The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discussion

[Star Wolf]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

Is that the lead character out of the road being used as bait at the start of this film?

The nuclear winter scene? Although the walker did trade cat wax later in the movie nothing else looked like the scene visually so it makes me think that it happened 30 years ago. Since the walker had on MOPP gear and the protective mask on its possible.

I doubt that he was killing people for bait while others went full out into cannibalism. It could be possible that after a fight he let him lay there, not even policing up the gun until a meal presented itself.

 

[Trekker4747]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

Is that the lead character out of the road being used as bait at the start of this film?

The nuclear winter scene? Although the walker did trade cat wax later in the movie nothing else looked like the scene visually so it makes me think that it happened 30 years ago. Since the walker had on MOPP gear and the protective mask on its possible.

I doubt that he was killing people for bait while others went full out into cannibalism. It could be possible that after a fight he let him lay there, not even policing up the gun until a meal presented itself.

That scene is hard to connect with the rest of the movie -due to nuclear winter/ash falling scene- because moments later we see him eating the car, presumably the very one we just saw him kill.

 

[Harvey]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

At times silly and incoherent, and at times a religious propoganda piece, the movie nevertheless has occasionally beautiful images and a few nice performances, even if the characters are rather two-dimensional.

Barely average.

 

[Base_Delta_Zero]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

Is that the lead character out of the road being used as bait at the start of this film?

The nuclear winter scene? Although the walker did trade cat wax later in the movie nothing else looked like the scene visually so it makes me think that it happened 30 years ago. Since the walker had on MOPP gear and the protective mask on its possible.

I doubt that he was killing people for bait while others went full out into cannibalism. It could be possible that after a fight he let him lay there, not even policing up the gun until a meal presented itself.

That scene is hard to connect with the rest of the movie -due to nuclear winter/ash falling scene- because moments later we see him eating the car, presumably the very one we just saw him kill.

My impression was that it was simply a burning forest with ash raining down. I doubt they were going for a thirty year time jump there.

 

[stonester1]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

Absolutely loved it. An excellent post apocalypse rumination on the nature of civilization, of man, of religion/faith/spirituality, of God. Touched on all the bases, such as Holy Text being a light of civilization and a weapon that can be perverted to subjugate the masses.

Nice touch at the end, with the New King James taking it's place alongside all the other holy books produced by Alcatraz Press.

Loved the Johnny Cash ref, too.

So far, I've seen three movies in the new year, Daybreakers (disappointed, though it was a valiant effort), Sherlock Holmes (pleased) and Book of Eli (very enthused).

Good so far, overall.

 

[Star Wolf]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

The nuclear winter scene? Although the walker did trade cat wax later in the movie nothing else looked like the scene visually so it makes me think that it happened 30 years ago. Since the walker had on MOPP gear and the protective mask on its possible.

I doubt that he was killing people for bait while others went full out into cannibalism. It could be possible that after a fight he let him lay there, not even policing up the gun until a meal presented itself.

That scene is hard to connect with the rest of the movie -due to nuclear winter/ash falling scene- because moments later we see him eating the car, presumably the very one we just saw him kill.

My impression was that it was simply a burning forest with ash raining down. I doubt they were going for a thirty year time jump there.

I think one of the cannibals in the roadside rape gang had a mask, besides that one the walker was wearing along with the full suit and hood when he killed the cat was the only one I remember. Those filters aren't suppose to last forever. But we went directly from a dead forest to a desert, a desert which didn't end until we got to San Francisco Bay it just felt different to me especially as the movie dragged on.

 

[Trekker4747]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

Absolutely loved it. An excellent post apocalypse rumination on the nature of civilization, of man, of religion/faith/spirituality, of God. Touched on all the bases, such as Holy Text being a light of civilization and a weapon that can be perverted to subjugate the masses.

Nice touch at the end, with the New King James taking it's place alongside all the other holy books produced by Alcatraz Press.

Loved the Johnny Cash ref, too.

So far, I've seen three movies in the new year, Daybreakers (disappointed, though it was a valiant effort), Sherlock Holmes (pleased) and Book of Eli (very enthused).

Good so far, overall.

Mostly how I feel. I saw it again Sunday evening with my mom, as when I talked to her about it and showed her a "behind the scenes" thing on HBO OnDemand she became interested in the movie because of its theological aspects.

