The Book of Eli is a film that catches you off guard. Judging by the previews, the film seems dark with nothing but action and violence. Now it is dark because the story takes place in a post-apocalyptic world and yes there is action and violence, and Denzel Washington kicks ass in every one of those scenes and in the rest of the movie. But the surprising part is The Book of Eli delivers a message and has a meaning of having faith and keeping hope alive for the survival of humanity.
Eli (Washington) is a man on a journey who is heading west. He has been on this journey for 30 years. He is on a path and what Eli is carrying may help a civilization survive and be able to learn and start again. Eli is carrying the last King James Edition Bible. What he has been called to do is to protect it and travel out west, but there are people who want to use the Bible as a weapon and use it to manipulate and control everyone. Carnegie (Gary Oldman) wants to do just that. The world of The Book of Eli is similar to the world of The Road. A post-apocalyptic world where everything is dark, grey and washed out. There is no real color, but when you go to see this film, pay attention to the sky and how it starts to change colors the closer Eli gets to his destination. There is this presence of the world starting to change and perhaps Eli really can make a difference.
Denzel is a great actor and we all know it. He plays a prophet-like character who is no saint. He kills, but only when he is attacked first. And he kills several guys in this movie. So is Eli a murderer? Yes he is. I like how the character is imperfect. He has his flaws and is just doing what he thinks is right. He makes choices and you may not agree with all of them and you don’t have to. Mila Kunis is good in this. It is certainly a different role for her. She brings some attitude to the movie and can fight with the boys. This role reminds me of her role in Max Payne because she brings a fighting spirit and does not mind the use of weapons. However, I assure you this movie and Kunis are better in this than Max Payne.
Then there is the villain played by Oldman and oh how cool he is in this movie. Carnegie is an intelligent man and he is one of the few that knows what power the Bible has. Unfortunately, he does not want to spread the good word but yet use it to have power over the rest of the country. Not many people are familiar with seeing Oldman as the bad guy. After the Batman and Harry Potter films, we consider Oldman a courageous and pretty decent guy in the movie world. But people forget how bad he can be and he proves it in films like The Fifth Element and Air Force One, though that has been awhile. But he is back in this one and he is fun to watch.
The Book of Eli is directed by The Hughes brothers, Albert and Allen, and what a great job they did. They directed a film that is entertaining, but has a deeper lesson. It does focus on faith and God, but it is not preaching to anyone. It does not beat you over the head about Christianity or religion in general. You will not walk out of this movie wanting to change your beliefs or anything like that. The film is about hope and survival, and with that is having faith and believing in something bigger than yourself. But The Book of Eli also brings attention to being grateful for what we have. There are things in the movie that people kill each other for and they are the same things we take for granted today.
The Hughes brothers, with the help of Denzel and Oldman, bring a fresh approach to a film with a topic we have seen before and a lot lately. But the movie stands out because of what it is trying to say without it ever being forced down your throat. There are a few surprises at the end that change everything you saw starting from the beginning. This may cause you to want to go back and see it again knowing what you know now. With that said, some people will not go along with the film or simply not accept it. But for those who give The Book of Eli a chance and let it play out, you will walk away thinking about what you just saw and be stunned by how strong this movie is.
Brandon Vick is a member of The Music City Film Critics’ Association, the resident film critic of the SoBros Network, and the star of The Vick’s Flicks Podcast. Follow him on Twitter @SirBrandonV and be sure to search #VicksFlicks for all of his latest movie reviews.
Check out the SoBros Shop. Become a Patron. Give us money for no reason. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter @SoBrosNetwork. Watch on YouTube.