Road to Perdition
2002, The Zanuck Company
Shows you what I know about comics (or "graphic novels," as some prefer) since I was clueless as to the origins of this film; I just thought it was a finely-realized crime drama with an extraordinary music score—indeed, I was ever so slightly more captivated by the soundtrack than the marvelous visual style, and the massive talent involved (Tom Hanks, Paul Newman, Jude Law, Daniel Craig) made it a three-way tug-of-war. Alas, the sum of its parts fell just short of a satisfying whole, but yet well worth one's attention.
Years after having seen Perdition for the first time, I watched the film again—actually twice more, once with director Sam Mendes' commentary, and I was blown away. It gave me quite a different perspective of the film, a much greater appreciation of it: a remarkable piece of cinematography, excellently written, impressively performed, and superbly crafted. It also made me more appreciative of commentary tracks; while many aren't worth one's time, those such as this one provide invaluable insight into the industry—solid gold for a wannabe filmmaker such as myself.
DKS 12/18/17
Rev 1/8/23
GRUMPY OLD FART-O-METER® Rating:
