The Road - Film version of Cormac McCarthy's Novel

[Furtherman]

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2008/05/27/arts/roadspan.jpg

At World’s End, Honing a Father-Son Dynamic (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/27/movies/27road.html?_r=1&oref=slogin)

Great article about the film version of Cormac McCarthy's "The Road", coming in November! Nice. Really looking forward to it.

Directed by John Hillcoat, of the great underappreciated The Proposition.

Viggo Mortensen as The Father. I thought it was going to be Guy Pearce, but it seems he has a smaller role in the film.

And to top it off nicely:

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2008/05/27/arts/road190.jpg

OMAR!


Looks like they're sticking close to the book, which is great by me. Loved the book.

If you haven't read it, the article does have some spoilers. But read the book anyway, it'll be worth it.

[thepaulo]

Can we ever forget that Ophra ended her Book of the Month club boycott with The Road.

[JPMNICK]

i read the book based on your recommendation and loved it. I am very excited for the movie

[TheMojoPin]

Can we ever forget that Ophra ended her Book of the Month club boycott with The Road.

Why? A lot of the early ones are dogs, but in recent years she's picked some great books for it. Anything that gets more people reading good books is A-OK by me.

[Furtherman]

i read the book based on your recommendation and loved it. I am very excited for the movie

That's great! I feel like I accomplished something. Finally.

[thepaulo]

people care about you.....people care about you.....people care about you.

[Chip196]

I am very excited about this movie ... the book was amazing.

[Chigworthy]

Being that John Hillcoat is directing, I'm going to assume that Nick Cave and maybe Warren Ellis will be producing another fantastic score. Could this get any better? If Ridley Scott butchers Blood Meridian, at least we will have this.

[Furtherman]

First Script Review of "The Road"

If this is the script that gets filmed, then The Road will not only be the most important post-apocalyptic film ever made but it will profoundly affect the cinema going world. But I can't help but wonder; is the world ready for a film this dark? . . . That's not to say there aren't some changes and surprises along the way. However, I'd say most if not all the changes are for the better. In some cases, scenes have been extended to create even more tension. If you've read the book you'll know what I'm talking about when I mention "the house" scene. It is one of the tensest scenes in the screenplay and it has been extended to the point that it is almost unbearably suspenseful.

Oh man I can't wait!

http://io9.com/assets/images/io9/2008/08/road4_01.jpg

[Dre]

This adaptation looks brilliant, cannot wait!

[GreatAmericanZero]

yeah when Omar was on O&A he said he was going to be in this film as "the thief"

[danner1515]

I'm reading the book now and really enjoying it. Looking forward to the movie. This is actually my first McCarthy book. I'm thinking about picking up either Suttree or Blood Meridian next.

[Furtherman]

What the hell is going on with this movie?!

According to this article: (http://scifiwire.com/2009/03/why-garret-dillahunt-love.php#more)

The film currently doesn't have a release date; it was recently announced that the movie has been removed from Dimension's November 2009 slate and is now in limbo.


:furious:

[KnoxHarrington]

What the hell is going on with this movie?!

According to this article: (http://scifiwire.com/2009/03/why-garret-dillahunt-love.php#more)




:furious:

I'm guessing it's just that this movie is so unrelentingly bleak that it scares the movie suits -- at least if it follows the book.

I read the book in 2 sittings in one day. It haunts me to this day.

By the way, on McCarthy: yeah, Blood Meridian is a good oen to go with next, or his novel No Country for Old Men.

And on the crack above about Oprah's Book Club: if Cormac McCarthy is not given the Nobel Prize for Literature, there's no reason to keep giving out that bullshit prize.

[TheMojoPin]

I'm guessing it's just that this movie is so unrelentingly bleak that it scares the movie suits -- at least if it follows the book.

Yeah, normally such release date shenanigans means a film is shitty, but I have the feeling that your reasoning would be the case here. This thing is so incredibly taxing emotionally and depressing. Given the cast involved and the director, I find it hard to believe they totally fucked it up, especially since it would be a rather easy book to adapt.

Blood Meridian, on the other hand, is going to suck. Ridley Scott has been a hack for almost 20 years now and that book is all but unfilmable. It's way too brutal and disturbing to make the jump.

