Hey, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab.
I’m working on an article for this weekend about David Self’s wonderful screenplay adaptation for ROAD TO PERDITION that compares it to the original graphic novel. Until then, here's a quick glimpse of the film from someone who got an early peek this week...
Hello fellow film geek,
I was fortunate enough to recieve an invite to a trade screening of "Road to Perdition" earlier this morning. Being Sam Mendes sophomore effort, I entered the relatively compact screening room carrying a mixed anticipation towards the film, which now lingers in my mind as one of the greatest mob movies I have ever been pleasured to encounter. Any uneasyness I had about the film passed as soon as the reel rolled out the movies opening shots, which make it perfectly clear that the film is, like "American Beauty", a work of impressive visual poetry. Every shot is planned, and executed to near-perfection. Every frame holds meaning. The story follows mob hitman Micheal Sullivan(Tom Hanks), whose family is betrayed and slaughtered, save for one surviving son. In a desperate attempt to salvage his seemingly fleeting life and gain a measure of vengance against his family's murderer, he takes to the road with his son and does his best to set his world morally right. Tom Hanks once again churns out a flawless performance, and his scenes with Micheal Jr.(newcomer Tyler Hoechlin)stand as the best in the film. Young Hoelchiln, although I usually loathe child actors, carries himself well against such titanic talents like Hanks, Paul Newman, and Jude Law. Law's portayal of a freelance hitman is not only a seamless, realistic performance of a complex character but also stands as the least physically attractive appearance Jude Law will ever take on. With thinning hair, nearly black teeth, and horribly green fingernails, Law looks to be a man void of all health and ttractivness. Paul Newman's role as a Irish mafia leader is suprisingly overshadowed by the performances of his younger co-stars, though he does nothing to detract from the film. "Road to Perdition" should be at the top of any film geek's must see list.
See ya,
-Patrick who is of grand endowment
This review was in my mailbox when I woke up this morning, so I thought I'd add it while the article is still fresh:
I also saw a trade screening of ROAD TO PERDITION this week. I won't rehash the plot again, but I wanted to weigh in my two cents.
Good solid filmmaking, a must see for those who enjoy the gritty stuff. But I can't say it was GREAT because I felt it's just a retelling of that other little DreamWorks flick, GLADIATOR, where a noble warrior who operates in a corrupt world takes a path of vengeance after suffering family tragedy due to the politics of said corrupt world. The beats were way too similiar, even the whole father/patriarch/mob boss/emperor theme (substitute Paul Newman and Daniel Craig for Richard Harris and Joaquin Pheonix).
There you go. Two cents cashed. If by some twist of fate my comments
wind up on the site, call me "The Bean".
Interesting take on things. To be honest, having read the graphic novel for the first time when it was published a number of years ago, it never occurred to me to think of the material as a GLADIATOR retread. I think that's selling it short in a pretty major way. Yes, there are parallels in terms of both of them being about the effects of a father's actions on the sons in his life, both literal and figurative, but you can draw comparisons to other material as well, including the classic LONE WOLF & CUB stories. There's just something archetypical about a father and son travelling together, them against the world. All I know is, this one's on the top of my want to see list this summer, and July can't get here fast enough.
"Moriarty" out.