Seeing it again caused me to raise my grade for it as I think it's a very different kind of movie that just really moved me on a spiritual level. My mom really liked it too for those reasons and we discussed some of the theological aspects of it in the car on the way home. She dug it as well and was reciting The Bible's opening verses along with Eli at the end.

Honestly, I'd say it was a really good movie with a good message it delivers well.

 

[Blue_Trek]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

I liked it because it shows the bible to be a valuable piece of literature for human society, whether you believe its message or not.
The point is very clear how the book can be used for good or evil, but how you choose to use it, is left to the reader.

 

[Ethros]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

I saw it today, but due to bloody traffic and incredibly useless staff at my local cinema I ended up missing the start.
I came in when he was hiding in the bushes and shot that cat. Did anything happen before that?


As for the film, meh it was okay. Parts were a tad boring, and I didn't really care about any of the charatcers. Can't say I would watch it again

 

[Bob The Skutter]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

I saw it today, but due to bloody traffic and incredibly useless staff at my local cinema I ended up missing the start.
I came in when he was hiding in the bushes and shot that cat. Did anything happen before that?


As for the film, meh it was okay. Parts were a tad boring, and I didn't really care about any of the charatcers. Can't say I would watch it again

No, that was the start... all you missed was some shots of ash falling in the trees.

 

[Ethros]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

^ Ah thanks. I hate missing the start of films.
Vue cinemas are a pain in the arse, well the York one is anyway. I mainly go in the afternoons, and then the ticket booths aren't open, you can only get your tickets from the food/crap counter. Now there's no way I ever buy food or drink at a cinema, as the prices are beyond a joke. £5 for a "combo deal" of some crap tasting popcorn and a bottle of water. Yeah, not even coke or something, but friggin water!
So I have to wait in line each time behind all these fools paying 10 quid for a packet of maltesers or whatever, and waiting as they arse around making smoothies, ice creams and such. All I want is the damn ticket!
And there only ever seems to be one member of staff ever working there. As I joined the queue we had to wait about 4 mins for someone to even arrive at the counter as there was no one even there. Very annoying anyway

 

[Trekker4747]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

One thing I lied was how simple things -like wetnaps- were "currency" in this society and how generous "Eli" was in buying things. Giving the guy in the electronics store, for example, the zippo and handful of wetnaps for the charge, the gloves and the bar-towel for the water, etc.

From his interactions with the more "civilized" people he encountered (even to a degree Carnegie) you could see that he was mostly a good, honest, man. We see this when he encounters the rat and his dealings with Solara. He just brought out the knife-of-doom when he had to deal with the lesser scraps of humanity and/or defend himself or others.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

One thing I lied was how simple things -like wetnaps- were "currency" in this society and how generous "Eli" was in buying things. Giving the guy in the electronics store, for example, the zippo and handful of wetnaps for the charge, the gloves and the bar-towel for the water, etc.

From his interactions with the more "civilized" people he encountered (even to a degree Carnegie) you could see that he was mostly a good, honest, man. We see this when he encounters the rat and his dealings with Solara. He just brought out the knife-of-doom when he had to deal with the lesser scraps of humanity and/or defend himself or others.

I was half hoping they would use soda bottle caps as currency.

 

[Bob The Skutter]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

^ Ah thanks. I hate missing the start of films.
Vue cinemas are a pain in the arse, well the York one is anyway. I mainly go in the afternoons, and then the ticket booths aren't open, you can only get your tickets from the food/crap counter. Now there's no way I ever buy food or drink at a cinema, as the prices are beyond a joke. £5 for a "combo deal" of some crap tasting popcorn and a bottle of water. Yeah, not even coke or something, but friggin water!
So I have to wait in line each time behind all these fools paying 10 quid for a packet of maltesers or whatever, and waiting as they arse around making smoothies, ice creams and such. All I want is the damn ticket!
And there only ever seems to be one member of staff ever working there. As I joined the queue we had to wait about 4 mins for someone to even arrive at the counter as there was no one even there. Very annoying anyway

The local cineworld has started doing that too. I guess they do it during the day to cut down on staff, but it is annoying when it's busy...

 

[stonester1]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

One thing I lied was how simple things -like wetnaps- were "currency" in this society and how generous "Eli" was in buying things. Giving the guy in the electronics store, for example, the zippo and handful of wetnaps for the charge, the gloves and the bar-towel for the water, etc.