[KnoxHarrington]

Yeah, normally such release date shenanigans means a film is shitty, but I have the feeling that your reasoning would be the case here. This thing is so incredibly taxing emotionally and depressing. Given the cast involved and the director, I find it hard to believe they totally fucked it up, especially since it would be a rather easy book to adapt.

Blood Meridian, on the other hand, is going to suck. Ridley Scott has been a hack for almost 20 years now and that book is all but unfilmable. It's way too brutal and disturbing to make the jump.

Well, the difference between the two is that in The Road, with a few exceptions, the father and son are finding the after effects of violence. Blood Meridian, on the other hand, would be like actually travelling with one of the cannibal gangs the father and son in The Road are trying to avoid.

[TheMojoPin]

Well, the difference between the two is that in The Road, with a few exceptions, the father and son are finding the after effects of violence. Blood Meridian, on the other hand, would be like actually travelling with one of the cannibal gangs the father and son in The Road are trying to avoid.

True.

That said, even just stumbling across things like they find in the basement of the one house or the "cookout" makes it pretty easy to see why the studio has no clue what to do with this film.

[WampusCrandle]

im so excited to see the movie - the book was fucking great.

[TooLowBrow]

i think that the kids acting will make or break this movie.

if the kids acts it out right itll be great...

if not... then i predict that will ruin the whole movie


thats a lot of responsibility for a kid

[thepaulo]

There might be some fine tuning going on based on how rough a movie it must be to sit through. It's my thinking that they will prep it for the the last few months of the year.

[Thomas Merton]

My minimalist review of the book The Road: it sucked.

daddy
yes son
im cold
i know son

[joeyballsack]

I think Viggo Mortenson should get a lot more credit than he does as an actor or at least in his ability to pick great roles.

[Suspect Chin]

My minimalist review of the book The Road: it sucked.

daddy
yes son
im cold
i know son

I agree I thought the book was decent at best and I am a huge Cormac McCarthy fan. Too repetitive and not nearly as dark as people are making it out to be. If you want McCarthy, read No Country for Old Men or the Border Trilogy.

And on the crack above about Oprah's Book Club: if Cormac McCarthy is not given the Nobel Prize for Literature, there's no reason to keep giving out that bullshit prize.

Why? John Updike never won one and neither has Philip Roth. The Nobel Prize committee hates Americans.

[John Galt]

This cast is fairly incredible: Besides Viggo, Guy, and Michael K. Williams, we've also got Charlize Theron, Robert Duvall, and Garrett Dillahunt (my Deadwood and JFC people will understand the last one).

[JBLouisville]

The Road is a good book. It is not the best of post-apocalyptic novels, but a good read. It would make a better movie than book, if you can believe that.

The Border trilogy is great. And, the movie. All The Pretty Horses, was a good flick. And, as mentioned earlier, the young kid has to be good. In ATPH the young kid was great.

[KnoxHarrington]

I agree I thought the book was decent at best and I am a huge Cormac McCarthy fan. Too repetitive and not nearly as dark as people are making it out to be. If you want McCarthy, read No Country for Old Men or the Border Trilogy.



Why? John Updike never won one and neither has Philip Roth. The Nobel Prize committee hates Americans.

The chair of the committee actually said that he didn't think Americans were capable of truly great literature.

Updike definitely got fucked, and so has Philip Roth. I'd add Thomas Pynchon to the list of American writers who probably will never win when they should as well.

[Suspect Chin]

The Road is a good book. It is not the best of post-apocalyptic novels, but a good read. It would make a better movie than book, if you can believe that.

The Border trilogy is great. And, the movie. All The Pretty Horses, was a good flick. And, as mentioned earlier, the young kid has to be good. In ATPH the young kid was great.

Great points you make. ATPH was a great film that not many people seem to know about. And, it was directed by Billy Bob Thornton who actually has more talent than he showed in Bad Santa and Bad News Bears (see Sling Blade).

[barjockey]

My minimalist review of the book The Road: it sucked.

daddy
yes son
im cold
i know son

Read "Blood Meridian" Its delightfully violent:tongue:

[TheMojoPin]

Great points you make. ATPH was a great film that not many people seem to know about. And, it was directed by Billy Bob Thornton who actually has more talent than he showed in Bad Santa and Bad News Bears (see Sling Blade).

The director's cut of ATPH is close to an hour longer than the chopped up version the studio delivered for public release, and it's supposed to be fantastic. I hope it eventually gets released by Criterion.

