling him/her completely out of that world.

The acting is superb. Each actor is at the top of his/her game. Even Leonardo DiCaprio, who I have been known to despise in other films, is completely convincing as a beaten-down Dream Architect. The writing, editing, and music combine perfectly to envelop the viewer in Nolan’s worlds. The very base of editing is the juxtaposition of two images used to convey an emotion not present in those images. Nolan uses this simplest form of editing to create an even more heightened suspense as the van careens towards the river in slow motion. Image after image is flashed before the viewer’s eyes of level after level of the character’s dreams. It was enough to practically give my wife an ulcer. The 10 years Nolan spent writing this movie shows completely in his execution. The world of Inception is real as far as my mind’s concerned.

So what’s the point? Post-Modernism is a tool used to bring more awareness to an artist’s central theme. In this case, I believe Nolan is attempting to bring awareness to the theme of his complete body of work. By using elements from previous films and from Hollywood in general, Nolan is constructing a world that will bring the viewer to an awareness of this central theme. It is embodied in the final words of Mal, “You’re waiting for a train; a train that will take you far away. You know where you hope this train will take you, but you can’t be sure. Yet it doesn’t matter – because we’ll be together.” Relationships matter most to Nolan. If you look at his past body of work, you will find this to be the common thread between them all. Relationships are the most valuable part of life. Nolan is an Auteur in the truest sense of the word.

The movie ends with a bit of uncertainty. Was it all a dream, or did Cobb actually return to reality? I believe that Nolan’s stance is that it doesn’t matter, because he’s together, with his kids. As the credits roll through and the “Braaaahm” sound intensifies, “Non je ne Regrette Rien” plays one final time, cuing the viewer to the fact that the “kick” is coming and he/she will soon be returned to reality, left to ponder the meaning of this dream world they just experienced, leaving only with the subtle clues implanted by Nolan himself. Whether or not he/she comes to the same point Nolan wished to impart on him/her depends on the success of his Inception.

Cobb: You create the world of the dream. We bring the subject into that dream and fill it with their subconscious.
Ariadne: How could we acquire enough details to make them think that it is reality?
Cobb: Our dreams, they feel real while we’re in them right? Its only when we wake up then we realize that something was actually strange.

- 5,342,421 arbitrary stars

Related Posts:

• Review: Revolutionary Road by DrChocolate
• Review: The Dark Night
• Review: Juno
• Recently Watched
• Review: The Road by DrChocolate

I’m a changed man, I swear!

In Theaters:

• The Other Guys – Marky Mark and Will Ferrell are cops. Guess what ensues. Directed by the guy that did Step Brothers and Land of the Lost, so it could be a gamble, but the trailer looked funny enough. I’ll probably catch it on DVD.
  
• Step Up 3D – Yup, they made another one, and yes, that’s what they called it.
  
• Middle Men – Al Gore may have invented the internet, but Luke Wilson invented internet porn.
  

On Video:

• Diary of a Wimpy Kid – I hear the kids like it.
  
• Kick-Ass – McLovin and a bunch of other kids decide to be superheroes with kick-ass results. See what I did there? Anywho, it’s from the director of Layer Cake, so you know it’s going to be some fun, stylized action, and Nicolas Cage is in it. He’s always good for a laugh. Seriously though, add it to the queue.
  

Related Posts:

• This Week in Movies – 8/25/10
• This Week in Movies – 1/19/09
• This Week in Movies – 8/11/08
• This Week in Movies – 4/21/08
• This Week in Movies – 3/31/08

Update: So you probably already realized this, but I’m an idiot and posted next week’s movies this week. Hopefully I didn’t ruin your weekend.

In Theaters:

• Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time – Donnie Darko leaves the Mountain and dons a British accent to do some Parkour. It’s a Bruckheimer movie, so expect some big dumb fun, but it’s also based on a video game, so watch at your own risk. Then again, he did make a theme park ride into a pretty entertaining set of movies, but Gyllenhaal is no Johnny Depp.
  
• Sex and the City 2 – I won’t waste your time. You already know if you’re going to be watching this movie or not.
  

