The Road

[Piedmont]

I just saw a reference to this movie and watched a trailer on youtube. Apparently it is based on a book. Has anyone here read the book or seen the movie and is it worth my time? I'm more of book person, but have watched lots of movies, too. All comments welcomed.

[richhodg66]

It's the best book I ever read. Cormac McArthy is an awesome writer.

You absolutely MUST read it before seeing the movie.

[richhodg66]

Be advised, it is so gruesome in some parts it will make your skin crawl, but the overall theme is so beautiful, it makes up for it. You won't be able to put it down.

[762 shooter]

He also wrote "No Country for Old Men". "The Road" was interesting. Kind of a Thinky Post-apocalyptic movie about what would happen if you had no clue about current events in the world.

YMMV
762

[richhodg66]

To fully appreciate The Road, you really have to be a father, in my opinion, particularly a father of young sons.

He also wrote a trilogy of books that started with All the Pretty Horses, which they made a good movie from, but there are two more books. The middle one, The Crossing, is the best one, the last one is called City on the Plains, I think and it ties the two main characters from the first two books together. Very good reading.

An annoying quirk of his is that he does not use quotation marks. In The Road, it's easy because 95% of the dialogue is between two people, but in that trilogy, there are many complex characters and significant chunks of it are in Spanish (which I read enough of to be dangerous) so you sometimes have to concentrate hard.

His signature book is called Blood Meridian, and I hated it. Had I been anywhere other than Iraq where the opportuinity cost of my spare time was zero, I'd have never finished it.

[DoubleAdobe]

Yes, he wrote No Country for Old Men, All the Pretty Horses, and my particular favorite, The Crossing.
Not a lot of real good news in any of those per se, but the imagery and dialogue is among the best of the best. If you are not passably conversant in Spanish, have a dictionary handy when reading The Crossing, I think you will be still be glad you went to the trouble, but who knows.
Even the transition to film of All the Pretty Horses and No Country...., was pretty true to the book, although by definition could not be as thorough.
Matt Damon's politics aside, he did make a pretty dang convincing cowboy IMHO.
He obviously had some dang good coaching and IIRC Billy Bob Thornton was the director of that one.

[Piedmont]

Well I will get the book from the library. No point seeing the movie as they rarely measure up. Thanks gentlemen.

[Russ M]

It's worth reading. I'm more of a reader than movie watcher, anyways. Just remember that McCarthy is kind of dark. No happy endings and damn few happy moments. Not for the folks looking for unicorns and lollipops.

Russ

[Pb2au]

Great book, good movie. Rarely do movies measure up to the book, ergo the lesser rating. I was a bit surprised when I saw it was to come out as a movie.
As mentioned above, pretty dark, but an excellent story.
I hope you like it.

[Larry Gibson]

Saw the movie, fortunately a rented DVD so only wasted a couple bucks. Thought it sucked and I wouldn't waste time seeing it again. Haven't read the book and won't waste time there if it's anything like the movie.

Larry Gibson

[monadnock#5]

The movie is dark, sad and depressing. It illustrates perfectly why many in an extended survival mode of existence find a way to "opt out". Reminds me of a passage in a book about Stalingrad where you knew when you'd never see someone again. They'd plank their butt down in a snow drift and fly off to a distant land, never to return.

[richhodg66]

The movie falls short of the book by a much bigger marginn than No Country for Old Men or All the Pretty Horses. It's a difficult story to really convey in a movie and there really isn't enough action to make a good movie.

To say that Cormac Mcarthy is "kinda dark" is like the understatement of the year. The Road is really, really, really depressing and scary. The whole "opt out" mentality was really disturbing, but the fact that the worst people, i.e., the ones who wouldn't hesitate to prey on others would be the ones who would survive longest in a situation like that really is chilling when you think about it.

[MT Gianni]

Spoiler Alert! To me one of the more interesting things about the movie was that in all the darkness of it, total lack of food one saw no insects nor heard any birds. That forced a reality of the depths they were in.

[seaboltm]

The movie is very close to the book. The book is a tad more gruesome than the movie.

[Freischütz]

If you watch the movie, ask yourself what will happen to the kid.

[ph4570]

I have seen the movie. I think I saw it in Netflix. I thought it was well done. I have not read the book.

[Buck Neck It]

The best part of Blood Meridian is the gunpowder recipe. Other than that, it is just a bunch of killing and scalping and killing and scalping and buggery. Offensive.

[montana_charlie]

I saw the movie a few years ago. I remember it every once in a while.
I wish I could stop ...

[monadnock#5]

If you want an antidote to The Road, see The Book of Eli with Denzel Washington. It's every bit as dark, sad and depressing, but with an inspirational and joyful ending.

[Cornbread]

I've never seen the movie but I read the book. I was sad for about two days afterward for no reason. That book is really dark, I would not probably read another by him if they are all like that. It is very well written but because it is so well written it really takes you there and that level of dark yuck is someplace I don't want to be taken when I read.

[richhodg66]

I've never seen the movie but I read the book. I was sad for about two days afterward for no reason. That book is really dark, I would not probably read another by him if they are all like that. It is very well written but because it is so well written it really takes you there and that level of dark yuck is someplace I don't want to be taken when I read.

Reading it resulted in a couple of nasty nightmares for me, and I sleep pretty sound and don't dream much. It also kind of put me on edge for quite a while and seemed to me me more protective of my kids. As books go, it'll get in your head like no other.

None of the other books of his I've read were that dark, though they are all pretty dark. Avoid Blood Meridian, it really is just vile with no real good features, but all the others I've read were well worth it.

[Outpost75]

I think McCarthy must have gotten his cannibalism source material from reading war crimes transcripts and testimony of ANZAC POWs, and their treatment by the Japanese in the last days of WW2 when the guards were themselves starving. Similar incidents occurred on the Eastern Front in Erope as well. Reality is darker than fiction.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/1945/apr/19/secondworldwar.fromthearchive

Cannibalism in Prison Camp - British Medical Officer's Visit to "Most Horrible Place"

[beezapilot]

I read it a solid 4 years ago, still horrific in my mind- I liked the Border Trilogy very much and perhaps expected something a bit different. Don't ever want to see the movie.

[StratsMan]

Best part of the movie was Charlize Theron at the beginning... Best part of the book was when I put it down. Can only recommend it if you enjoy depression and a sense of hopelessness.... I know I don't... And I absolutely hated the "no punctuation" writing style...

[DrCaveman]

I thoroughly appreciated the book. It sure made me grateful for the world we do live in, much more so than a '2012' or 'world war Z' type of apocalyptic flick. It also kicks you in the pants about survival needs, the most basic types, and how to find them in dire situations

The human-on-human predation was a facet of the book that we on this continent dont have to deal with but already exists for a bunch of the world. Be thankful for where you live

Movie did a decent job of conveying the imagery, but without the book as a background it isnt as powerful

[johniv]

The movie was good, but compared to the book ,was not nearly as dark, and the book was not as dark and depressing as " Blood meridian"