Road To Perdition (Cinema: October 2002)

First of all, this is not a gangster pic. Forget Miller's Crossing, set aside the upcoming cinematic wet-dream that will be Gangs Of New York, and put Bugsy back in the playground with a severe smacking. This is not a film about big blokes with tommy guns removing each other's internal organs with hot lead (although it does feature, and is used for dramatic effect rather than gratuity here.) This is a film about family, about the unspoken bond betwen a boy and his father. Only without the cliches and crapness that usually accompany such sentiment.

Tom Hanks trying to pull off a serious role without descending too far into sentimentality- can he do it? Forrest Gump showed that he can try (heck I liked that film, but admit it has shortfalls), but Road To Perdition pushes him further than he's been pushed before. He's the jaded father, the man with the secret that isn't so much of a secret, and he's having to face up to his responsibilities real fast. A man confronted by the results of his actions, and Hanks pulls it off well. This film is about the anti-hero - you take one of the meanest, hardest men you can find, and make the audience root for him. That's the premise of Road To Perdition, and it works.

Jude Law as the bad guy? On this score, you could say that Road To Perdition is a life-changing film. Well, for me anyway. See, I've always detested Jude Law - for some reason I've formed the opinion that the guy is a pillock of the highest order and can't act his way out of a paper bag, yet having seen him in RTP, I'm even prepared to give A.I. a chance. Yes he's that good. In terms of cinematic bad guys, he's right up there, without having to resort to the kind of camp melodrama that taints so many Hollywood villains.

In short, Road To Perdition isn't what you think it's going to be, and is at the same time.

RATING:

(c)Fogster 2002