“Road to Perdition” is a story of a road trip. It is a story of fathers and sons. It is a story of a boy learning the ways of the world. It is a story of a man on a path to vengeance. But, above all, it is a story of perdition, which guarantees no rest for the wicked.
The main character is Michael Sullivan Jr, a 12-year-old boy, whose curiosity led him to hide in his father’s car one night when he went on a rendezvous. Much to his chagrin, he found out that his father was not some white collar business man, but a man with a dark secret staining his soul.
Michael Sullivan (Tom Hanks) was a mob enforcer and consultant to Irish Mob Boss Mr. John Rooney (Paul Newman)—who was the Godfather of the ‘Rock Island’ town. (Daniel Craig) was the over-entitled and insecure son of Mr. Rooney, with a bad habit of killing people without much ado. To make matters worse, Connor had accompanied Sullivan on the fateful night. Sensing the danger, perceived or real, he sprang into action without confiding with anyone in the mob family.
What happened next rooted out Sullivan from Rock Island along with his son and sent him on a journey of survival and sabotage. There is not even a single scene which you can afford to miss in this game of hide-and-seek played between Sullivans, Connor, and Maguire—the sadist hitman (Jude Law) later hired by the mob family to ‘preserve their interest.’
The entire story is narrated from Michael’s perspective and his innocence made the tone of the movie much heavier than had it been told by a grownup. Tyler Hoechlin stole the show with his superb acting talent aided by the naivety and youth of his character.
Paul Newman’s character, as the mob boss, is kind, fragile, and practical; but unlike his son, not practical enough to kill a child. He is a family man and can be a direct successor of Don Corleone. His piercing blue eyes showed the remorse and grief over the turn of events which no other character had time to feel. His famous dialogue truly encapsulated the soul of the movie: “There are only murderers in this room!…This is the life we chose, the life we lead. And there is only one guarantee: none of us will see heaven.”
Tom Hanks once again showed that he is nothing less than an exemplary actor. In an iconic scene, where he delivered a note to a debtor on behalf of Mr Rooney; but is, unbeknown to him, the note that was to be his own death warrant. Without any exchange of words, the mob enforcer sensed what was going to happen in the next few seconds. Sam Mendes showed a clever use of silence and calmness as a medium to instill fear in the viewer. However, his character stayed in the background as it ought to be the story of a father and a son. The mob-man only came out to ensure survival for both.
One missing point in the story is Michael Sullivan never showing any signs of grief on his family’s death (Spoiler!). Even during the bonding moments with his son, it felt that he was holding his emotions at the backseat . The only explanations is that he knew what was coming for him and he may not be there forever to protect his son.
Jude Law is impeccable in his role as the hitman. Right from the first entry, he showed he will not shy away from gruesome killings and turn the dead bodies into artistic photographs. Daniel Craig’s character is as flat as a pancake; the bad man we all love to hate. Even his death scene is shown as an impersonal obligation and an accessory to bring perdition on others.
However, the true hero of the movie is its cinematic brilliance. With three Academy Awards and BAFTA Awards each to his name, Conrad Hall is still one of the most influential cinematographers in the world even after his death. In this movie, he proved again that camera work is as significant to the art of storytelling as the screenplay.
The movie got six nominations at Academy Awards and won for ‘ Best Cinematography.’
