Movie Squad - The Road

Show

Breakfast with Barr,

Presenter

Peter Barr

Published

Friday 29th January

Patrick Pittman is walking ‘The Road’ alone this week after Paul Grace was arrested, along with Gerard Butler, just for being a ‘Law-Abiding Citizen’. Not able to speak about Mr Grace until his initial hearing, Pittman decides to speak about the movies instead with Mr Barr on Breakfast.

A new record has been set by Moneybags Cameron. He has surpassed in all-time box office takings…Thunderball! OK it has become one of the highest grossing films of all time, collecting a cool $1.85 billion (US). But does that take into account the extra $2 you have to pay the 3D specs?

‘The Road’ – directed by John Hillcoat, based on the novel by Cormac McCarthy (writer of ‘No Country for Old Men). Starring Viggo Mortensen, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Charlize Theron.

A father (Mortensen) and his son (Smit-McPhee) struggle to survive a world which is dying. Nothing moves in the ravaged landscape save the ash on the wind and water. It is cold enough to crack stones, and, when the snow falls it is grey. The sky is dark. Their destination is the warmer south, although they don’t know what, if anything, awaits them there. They have nothing: just a pistol with two shots to defend themselves, the clothes on their back, a rusting shopping car of scavenged food – and each other.

Verdict: Minimal Effects. Beautifully Shot. A beautiful chemistry between Mortensen and Smit-McPhee. Nick Cave and Warren Ellis’ score is oddly poor but it feels like sacrilege to say so. If you think the ending is a cop out, blame McCarthy as it’s a cop out in the book. Not McCarthy’s finest work. It’s not a story about the end of the world, it’s about the father and son relationship and the director gets that.