THE ROAD: NOT A PRETTY STROLL

Written by the man who brought us No Country For Old Men, this movie is not for the weak. It is one of the best end of days movies I have seen, about a father (Viggo Mortensen) and his son (Kodi Smit-McPhee) not named, just credited as man and boy. They are survivors making their way south in hopes of finding others who have survived. They do find people. Unfortunately with the food supply greatly diminished a lot of the people they find view them as dinner, not survivors. It is a pretty dark film. However, there is light. The light comes from the bond between father and son; the love a father has for his son and the lengths he will go to keep him alive and safe. The special effects are powerful. Charlize Theron is the mother who after living in survival mode for too long, looses it and throws in the towel. Robert Duvall, almost unrecognisable, has a small part and Guy Pearce has an even smaller one, but both are top notch. The boy is amazing. How a child can pretend these things are happening and give such a powerful performance is a mystery. There is a scene where the man is washing the boys head in a creek and it's cold. In reality, the boy began crying from the pain yet still had the presence of mind to use it as an actor. Amazing. Although dark, it was a very well done film and one worth watching.