Friday 26 February 2010

The end of the world as we know it. A review of two films.

The end of the world is nigh! Well, at least it is at the cinema at the moment with the post-apocalyptic offerings of The Road and The Book of Eli. The characters of both films are survivors of cataclysmic events which have left their respective worlds barren, desolate and lawless; only the rule of survival remains. Peopled by cannibals and the desperate, they make their way along the road, overcoming obstacles and threats on their way to an ultimate destination, where it is hoped things will be better.


Having read Cormac McCarthy’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel, from which The Road is adapted, I had reservations over whether director John Hillcoat could replicate the sheer lyricism of the novel. The film is good, and Viggo Mortensen’s depiction of ‘the man’ is superb, however, the film doesn’t match up to the art of the novel.

It was always going to be a great challenge to any director who took up the task of adapting McCarthy’s work. His prose is bleak, halting and trudging, and mirrors the journey along the road both tragically and beautifully, and cleverly captures the reader with a lyrical sublimity, which seems difficult to accurately render on film.

The only director who could have realised such a vision – and forgiving his average remake of Hitchcock’s Psycho – would perhaps have been Gus Vant Sant. By using a combination of conventional and non-conventional techniques, he may have achieved a similar award winning result as he did with Elephant, a winner of the Palme d’Or.

A great strength of The Road was the outstanding cinematography of Javier Aguirresarobe. Eschewing the use of CGI, stock footage from Hurricane Katrina, images of bloody tracks in the snow from the Kosovo Conflict, and real locations of abandoned highways, and bleak and wasted landscapes, were used to more immediate effect in creating the post-apocalyptic mise-en-scene. I read in a separate review that this can perhaps be read that apocalypse is potentially with us presently, and if not careful, we could well find ourselves in similar circumstances.


In The Book of Eli, the story takes a more action-oriented approach, with breathtaking moments of cleanly choreographed bloody fight scenes, which are supported by great editing. The first fight is shot with Eli (Denzel Washington) in silhouette as he takes out an entire gang of highway robbers with precise and deadly strokes from his large knife.

Making his way west, Eli stops at a local town under the influence of Carnegie (Gary Oldman), who is searching the country high and low for the titular book – the last of its kind. It just so happens that Eli is carrying the book, which he reads from every day. Blamed for the atrocities that caused ‘the flash’ thirty years ago, all the books of its kind were destroyed in the wake of the war. Carnegie is obsessed over gaining possession of the book, which he calls a powerful weapon, so that he can influence and be worshiped. He lacks the right words and ideas, however, which he knows can be found in the book.

The film is a decent effort by directors the Hughes brothers, but suffers from two major flaws. Firstly, the introduction of Mila Kunis as a sidekick forces Eli into expository dialogue, which had been avoided in Gary Whitta’s screenplay. She is perhaps also miscast, making you wonder what a fashion model is doing roughing it on the road.

Whilst the cinematography was great overall, the use of CGI seemed out of harmony with the rest of the mise-en-scene. The digital composites stuck out rather than dissolving into the screen.

The greatest problem, however, is the film’s ending. There is a moment towards the end which provides a logical spot for ending the film, however, for whatever the reason it continues into a final act. Rather than tie off hanging story threads, it confuses with illogical plot developments.

Regardless of the negatives mentioned above, both films are above the blockbuster standard, and give great opportunity to experience the post-apocalyptic genre film from two different directorial viewpoints.

Sunday 14 February 2010

Classical Conversations: The Inherent Doom of Woman


In a recent conversation with good friend, scholar, and fellow blogger, Gidgette, I was speaking of the inherent doom of Woman in western civilisation. I pointed out how the problem of the subjugation of woman begins with her very name. Wo-man, is still a part of man. Fe-male likewise. In no instance does woman possess a name that is hers; a name separate to man.

Her inherent doom is apparent in biblical and Greek mythology, whereby she is the agent of evil. In the garden of Eden, it was Eve who plucked the apple - albeit possessed by Satan - and convinced Adam to eat of the forbidden fruit. In the Greek story, it was Pandora, the first woman, who was created by Zeus to bring evil to man, as punishment for receiving the stolen fire from Prometheus.


This is a general overview and over the next series of posts I hope to undertake a larger and more complex project. Using the works of the Greek poets, and Milton's 'Paradise Lost', I intend to discuss how woman has been doomed from the start, and it's from this first principle that the feminist struggle in a patriarchal society begins.

As I return to university in a few weeks, I hope to be able to continue to work on this project as time allows.