On Video:

• Dear John – Amanda Seyfried and Channing Tatum write some dude named John a bunch of letters, or something like that.
  
• The Road – Post-Apocalyptic tale of Viggo Mortensen and his son struggling to survive in an ashy wasteland. Buy the book, watch the movie, then lend them both to a friend. This is storytelling at its finest.
  

Related Posts:

• This Week in Movies – 9/7/10
• This Week in Movies – 7/3/09
• This Week in Movies – 6/1/09
• This Week in Movies – 5/29/09
• This Week in Movies – 5/19/09

As Luke said in the previous This Week in Movies, “this is storytelling at it’s finest.” I wholeheartedly agree. To frame my review of this superb film I’ll give you some insight into me – I’m a father. I have two sons. I love them more than it is possible to describe. When I read the book we were still waiting for our second to be born – so I was a father of one son, like the main character. Undoubtedly this has colored my opinion of the movie and the book. Due to this, and without any qualms, I freely admit that I sobbed my way through the book, and now the movie. It was impossible for me to not embed myself, and my sons, into this story; impossible to not see my son’s face in the face of The Boy and to ponder what I would do if I were The Man. In that way, this movie is devastating, it’s uplifting, it is hopeful, haunting, bleak, and beautiful.

For those not in the know, “The Road” follows an unnamed father and son traveling across a perilous US that has been blackened and destroyed by an unspecified disaster. The road is fraught with nightmare encounters with roving, violent gangs, unscrupulous thieves, cannibals and every other horror imaginable. As humanity and morality disintegrates around them the man tries to instill and keep compassion and decency alive in the boy, they strive to carry they fire.

Viggo Mortensen and newcomer Kodi Smit-McPhee are inspired as the Man and Boy. Their father-son relationship is tender and believable. Mortensen, with his distinctive weary intellectualism, is superb as a father desperate to keep protect his son from evil. The scene where Mortensen instructs his son on how to properly commit suicide with a pistol (in order to avoid fates worse than death) is particularly crushing. In turn Smit-McPhee is excellent as the story’s embodiment of innocence and charity, of the flame that needs to be protected. In truth some of the more haunting and nightmarish scenes I’ve ever seen are in this movie – from the house with the cellar, to the thief on the beach, to the flashbacks with the Man and his wife (an immensely effective Charlize Theron). However, the soul of the film is that one can remain “good” in the face of such evil and inhumanity, and it is huge. It is encompassing, and though it is nestled in one of the more frightening celluloid landscapes I’ve experienced, it is inspirational and powerful and alive.

Director John Hillcoat (who’s feature debut was the disturbingly violent but outstanding Australian western The Proposition), with his stars, and crew, has crafted what, to me, amounts to a masterpiece. Granted he was blessed with the best piece of fiction I’ve read in at least a decade, maybe ever; but he still was able to turn Cormac McCarthy’s sparse, aptly vague prose into a visually stunning, emotionally rending, inspiring film. There are additional bonus points to be handed out to an evocative score by legendary musician Nick Cave (who penned the script for The Proposition) and to a stable of brilliant, smaller performances including an almost unrecognizable Robert Duvall and Michael Williams as a wretchedly desperate thief. The Road is a very difficult watch, that is certain, but I will recommend it to everyone – without hesitation for, ultimately, it is one of the most beautiful movies I have seen about hope, humanity, and love. Read this book. Watch this film.

(Complete Side Rant Alert: I still can’t comprehend how the Weinstein brothers allowed this movie to be ignored and overlooked. The book was a NY Times #1 bestseller. It was a part of the Oprah Book Club. It won a freaking Pulitzer. Millions of people read it and instead of a wide release with a heavy awards season push (which I’m sure would have garnered it a few important nods) they dumped it into a few dozen theaters and let it run for like 4 weeks and then pulled it. What is the thought process behind this idiocy? Who did that help? It’s a superb movie based on a popular, well-regarded novel and it was completely abandoned by it’s parent company. Meanwhile Old Dogs debuts the same weekend on 3400+ screens. Bah.)

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