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The Road Movie Review Summary

Actors: Viggo Mortenson, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Charlize Theron, Robert Duvall

Detailed plot synopsis reviews of The Road


The Road is a 2009 post-apocalyptic film based on the book of the same name.
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A man (Mortensen) and his son (Smit-McPhee) trudge across a bleak, gray landscape utterly devoid of life, two of the few survivors of an unexplained catastrophe that has apparently killed off all forms of life except Man. They are half starved, searching constantly for food and having several dangerous encounters with bands of cannibals.

One day, the man finds a fully stocked underground bomb shelter; the pair feast, clean up and rest for a few days. However, when the man hears noises by the entrance, he decides it is too dangerous to remain, so they hit the road again.

On their travels, they encounter a half-blind old man (Duvall). The two men talk for a while, then go their separate ways.

When they reach the coast, the man leaves his son guarding their meager possessions which he swims out to scavenge what he can from a ship. When he returns, he finds the boy asleep and their belongings gone. He catches the thief (Michael Kenneth Williams) and strips him of everything, even his clothes. As they leave, the boy is very upset and eventually persuades his father to return some of the stuff. However, they can't find him. They leave the man's clothes and a can of their food anyway.

Traveling through a seemingly deserted town, the man is shot in the leg by an arrow. He fires a flare gun he found on the ship and kills his attacker. The wound is fatal, however. After the man dies, the boy is taken in by a family who had been following the pair.
Best part of story, including ending: It's a very powerful story which is mostly faithful to the novel. (The only major deviation is when the boy finds a living bug, which is not in the book.)

Best scene in story: The film is either bleak or horrifying (when they encounter cannibals); the only halfway hopeful scene is their stay in the underground shelter.

Opinion about the main character: The man is utterly devoted to his boy.

The review of this Movie prepared by J. Lee a Level 10 Peregrine Falcon scholar

Script Analysis of The Road

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Plot & Themes

Composition of Book Actual chase scenes or violence 40%Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzle 30%Feelings, relationships, character bio/development 30% **Fantasy or Science Fiction?**    -   science fiction story Explore/1st contact    -   Yes Environmental disaster?    -   surviving post disaster gangs (mad max gangs)

Main Character

Identity:    -   Male Age:    -   40's-50's

Setting

Earth setting:    -   near future (later in 21st century)    -   Post-disaster Takes place on Earth?    -   Yes

Writing Style

Accounts of torture and death?    -   moderately detailed references to deaths Tone of movie    -   depressed/sad Is this movie based on a    -   book

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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s).
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