[pittphantoms]

Because Opie has been talking this book up left and right - I bought it the same day I got Neil Strauss' Emergency... after finishing that pretty quick - I moved onto the Road. Talk about two books you don't need to read one-after-the-other.

The Road was not nearly as deep as I kept hoping it would get.

Someone else summed it up pretty well - I'm cold - I know son...

I also agree that the kid in the movie makes or breaks this film.

In the end - I wish I never read it - once you something - even if you are only imaging it - you can never forget it (mainly the item on the spit they find left behind).

I don't see this doing well in theaters.

[Suspect Chin]

The Road was not nearly as deep as I kept hoping it would get.

I don't see this doing well in theaters.

Exactly. The whole book is a tease for something greater or more exciting that was supposed to happen but never did. I do think it will be a good movie though, because of what Hollywood can do with special effects. The desolation, desperation, and terror attempted by McCarthy will actually be realized.

[TheMojoPin]

Exactly. The whole book is a tease for something greater or more exciting that was supposed to happen but never did.

Like what? It's always a story of survival by a father and a son in a post-apocalyptic world. When does it set up to be more than that?

[Donnie Iris]

Like what? It's aways a story of survival by a father and a son in a post-apocalyptic world. When does it set up to be more than that?

Agreed.

Anyone know when the fim comes out?

[Suspect Chin]

Like what? It's always a story of survival by a father and a son in a post-apocalyptic world. When does it set up to be more than that?

You are right, it does not promise any more than that, but I guess you just expect books to advance the story line and progress to new settings and lasting developments. It is a unique book in that way, and I respect his attempt, but it did not work for me.

The book was just one day after another of the father and son walking, searching for food, and avoiding danger. There was no real character development, just small vignettes of what happened that day--almost like reading a journal. I get it, it is post-apocalypse, so there is very little left on the planet, but why write a book that takes place in a setting with no opportunity for plot advancement?

It reminded me a lot of The Long Walk by Stephen King. Just repetitive scenes of walking and surviving with the only minor climaxes being when someone gets shot or finds something along the trail.

[TheMojoPin]

You are right, it does not promise any more than that, but I guess you just expect books to advance the story line and progress to new settings and lasting developments. It is a unique book in that way, and I respect his attempt, but it did not work for me.

The book was just one day after another of the father and son walking, searching for food, and avoiding danger. There was no real character development, just small vignettes of what happened that day--almost like reading a journal. I get it, it is post-apocalypse, so there is very little left on the planet, but why write a book that takes place in a setting with no opportunity for plot advancement?

It reminded me a lot of The Long Walk by Stephen King. Just repetitive scenes of walking and surviving with the only minor climaxes being when someone gets shot or finds something along the trail.

Personally, I thought there was plenty of character development, namely in the boy coming to grips with his father's impending death and as he deals with what they encounter and what his father teaches him. I definitely see the boy becomin more of his own man as the book goes along, particuarly as he insits on maintaining the moral code that his father has imparted to him. The father also develops as he deals with the knowledge that he will die soon. Besides that, there's not much more you can do. The point of their lives in that world is survival and the survival of their own sense of humanity and morality. They also moved to new settings and siuations and their situations changed ad there were clearly lasting developments. It's not a static book on any level.

[happytypinggirl]

I really really enjoyed the book. I didnt not think it was the epic classic that some people made it out to be, but i thought the concept was fantastic and I really enjoyed the read. I have NO idea how tihs is going to become a movie, but i'll definitely be checking it out.

Only thing is, they've pushed the release day of this fucker so much that its starting to become a turn off to seeing the movie. As of now, its fall 09. We'll see......

[pittphantoms]

He came to grips alright... the first person he meets he offers his gun to after two minutes.

[Suspect Chin]

I really really enjoyed the book. I didnt not think it was the epic classic that some people made it out to be, but i thought the concept was fantastic and I really enjoyed the read. I have NO idea how tihs is going to become a movie, but i'll definitely be checking it out.

Only thing is, they've pushed the release day of this fucker so much that its starting to become a turn off to seeing the movie. As of now, its fall 09. We'll see......

You're right, I liked the concept and admire his ambition, but maybe I just had higher expectations for him since I loved so much of his other work. And to win the Pulitzer for the book...?

