By Elliot Heis
“The Book of Eli” opened in theaters nationwide over the
weekend, giving audiences another look at a more and more common
setting: the near-future post-apocalypse.
The movie depicts Denzel Washington as Eli, a lone nomad
traveling west across the charred remains of the United States.
In this movie it is almost the inverse of “Waterworld,” where
the nomad travels while being pursued by the leader of a group of
mean characters in search of dry land.
Instead, the nomad travels while being pursued by the leader of
a group of mean characters in search of the book.
However, not even Denzel could have saved “Waterworld.”
Eli is travelling with an all-powerful book which others
desperately want for its ability to inspire people and protect its
reader. You’ll never guess what the book is.
Because of the well-worn ground of this fictional future of the
world, the movie’s setting is familiar, and the expectation arises
that Mel Gibson in leather pants will soon be on screen saving the
world.
This is not helped by the scarcity of water and the abundance of
home-modified armored vehicles.
The result is a high budget movie that obtains the same feel
achieved in the mid 80s. It’s hardly a step forward for the
genre.
The cliches aside, the movie is highlighted by its
performances.
Washington leads the way, acting as the hero opposite the
villain Carnegie played brilliantly by Gary Oldman. Mila Kunis
plays the damsel and the rest of the cast carry the movie well.
There are some unexpected appearances by familiar faces like
Michael Gambon and Tom Waits.
Although there are several roles in the film, the lead role of
Eli makes up for the vast majority of the acting requirements. In
this scenario, Denzel Washington is always a good investment.
The plot provides a few twists, but they are mostly predictable.
However, this is all made up for by the last one, which makes me
want to see the movie again to watch it in the context of my
knowledge of the final minute.
While the story is fueled by religious motivations, it is
overall very secular, and holds no more agenda than the next movie.
It is more a tale of a man on a journey, and the decisions he
faces.
Most of these decisions are morality issues, as the remaining
population has turned to extreme measures to etch out an existence
in this future that the movie industry would have us believe by now
is inevitable.
The twist at the end makes the movie worth a look, even if only
on DVD.
Final Rating:3 out of 4 stars
Reach Elliot Heis at: lifestyle@thepolypost.com
Courtesy of Aceshowbiz.com
Denzel Washington carries ‘The Book of Eli’
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