OT: The Road movie

[headquarters]

It is a father /son story ,but sure hits you on a lot of other levels too.

So the common understanding is that the story ends without hope ?

I must admit thatthe phrases about the " trout in the streams with patterns on its back" etc didnt give me a clue -it just seemed like life was headed towards a more primordial stage -more primitive beings were the only ones to survive ?

The man with the shotgun towards the end opened a glimmer of hope imho .Could he have some sort of wood lore that means the future lays in a neolithic way of life -away from the remains of the dead civilizations ?

just asking the book circle a few questions here ..

Originally Posted by Raellus

I'm not sure. I'm curious but I don't want it to taint the experience when I read the book again.

I've read The Road twice now and I must say that it's the most emotionally exhausting reading experience I've ever had. It's the only novel that's ever made me cry. I don't know if it would affect me so if I didn't have my own young son. Regardless, it's a brilliant novel, well deserving of the Pulitzer, IMHO.

If the film is even half as powerful as the novel, I'm not sure I'm ready for it. It's definitely light holiday season fare.

If anyone sees the film, PLEASE post a review here.

[Marc]

Originally Posted by headquarters

The man with the shotgun towards the end opened a glimmer of hope imho.

I had the same impression. Well, at the end of the reading you are wishing for this little glimmer of hope. And my subjective mind take the man with the shotgun as an incarnation of this wish, though the background picture is so ominous... About the man with the shotgun, is he alone? Anyway the human goodness survives and this is the answer to the question that the father has been asking to himself during the travel. The long-term survival of any community that still deserved to be qualified as "human" needs this goodness in some way or another.

[Caradhras]

I will watch the film as soon as I get the chance.

Re Book, dont read further if not read....




My feeling at the end of the book was one of cautious optimism. It was one of a Man's struggle (for the boy, not himself) achieving some success, at least in context with the limitations of the scenario.

[Legbreaker]

Although the last scene appears to show some hope for the future, the the futility of the situation is detailed time and time again throughout the book.
Nothing grows anymore, even the rats have died off due to the extreme lack of food. Only a few crumbs scavanged from the most hidden and unlikely places remain to support the last few humans on the planet, but these can't last much longer.

The extreme lack of food is nearly the characters undoing on several occasions throughout the book, and is reinforced by the spectre of canablism. The baby for example is a very powerful image.

There may be some enclave of civilisation hidden away somewhere, but their entire ecosystem would have to be self contained. Sunlight is almost completely blocked out by clouds of ash so artifical lighting for greenhouses would be vital. Fuel to power those greenhouses is definately going to be an issue although hydroelectricity is a possible option if the ash could be prevented from fouling the system.

And then there's the roving bands of mauraders, etc. If word leaked out of such an enclave, it would be soon attacked and destroyed by those outside, desperate for just one more meal.

My reading of it is that the atmosphere may clear given a few hundred, or few thousand years, but there's not going to be any life left - even the seas have died by the time of the book (which I estimate to be only 5-6 years after the event - the boy doesn't seem much older than that).

[TiggerCCW UK]

Just finished the book this morning - amazing read, one of the most powerful books I have ever read. I'm in two minds about the movie now though - I don't know if they'll manage to stay true to the book, given Hollywoods obsession with happy endings

[Caradhras]

Well, Legbreaker, yours is a far more convincing and logical arguement.

As I said, in the limits of the Mans's scenario he had succeeded...for now (imo).

The future? Well, the Human race are survivors. Given the limited information given in the book, I would like to believe that there was some hope. But it is written well and leaves this for the reader to ponder - I doubt the film will be so but who knows.

[Targan]

Just finished reading The Road. What a serious bummer. Well written, sure, realistic? Yes. But I'm not sure if I'm better off having read it or not. It has sure put me in a dark mood for the rest of my afternoon.

At least in the T2K universe there is some hope for a brighter future.