I was fortunate enough to snag a ticket to see "The Road" at the Egyptian theater on Hollywood Blvd. Friday night.
I am a huge fan of the novel, and a huge fan of Viggo, so I was quite excited. Not to mention, an hour long Q&A was held afterward that was one of the most informative sessions of its type I've ever been lucky enough to attend.
Fans of the novel will be happy to hear it is a rather close adaptation. Not much was changed from the pages, as much as...shifted slightly. Certain scenes in the novel that felt endless, were passed through quickly, and vice versa- shorter scenes in the novel were expounded upon and fleshed out for the screen. That wasn't always a bad thing, it was quite moving to see longer moments between the man and his wife, and the filmmakers expanded that world without adding too much exposition and backstory feeling forced.
Much like the book we never see why or how the world as we know it ends, we only see the emotional responses from those attempting to survive through its destruction. The filmmakers were faithful to not "Hollywood-ize" the story and add too many trite action sequences or focus to heavily on the conflict between the cannibals and our two protagonists, which was refreshing. I'm sure we all had fears that this steady and moving novel could've been adapted into something like "2012" or "Doomsday", but I assure you it was as "slow" (in a good way) and marinating as the book.
When I look at films I never say whether they were good or bad (especially not films of this caliber) more so I look to see what good and bad elements existed within the piece.
There were many good elements to me in "The Road". Starting with Viggo, he was absolutely stunning. He wasn't just intense and emotional and jarring and heroic all at once, he was much more than that- he was subtle. There were moments where the choices he made as the man- were very surprising and rewarding as an audience member. Charlize and Viggo attained an intimacy within the flashbacks that you don't often see between "husband and wife" characters. I felt deeply that Viggo's character's heart was being wrenched from his body when his wife decided to leave the family, he showed a vulnerability on screen that was truly heartbreaking. The young boy who portrayed Viggo's son was wonderfully natural and seemed to move through the scenes with ease, although it didn't feel like the filmmakers captured as rare of a performance as say Tarsem did with Catinca Untaruin in "The Fall". I won't criticize the young actor because he achieved most of what was on the page, I just can't help but feel there were moments and nuances that were missed by the camera that would've helped me feel even more for the boy.
Other good elements included Robert Duvall reminding us all that he really is a treasure. Not since "The Apostle" have I been so convinced by one of his performances. Another point where the film deters from the novel's page is during an exchange between "Eli" and the man. At first I wondered if we needed what was later explained to be an improv between these two actors. But after reflecting back on the film I do agree with the Director's choice to leave the invented scene in.
To me, the only (dare I say) "bad" element to the film adaptation of "The Road", was that it doesn't stand out as a film, as much as the book stands out amongst other novels. It isn't shot particularly unlike many other films, it isn't edited particularly uniquely, and the score doesn't add to the movements on screen as much as it detracts. As a cinematic experience, it is adapted in a quite standard manner- but that may not be a bad thing for most viewers. I don't want "The Road" hyper-stylized and shot by Darius Khondji, I just wanted a little more intention behind what the lens revealed to us and when.
The film didn't seem as focused on nurturing a mood and atmosphere as much as it felt focused on the performances at the center of the story- which truthfully are enough to elevate this film to near greatness. I just think back to the compositions and framing in some of the great mood works of cinema and I can't help but feel like "The Road" should fit into that catalog. "No Country For Old Men" even feels and moves the way the novel feels and moves. There were shots that were rested on during "No Country" that gave your eye time to read all of the detail from the characters and environment surrounding them. "The Road" feels slightly less grand and sprawling then the book (not in what was on the screen, as much as how it was filmed). The camera wasn't used as much to dwarf and alienate the man and boy as much as I felt Cormac did with his words. Truthfully, there wasn't a single shot or sequence that felt masterfully crafted- the scenes just felt "filmed" very generally. Closes, mediums, wides, closes, mediums, wides. The landscape didn't come to life as much for me as some of the other audiences members felt like it did. But that's my personal preference and I understand it may not be everyones. When I read the book I imagined the hand of Kubrick or Malick tending to the material and that was my vision for the film- but alas, I wasn't the director! The talented John Hillcoat was.
The film was remarkable in numerous ways, and a slight let down for me in far less numerable ways. The Q&A was engaging and Viggo proved himself to be one of the most feeling and insightful actors of his generation. Their words after the film were inspiring to me as I am an aspiring filmmaker myself. I haven't achieved nearly what these craftsmen have, I have only created one feature so far entitled "The Mother of Invention" but we are still engaging in similar battles. John Hillcoat talked about fighting for elements of the book to remain integrated into the film and how even he had changing opinions on what to include and leave out. I know that the minute amount of experience I've had in trying to find distribution for my tiny comedy is nothing compared to adapting a pulitzer prize winning novel- but the core struggles are the same. Executives want to shape your vision, agents want to define your artistic identity, and everyone believes they know what needs to change about your project in order for it to succeed. Hearing Viggo's and John's opinions on Hollywood was affirming to my more optimistic side that it is in fact possible to create something relatively pure and untainted in this current artistic landscape.
As my last point- I will address the infamous "baby scene". For the readers of the novel I'm sure you know what I am speaking of. While the scene is in the movie, the shot of the baby is not. The director stated that he fought and fought to keep that scene in only to realize later on in the process that it was unneeded. After viewing the film I would agree. John stated that as viewers we have already seen the horrors in the basement and experienced the depravity of this new world. To see the baby as graphically as they intended to show it, seemed like a "rewind" to a previous emotion and moment (in the words of the director). So even though it is not shown, I don't feel there was a compromise made to the integrity of the book. We also still hear the boy ask "What is that?" which sent a chill down my spine as I expected to see what he was staring at in the coming moment.
So take heart fans of the book, and prepare yourselves for a gathering of remarkable performances when "The Road" comes out later this month!