[badorties]

Agreed.

Anyone know when the fim comes out?

hopefully, this sticks:

Dimension Films and 2929 Productions have finally announced that they will be releasing John Hillcoat’s adaptation of the Cormac McCarthy novel The Road, on October 16th 2009.

[badorties]

from esquire (may contain spoilers):

<B>
The Road Is the Most Important Movie of the Year (http://www.esquire.com/print-this/the-road-movie-review-0609)
</B>

[badorties]

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[Chip196]

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WOW!!!! I can't wait!

[hammersavage]

Omar looks bad ass

[badorties]

Oman looks bad ass

oh man, looks badass

or

omar looks bad ass

[hammersavage]

oh man, looks badass

or

omar looks bad ass

it was a hybrid. I meant Omar

[Gerald]

That trailer stinks. It looks like The Postman 2. If it's a true representation of the film's tone, they bastardized the nature of the book to turn it into an action movie. ****ing Harvey Weinstein. The guy who directed The Proposition was an ideal candidate for this gig but sadly it looks like his production may have been meddled with by people who were more interested in having a bigger opening weekend at the box office than doing the source material justice.

[Furtherman]

You're way off Gerald. Although the trailer has been prettied-up to attract a more mainstream audience, the movie itself is loyal to the book - at least that is what those who have seen it are saying - like the Esquire review above.

The trailer shows Charlez Theron a lot too - and she's probably in the movie for less than 10 minutes in flashbacks.

[TheMojoPin]

You're way off Gerald. Although the trailer has been prettied-up to attract a more mainstream audience, the movie itself is loyal to the book - at least that is what those who have seen it are saying - like the Esquire review above.

The trailer shows Charlez Theron a lot too - and she's probably in the movie for less than 10 minutes in flashbacks.

Im sort of with Gerald. There should be absolutely not even a HINT of what happened to almost wipe everything out. The diaster montage does not bode well at all. I have a feeling all of that is at the beginning and then hopefully is never seen or mentioned again, but still...it shouldn't be there at all.

[Gerald]

Although the trailer has been prettied-up to attract a more mainstream audience, the movie itself is loyal to the book - at least that is what those who have seen it are saying - like the Esquire review above.

I'll believe it when I see it. Until then I'll be of a circumspect mindset since it's a Harvey Weinstein production. When he abruptly yanked it out of a juicy end-of-the-year spot I couldn't help but assume this meant he intended to whittle down its length or give it an influx of literalness with forced reshoots in order to make it more idiot-friendly. The trailer should be a distillation of a film's essence, not a misleading reconfiguration.

[Thomas Merton]

Gerald, I am intrigued and would like to read your blog

Mojo, correct. The cause of the end of the world as we know it doesn't matter

[Furtherman]

I think the weather footage is just for the trailer. That's how I'm calling it. Maybe I'm wrong, but I've been following the making of the movie and I don't think they're making it idiot-friendly, whereas they do have to get people into the theater. It's not like The Road is a book everyone has read.

[Furtherman]

I think the weather footage is just for the trailer. That's how I'm calling it. Maybe I'm wrong, but I've been following the making of the movie and I don't think they're making it idiot-friendly, whereas they do have to get people into the theater. It's not like The Road is a book everyone has read.

Looks like I was right, according to this early review. (http://www.cinematical.com/2009/09/08/the-road-movie-review/) It's non-spoilery.

Just before the kid was born, the world burned. We don't know why, and the characters don't talk about it -- perhaps they don't quite know themselves, or maybe they've decided that it no longer matters. The Boy's universe is grey, full of ash, dust, and the ruins of a civilization he never saw. This is all he knows.

I set the stage like this not to horrify you or to gross you out, but to give you a sense of the relentless, pervasive grimness of The Road -- and then to turn around and say that The Road may be the most profoundly optimistic and life-affirming film you will see this year. Those who have read Cormac McCarthy's novel of the same name won't be surprised by this. John Hillcoat's faithful, near-perfect adaptation beautifully captures McCarthy's synthesis of all-encompassing darkness and enduring hope.

