Review: The Book of Eli

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Oh Denzel Washington, you have so much talent, you carried this film. It's a shame I had to sit through the painful 2 hours of this film to once again be baffled about how this film could've appealed to anyone.

I'm not exactly in the demographic that this film is aimed for, but since I'm married to one (adult males) I went along, hoping it would turn out to be a decent action movie. What I came out with was a film so bland that I actually had to get up and leave the theatre for 10-15 mins and sneak a peak at "The Lovely Bones" instead. When "Lovely Bones" turns into the "feel good movie" for a quick getaway we know where in trouble.

"The Book of Eli" takes place in a post apocalyptic U.S.A. It's referred to as "the war", "the accident" etc etc, but we're never really told what happens. Eli (Denzel Washington) is carrying the last known bible across the country, trying to get it to a place where it deserves to rest. He runs across a small town of people run by Carnegie (Gary Oldman) Carnegie has been looking for this bible for a long time, most of the people around these days cannot read. Therefore, his thugs haven't been able to hunt down said bible for him. The world as we see it is littered with trash and destruction, people kill each other, attempt sexual assault (although we never actually see this happen it is hinted far too many times in the film) and rob each other. Carnegie offers up Solara (Mila Kunis) in exchange for Eli to stay, she lets it slip about his bible, and then the hunt is on for Eli after he leaves town.

Washington and Oldman are fantastic actors but suffer from a weak and bland script. Mila Kunis fares well with comedy, but slips in the drama dept. They are literally not given enough to do with their characters. They are generic and predictable. The film tries to take us for a swerve towards the end, but they drop too many hints along the way for you to be full on surprised. The cinematography reminded me a lot of last years 'Doubt'. Lots of black and grey, gloomy, however it worked with 'Doubt'. You felt moved through that drama, "Eli" just feels boring and is almost like watching "Waterworld" on land instead.

Recommended: No 1.5/5 stars.

Memorable Quote: You walk by faith, not by sight. - Eli (Denzel Washington)

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