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ORIGINAL: Death_Row_Marv

The Book Of Eli.


The Hughes brothers return after a 9 year hiatus with their first feature film since From Hell. The directors of Menace 2 Society and Dead Presidents.

Staring Denzel Washington it is set approximately 30 after an unknown event has caused the end of most the life on Earth.  He is a traveller, wandering alone with just his wits, a bow, supplies, a couple of guns and a very sharp machete.

It is a desolate and dusty world.  Roving bands of cannibals, bandits and generally not very nice people.  Denzel pays the titular Eli who we learn pretty early on can look after himself is carrying a book.  A book with a large cross on it.  A book with a large cross on it that he reads everyday. A book with a large cross on it that he reads everyday that he also quotes frequently. 

On his travels he stumbles across as small town ran by Carnegie (an on cruise control) Gary Oldman.  Due to how well Eli handles himself Carnegie wants him to stay.  Carnegie who is sending roaming bandits out to search for a book. He even goes so far as to offer him Solara who is the daughter of his partner.  Solara is played by the far too glamorous Mila Kunis.  In a world were soap and water are so rare she looks like she is right off of vogue magazine.

Solara accidently reveals to Carnegie that Eli has the book he has been searching for. So Eli escapes the town followed by Solara who can take no more of Carnegie's rule.  The 2 quickly forming a bond around the book and its teaching and from this we understand Eli is going west to find his place in the world.

It is an interesting film because the book is wanted for its ideas and knowledge, as Carnegie wants it to expand the town and keep his people inline.  Instead of using weapons he wants ideas, theology and words to control the people.

The acting is fine all round, but you can't help but feel that both Washington and Oldman have done these characters many times before.  The direction is done well with some nice visual touches and some flair at times. 

Some have seen this film of being preachy. Which is understandable on some levels, as the ending will leave some cold to it.  The Hughes Brothers don't make many films and seemingly pick and choose the films they want to make and are the ones that mean something to them.  Obviously a film focusing on a book with a cross on the front has large religious tones that run through most the themes of the film. Some well, others maybe not so well.

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ORIGINAL: Gazdance

Had no intention of seeing this when there are other films out at the moment that I'd rather, however it was recommended by a colleague...

I was so bored during this.  I'm just a bit sick of post apocalyptic end-of-humanity films with bleached cinematography desolate landscapes.  It seems like we've had so many and few of them are any good.  For the record, I enjoyed The Road but I don't really get the cross referencing to that film.  Seems The Road's only mistake was being released so close to this.

I kind of had a feeling I was on to a loser within about ten minutes but started to find it acceptable once it was obvious I was basically watching a Western.

Even so, I just didn't engage with the story or characters.  Washington is such a dull leading man, I stuggle to understand how he ever gets cast.  The action, whilst well staged, was nothing new. 

It really picked up though, in the last 15 minutes.  It was obvious he had a Bible but the fact that it was braille and Eli was blind was a really interesting twist.  The idea that he'd memorised the whole thing whilst on his 30 year quest was ridiculous (in the way that lots of things in films are) but cool.  If only I'd cared more about his journey, I may even have been moved. 

The fact that he's blind though, basically doesn't hold up when taken in context with everything he's been shown to be capable of before.  Ok so we got lots of stuff about his other senses being good so perhaps it makes perfect sense to some, but to me, he came across like a super powered Bear Grylls for most of the film.

I felt that the idea that Eli was protected somehow, on a mission from God, was a theme only lightly touched upon and mentioned in passing by a few characters.  Perhaps if the religious aspect of the story had been beefed up some more it would have carried more weight with me.

15 decent minutes at the end couldn't stop this being a below average and forgettable film though.

4/10

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ORIGINAL: SpiderBat

quote:

ORIGINAL: Gazdance

Had no intention of seeing this when there are other films out at the moment that I'd rather, however it was recommended by a colleague...

I was so bored during this.  I'm just a bit sick of post apocalyptic end-of-humanity films with bleached cinematography desolate landscapes.  It seems like we've had so many and few of them are any good.  For the record, I enjoyed The Road but I don't really get the cross referencing to that film.  Seems The Road's only mistake was being released so close to this.

I kind of had a feeling I was on to a loser within about ten minutes but started to find it acceptable once it was obvious I was basically watching a Western.

Even so, I just didn't engage with the story or characters.  Washington is such a dull leading man, I stuggle to understand how he ever gets cast.  The action, whilst well staged, was nothing new. 

It really picked up though, in the last 15 minutes.  It was obvious he had a Bible but the fact that it was braille and Eli was blind was a really interesting twist.  The idea that he'd memorised the whole thing whilst on his 30 year quest was ridiculous (in the way that lots of things in films are) but cool.  If only I'd cared more about his journey, I may even have been moved. 

The fact that he's blind though, basically doesn't hold up when taken in context with everything he's been shown to be capable of before.  Ok so we got lots of stuff about his other senses being good so perhaps it makes perfect sense to some, but to me, he came across like a super powered Bear Grylls for most of the film.

I felt that the idea that Eli was protected somehow, on a mission from God, was a theme only lightly touched upon and mentioned in passing by a few characters.  Perhaps if the religious aspect of the story had been beefed up some more it would have carried more weight with me.

15 decent minutes at the end couldn't stop this being a below average and forgettable film though.

4/10

Lamerhoid... u r trying to attack it. I will cuss u down... to defend it.

PS - I bet Denzel could prolly take u out, and I don't mean to dinner.

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ORIGINAL: BigKovacs

I've got a couple of questions regarding some plot points, SPOLERS ahead for what it's worth.

Firstly Eli is blind isn't he? Now I watched the film twice and the second time round there are times when he does 'act' blind, not looking in peoples eyes when they speak, super hearing etc but there are times where he blatantly has to use sight for what he's doing. It's not a major gripe, it's just a bit inconsistent.

Secondly how does he know about Alcatraz? Okay he's had a 'voice' telling him to walk west, thats fine but how does he know specifically that it's Alcatraz that he needs to get to and that they are collecting books, the curator doesn't seem at all surprised to see Eli rock up.