When thinking of a post-apocalyptic world, images that are presented in John Hillcoat’s The Road come to mind: hopeless desolation in which one must struggle valiantly simply to survive. Such is not the case in The Hughes brothers’ blockbuster The Book Of Eli, which contains certain elements that are traditionally associated with films depicting the Wild West.
Denzel Washington plays a man who, thanks to the movie title and a K-Mart employee name badge seen later in the film, the audience knows as Eli. He is shown making his way west for some unknown destination. It is later revealed that in his possession is a book that contains great power and can be the salvation of humankind. Thanks to the tagline, “Religion is Power,” it is pretty obvious what book Eli is carrying. On his journey, Eli crosses paths Carnegie (Gary Oldman) who is scouring the barren landscape trying to find this particular book, because he believes that this book will allow him to expand his rule over what remains of the country.
The remainder of the plot can be predicted, mainly because the outline of this story in its entirety has been used time and time again. The hero and girl are holed up while the bad guys have “got the place surrounded.” Through some miraculous feat, the hero and girl escape with their lives and continue on their quest while the bad guys are shown that crime doesn’t pay. Overused? Yes. But that doesn’t take after from its cinematic value, which comes through in this film.
The Book of Eli is an extremely fun movie to watch, mainly due to the fact that Washington and Oldman are simply phenomenal actors who excel playing the protagonist and antagonist, respectfully. Adding to this is an exceptional performance by Mila Kunis who plays Solara: the damsel in distress turned hero. These casting selections seem to be window dressing, disguising several flaws that are ignored because they make the movie more entertaining.
Flaws in a movie do not always equate to a poor quality film. Looming plot holes, such as the mysterious source for the large cache of weapons and ammunition or why it has taken Eli 30 years to walk across the country, simply don’t matter because without them, the entertainment value is diminished significantly. The fact of the matter is that even though there is no explanation why there is a stash of military weapons hidden in a couch, the audience simply doesn’t care.
The Book of Eli, while not the greatest movies of the year, is well worth the price of admission. Denzel’s performance alone makes the movie enjoyable which, of course, is nothing new and the Hughes brothers throw in a huge twist at the end that will leave the viewer stunned. Above all else, the film breaks up the monotony of destruction and despair that has monopolized the post-apocalypse theme by simply injecting a tiny amount of adrenaline and excitement. Yes, it is flawed in its presentation, but because of the value that comes from these lapses, it is easy to argue that the film is flawed to perfection.
