Harry here with an introspective look at ROAD TO PERDITION from Chi-Town Charlie, the often times co-adventurer of Capone's. Usually he's found rubbing the stubby hooves of that criminal overlord whilst he watches a film. But that's neither here nor there, but this is here and there so there ya go here...
Hi Harry,
Capone pulled a string or two for me, as long as I returned the favor in some future "missions" involving guns and various enemies.
Last night he snuck me into a test screening of ROAD TO PERDITION in Chicago. Sam Mendes was there; he introduced, in some brevity, the film, and how he was very glad to bring it to Chicago where so much of the move was shot (there were many places outside of the Chicago city limits that also have great appearances).
I'm afraid to let you know that the other reviews on the site miss the American beauty of this film. When I tell you about it, forget detailed inclusions of the godly performances by Hanks, Newman, that little kid, Law, and the rest of the ensemble. From here on out, I have a few spoilers, although very few specific shots or plot points, and a lot of thoughts that will provoke ridicule in the talk back. Screw you hippies. If you are here to get a general sense of things, go away. Plan to see it when it rolls through your glorious movieplex projectors.
Do you like John Woo? Die xue shuang xiong, a.k.a. KILLER. This is Ebert's DARK CITY. This is the true American beauty.
Forget pacing. Forget the ending. We know how it ends. From the first scene.
From the eyes of the innocent son, discovering his father. A gun thrown on the bed, a stolen peek at the truth. Smuggling, hiding himself in his father's car. Looking through the warehouse wall, between his father's feet. The truth about life. It is hard. People struggle. People die. And if you run away from it, it chases you to the end. The son runs away, but he is found out. He is a witness. From there life is hard, a struggle, with death as the final shot of a gun.
The jealous competitor destroys the family. Blood is thicker than water. And the lone assassin pays the price for his loyalty, as he is stuck in a corner. Off screen we hear the father's screams of despair as he comes upon his dead wife and other younger son. We never see the bodies. But it is the first time we see the truth about the father. He sits by the wall. Not really in tears. But in agony. Unspoken agony.
That unspoken emotion. And thought. The audience must recognize it. It requires intelligence. And our understanding that in life most of the time we cannot give in to emotion -- we cannot give in to our feelings or they will consume us, because life is hard and death is at the end of our journey. But it is how we get there that gives us some peace as we stand as does the son on the beach looking at the beauty of the lake with sand under his feet pondering what was, what is, and what will be. With hope I think.
Every shot has purpose in pulling us into the world. And feeling. FEELING. The projection of rain into a dark room. The threat of death at every corner. The drip of sweat down the face. Soundless machine gun fire. In the trigger finger there is a mission. In the mind there is hate and agony. In the heart, at just the biggest moment of the film, there is a tiny ounce of love, which is overcome by revenge. Hanks lets loose. And as he walks away, a shadow follows him to the end, a photographer, a shadow who is the ruthless truth.
You might say that Americans are the orphans of the world. Hanks is that orphan in the film, literally. But his duty becomes his son. This movie of course was written and shot before the events that changed the world forever. But our Road to Perdition is this: In our revenge of September 11th, our deeds inflict death and pain to those who in our hearts deserve justice. So that our children may survive what they have witnessed without blood on their hands.
Good luck in denying that this is the greatest movie of the year. It is smart. It breaks your heart. Nothing is gratuitous.
Chi-Town Charlie
