Book Review - The Road by Cormac McCarthy

Title: The Road
Author: Cormac McCarthy
Genre: Fiction/ Dystopia
Published: 2006
 
Description: A father and his son walk alone through burned America. Nothing moves in the ravaged landscape save the ash on the wind. It is cold enough to crack stones, and when the snow falls it is gray. The sky is dark. Their destination is the coast, although they don’t know what, if anything, awaits them there. They have nothing; just a pistol to defend themselves against the lawless bands that stalk the road, the clothes they are wearing, a cart of scavenged food – and each other.
 
Review: In this gripping story by Cormac McCarthy, a father and sone are on their way to the cost. All they have in their possession is a shopping cart with a few belongings and a gun. Fortunately, they still have each other, because the road is long and life is hard.
 
In “The Road”, the world no longer looks as we know it. There is no more harvest, houses and stores have been looted, the only holdout is the road to the coast. Even though the father is almost certain there is nothing at the coast, there is still a glimmer of hope for his son.
 
Father and son continue to follow the road, but at the same time must be careful not to be seen by anyone else. Because it is every man for himself, you never know when someone has bad intentions. The father explained to his son that they carry the fire and therefore belong on the good side. On the bad side you have the people who steal or worse: kill other people.
 
In a world that has almost perished, everything is allowed. There a no more laws. The book is gripping, terrifying and emotional. As a reader, you get a certain picture of humanity as father and son try to survive in this post-apocalyptic world. Do you choose to survive for yourself or are there other options? Is there light at the end of the tunnel or is it hopeless?
 
The names of the father and son are never mentioned, yet the story feels personal and close. It is as if, as a reader, you are walking with them to the shore. You hope for the father and son that there is more than the road. The father has already seen a lot and his son, despite everything, is still innocent. The young boy knows nothing else, he was raised in this world.
 
It’s not a very spectacular book, it’s focused on the characters, not so much on the plot. It’s a slow book, which may scare you. There is some repetition here and there and there are some moments that drag a little bit. But for the rest, “The Road” is a fantastic book.
 
Rating: 4/ 5

Netflix Friday - Volume 1

Some Netflix film tips for the weekend! And there is something for everyone, since I picked a movie for all the different genres.

Action: Extraction (2020)
Tyler Rake (Chris Hemsworth), a fearless black market mercenary, embarks on the most deadly extraction of his career when he’s enlisted to rescue the kidnapped son of an imprisoned international crime lord

Drama: Der Untergang (2004)
Traudl Junge, the final secretary for Adolf Hitler, tells of the Nazi dictator’s final days in his Berlin bunker at the end of WWII.

Comedy: 50/ 50 (2011)
Inspired by a true story, a comedy centerd on the 27-year-old Adam (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) who learns of his cancer diagnoses and his subsequent struggle to beat his disease.

Animation: My Neighbor Totoro (1988)
When two girls move to the country to be near their ailing mother, they have adventures with the wonderous forest spirits who live nearby.

Romance: Sixteen Candles (1984)
Samantha’s (Molly Ringwald) sweet sixteenth birthday becomes anything but special, as she suffers from every embarrassment possible.

Horror: Hereditary (2018)
A grieving family is haunted by tragic and disturbing occurrences.

Science Fiction: The Road (2009)
In a dangerous post-apocalyptic world, an ailing father (Viggo Mortensen) defends his son (Kodi Smith-McPhee) as they slowly travel to the sea.

Crime: Training Day (2001)
Rookie cop Jake Hoyt (Ethan Hawke) spends his first day as a Los Angeles narcotics officer with rogue detective Alonzo Harris (Denzel Washington) wo isn’t what he appears to be.

Thriller: Texas Killing Fields (2011)
In the Texas bayous, local homicide detectives Mike Souder (Sam Worthington) and Brian Heigh (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) team up with New York City cop Pam Stall (Jessica Chastain) to investigate a series of unsolved murders.

Documentary: Tell Me Who I Am (2019)
After losing his memory in an accident, Alex Lewis trusts his twin brother Marcus to tell him about his past only to discover that he’s hiding a dark secret about their childhood.

Family: The Little Prince (2015)
A little girl lives in a very grown-up world with her mother, who tries to prepare her for it. Her neighbor, the Aviator (Jeff Bridges), introduces the girl to an extraordinary world where anything is possible: the world of the Little Prince.

Movie Battle: The Road Vs. The Book of Eli

I’ve choosen two movies with similar themes and plot points this time. And I think it’s going to be a close call, because while starting this I’m not sure who I will pick as winner yet. Here are the two movies going head to head in this movie battle: “The Road” Vs. “The Book of Eli”.

 

CAST

The Road: Viggo Mortensen has the lead and he does a great job. Very solid an believable. Kodi Smith-McPhee is an upcoming star, very well done as well. Charlize Theron also has a role in “The Road”, she is one of my favourites, I always love her. Robert Duvall and Guy Pearce have small roles in it as well.

The Book of Eli: You can always rely on Denzel Washington, this man never made a really bad movie. Washington is great, as always. Gary Oldman plays the villain, a task you can trust him with. Mila Kunis, Ray Stevenson and Michael Gambon also have roles in the film.

STORY

The Road: A man and his son a trying to survive in a post-apocalyptic world by any means possible. Somehow these kinds of stories always get me interested. I remember the ending to be very open, you don’t really know what will happen next.

The Book of Eli: Eli is trying to cross his way through post-apocalyptic America, while protecting a sacred book that holds the secrets to saving mankind. Off course his trip doesn’t go without some problems. The film had a surprise twist in the end.

EFFECTS The Road: They made it look like a post-apocalyptic world, very dark, grim and sad. Not much colour, a perfect look for a world that’s on the edge of dying.

The Book of Eli: This post-apocalytic world looked a little lighter. It’s not as dark, it has a lot of earthy tones, more dessert like.

WINNER

It’s a tough one, but I’ll go for “The Road”. It’s not as spectacular as “The Book of Eli”, but the whole setting, storyline and performances impressed me a bit more.

DVD Collection Update (4)

I bought a lot of new movies this time. In total I purchased 7 movies and 1 TV-show.

First I got a movie that I already saw in the cinema. "Django Unchained" is another great film directed by Quentin Tarantino. I just had to have it when I saw it.

I was in the mood for some Sam and Dean time. Ok, especially Dean, but "Supernatural" is one of my favorite TV-shows and I've bee following this series since its beginning. I'm glad to have season 7 in my possession now.

For some reason this movie was on my wishlist for quite some time now. I just wanted to see Jessica Chastain in a leading role. I saw it just recently and I haveto say that it was pretty good. Better then "The Hurt Locker". And Chastain is fantastic in "Zero Dark Thirty".

My brother keeps telling me I should see "The Road". I bumped into the DVD, when I wan't looking for any, so Lucky me. Not seen it yet, but looking forward to it.

This classic movie was screaming for my attention. I've only seen it once, but I'm glad to add this film t my collection. And it's the redux version, so it has 49 minutes of extra scenes that we didn't see in the original version of "Apocalypse Now".

I was planning in buying it when I walked into the store. I love Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone and Sean Penn so I have high expectations. Cant wait to see it.

I was on my way to go see it, when I realized it was playing in theatres anymore. That sucked. So when I saw it in the store (I thoughtit was not for another week 'till its release) I grabbed it. "Silver Linings Playbook" is one of those movies that, before even seeing it, I know I will like. Can't wait to see Jennifer Lawrence's Academy Award winning performance.

I finally completed the series! I don't know why it took m this long, but for some reason I never got a hold on it.