[TooLowBrow]

i think that the kids acting will make or break this movie.

if the kids acts it out right itll be great...

if not... then i predict that will ruin the whole movie


thats a lot of responsibility for a kid

Viggo Mortensen is excellent here, but The Road is anchored by Kodi Smit-McPhee, whose performance is staggering in both its force and its surprising, artful understatement. I don't know how it's even possible to get a performance like this in a role this demanding and intense (he's in all but a few scenes) from an 11-year old boy -- who, by the way, is from Australia and is all the while doing a beautiful American accent. The 11-year olds I've known couldn't sit still for long enough to watch a movie, never mind make one. (An aside: Smit-McPhee was awesome during the post-screening Q&A, too, quickly improvising a charming answer to a rambling non-question from moderator Ken Burns.):smile:

[ShowerBench]

Looks like I was right, according to this early review. (http://www.cinematical.com/2009/09/08/the-road-movie-review/) It's non-spoilery.

I agree the book is life-affirming. Thanks for the info. Can't wait to see it.

[TheMojoPin]

OK, that makes me feel a lot better about this.

God knows when it'll actually come out.

[Furtherman]

According to Variety, they've pushed the release date of The Road back from October 16 to November 25 -- almost a year to the day when it was supposed to come out in 2008.

The delay isn't because Dimension has lost faith in the film -- quite the contrary. The film is playing to rave reviews at Telluride (where our Eugene Novikov saw it and loved it) and Venice Film Festival, and the Weinsteins have realized they have an awards contender on their hands. "We've been getting great audience reaction at Venice and Telluride," Dimension topper Bob Weinstein said. "We feel that this is a commercial film that's worthy of a wide release." Considering Cormac McCarthy's book was a bestseller and won a Pulitzer, you'd think that might have tipped them off, but ah well. What's good about this decision is that it not only puts it into Golden Globe contention, it also promises a wide release. One of the big fears lurking around the film was that audiences wouldn't get it, and the film could vanish into limited release hell.

for fucks sake... ahh well, what's one more month? :furious:

[thepaulo]

A work of art...
The director of The Proposition was the perfect man to direct...
uncompromising and real....imagine the absolute opposite of the movie 2012...
of course most people will not enjoy this stark grim and yes, depressing movie...
even though it kind of has a ......

[Furtherman]

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[TheMojoPin]

This film has been rated D...for despair.

[Furtherman]

http://www.survivetheroadgame.com/

[Furtherman]

Great movie. Very faithful to the book. Beautifully filmed. Sure to become a family holiday classic!

[realmenhatelife]

If you're hungry for something of similar tone to The Road check out Time of the Wolf, and early 2000's french movie directed by Michael Heneke (Funny Games, Cache, The Piano Teacher, The White Ribbon) and starring the woman from The Piano Teacher, who is a really good actress.

It's about a woman and her two children who have been displaced trying to flee the city after a nondescript apocalyptic event, and how society and relationships begin to decay in the first few weeks of lawlessness that follow.

[Chigworthy]

If you're hungry for something of similar tone to The Road check out Time of the Wolf, and early 2000's french movie directed by Michael Heneke (Funny Games, Cache, The Piano Teacher, The White Ribbon) and starring the woman from The Piano Teacher, who is a really good actress.

It's about a woman and her two children who have been displaced trying to flee the city after a nondescript apocalyptic event, and how society and relationships begin to decay in the first few weeks of lawlessness that follow.

It's in my queue. I really like the original Funny Games; never saw the new one.

[realmenhatelife]

It's in my queue. I really like the original Funny Games; never saw the new one.

It's shot for shot, so you dont really need to see both.

[Chigworthy]

It's shot for shot, so you dont really need to see both.

I think the creeps in the original did it perfectly; no need to see hollywood actors spoil it.

[fezident]

Strange that this thread just popped up, as I finally saw The Road for the first time just two days ago.
(I've not read the book, yet)

I found it interesting that the family that would ultimately (and immediately?!) gain the boy's trust, and take him in, was the very thing that the father was running from. They were the sole reason that Papa hastily vacated the safety and comfort of the bomb shelter. They were the very reason that Papa ultimately passed away due to infection (because he had to go back out into the harsh elements)
And yet... they were the boy's salvation.

It almost seemed like it was -ultimately- the father's lack of TRUST that killed him.... not the lack of food/medicine/warmth etc.


Having said that,
I found it rather bizarre that the family would follow the boy and his father for so long just to make sure the boy was safe. It was quite obvious that Papa was protecting the boy, and not a kidnapper, rapist, or cannibal.