A few months back, I picked up and read The Road by Cormac McCarthy (link at the end of this post). Well, the movie came and went from the theaters without really noticing, and it even was released on Blu-RAY for weeks before I realized it. So I put it on my queue and wanted to see if it could improve on the book.
How could it not? There’s very few characters in the book, and equally few in the film. Having said that, it’s an impressive gathering of the actors you see the most (with the exception of the child). The notable cast members include Viggo Mortensen, Charlize Theron, Robert Duvall, and Guy Pierce. I also recognized the lesser known actors Garret Dillahunt and Michael K. Williams.
All things said, the film was cast very well with good performances. It was shot well with a great production value. Taking the book into account, it was adapted brilliantly. Unfortunately the flaw in the movie is that it was based on the book which I felt was flawed.
The same flaws in the book persisted in the film. The only real difference that I can think of is what felt like a bigger role of the wife / mother character played by Theron.
I can only assume that the reason this film seemed to come and go without notice is because of the flaws in the story. How else can you explain how a film with good production value, a great cast and performances can do so poorly? I guess you can point to a lack of marketing support, but it’s a great cast of a film based on a popular book…
I’m not sure who to recommend this film to. If you like apocalypse films, you’ll want to at least see this. If you want to see how a Pulitzer Prize winning novel can be adapted, then check it out. If you’re some Lord of the Rings freak that can’t not see a movie with a main cast member, you’ll have to see this (one cast to rule them all).
It’s just a movie that I’m not going to bother seeing again as it didn’t really do much but kill a few hours on a meaningless weeknight.