- Film Review
- Reviewed By Trevor Johnston
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3 out of 5
In a scorched post-apocalypse America, a lone adventurer fights to keep possession of a book he believes carries sacred powers. With his shades and grey-flecked beard, co-producer/star Denzel Washington certainly cuts an iconic figure in his odyssey through desert landscapes dotted with dangerous marauders. We seem set for a comic-strip amalgam of The Road and Mad Max 2, yet directors the Hughes Brothers (Dead Presidents, From Hell) apply their own distinctive stamp to this curious blend of futuristic western and sombre meditation on the uses and abuses of faith. As the deliberately paced story sets Washington and ruthless Gary Oldman in bloody conflict over the eponymous tome, it's not too hard to guess the identity of the good book in question. In a world of anonymous production-line action flicks, a nod of respect is due to the Hughes boys for sticking to their own idiosyncratic path (watch for jaunty cameos from Michael Gambon and Frances de la Tour as cranky survivalists), even if - the credibility-shredding final-reel twist's a particular howler - it's undoubtedly a wayward one.
Plot Summary
Futuristic action drama starring Denzel Washington and Gary Oldman. In a post-apocalypse society where law and order has broken down, a drifter called Eli has dedicated his life to protecting a book that he believes holds the secret to man's survival. But there are those with more sinister motives who desire the book for their own ends.
Cast and crew
Cast
- Eli
- Denzel Washington
- Carnegie
- Gary Oldman
- Solara
- Mila Kunis
- Redridge
- Ray Stevenson
- Claudia
- Jennifer Beals
- Martha
- Frances de la Tour
- George
- Michael Gambon
- Engineer
- Tom Waits
- Martz
- Evan Jones
- Hijack leader
- Chris Browning
- Lombardi
- Malcolm McDowell
Crew
- Director
- Albert Hughes
- Director
- Allen Hughes
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