From his interactions with the more "civilized" people he encountered (even to a degree Carnegie) you could see that he was mostly a good, honest, man. We see this when he encounters the rat and his dealings with Solara. He just brought out the knife-of-doom when he had to deal with the lesser scraps of humanity and/or defend himself or others.

A US military issue Meal Ready to Eat (MRE) would be gold in this scenario, and not just for the food. The extras that come in the little packets you get with each (gum, salt, pepper, wet nap tissue, coffee, matches, toilet paper, creamer, sugar, etc) would also be priceless.

So...when you stock your bolthole to survive the apocalypse, whatever it's nature (nukes, zombies, supernatural, whatever), be sure to have many crates of these things. Not only for your use, but very valuable in the aftermath economy.

Just don't let anyone know you have all this stuff.

 

[Michael Chris]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

I will find you after the apocalypse stonester to get mine!

 

[JoeZhang]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

^ Ah thanks. I hate missing the start of films.
Vue cinemas are a pain in the arse, well the York one is anyway. I mainly go in the afternoons, and then the ticket booths aren't open, you can only get your tickets from the food/crap counter. Now there's no way I ever buy food or drink at a cinema, as the prices are beyond a joke. £5 for a "combo deal" of some crap tasting popcorn and a bottle of water. Yeah, not even coke or something, but friggin water!
So I have to wait in line each time behind all these fools paying 10 quid for a packet of maltesers or whatever, and waiting as they arse around making smoothies, ice creams and such. All I want is the damn ticket!
And there only ever seems to be one member of staff ever working there. As I joined the queue we had to wait about 4 mins for someone to even arrive at the counter as there was no one even there. Very annoying anyway

The local cineworld has started doing that too. I guess they do it during the day to cut down on staff, but it is annoying when it's busy...

I couldn't get over the price at the Vue the last time I went - £15 for two tickets! The Missus and I decided that we'd up our lovefilm membership to three discs at a time and pocket the difference rather than make more trips to the cinema.

 

[Starkers]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

Well aside from the heavy handed religious message and the awful product placement, I quite enjoyed it. There was nothing really to set it apart from the average post apocolyptic film really, although I thought Denzel Washington was very good in it (as was Oldman) the pair of them alone raised it up a notch.

The end was just ridiculous though, I'm not religious enough to have got the Eli reference but the reveal...well it didn't make a lot of sense, although I guess it does explain his bravado when faced with enemies. And was Eli really a good person? The abiding message of the film seemed to be that God's message was more important than protecting the weak.

Best bits?

The Boy and his Dog poster, wonderful touch that that only one other poster seems to have picked up on (and I'm not sure if they realise it was a real film--apoologies if you did)

Dumbledore and Miss Jones from Rising Damp as crazy canibals, dear lord that was worth the price of admission alone.

Some good action sequences.

Anyway, good solid actioner let down somewhat by the heavy handed message it was peddling (although they at least balanced it somewhat, Oldman's assertion that the bible is a weapon had more resonanance for me as an agnostic/athiest (I'm on the cusp). I enjoyed it but probably won't end up on my shelf.

 

[Bob The Skutter]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

^ Ah thanks. I hate missing the start of films.
Vue cinemas are a pain in the arse, well the York one is anyway. I mainly go in the afternoons, and then the ticket booths aren't open, you can only get your tickets from the food/crap counter. Now there's no way I ever buy food or drink at a cinema, as the prices are beyond a joke. £5 for a "combo deal" of some crap tasting popcorn and a bottle of water. Yeah, not even coke or something, but friggin water!
So I have to wait in line each time behind all these fools paying 10 quid for a packet of maltesers or whatever, and waiting as they arse around making smoothies, ice creams and such. All I want is the damn ticket!
And there only ever seems to be one member of staff ever working there. As I joined the queue we had to wait about 4 mins for someone to even arrive at the counter as there was no one even there. Very annoying anyway

The local cineworld has started doing that too. I guess they do it during the day to cut down on staff, but it is annoying when it's busy...

I couldn't get over the price at the Vue the last time I went - £15 for two tickets! The Missus and I decided that we'd up our lovefilm membership to three discs at a time and pocket the difference rather than make more trips to the cinema.

Cineworld have the Unlimited Card, which I think is fantastic, unlimited cinema for £13.50 a month. Last year I managed to go 63 times (or something like that), certainly worth the money to me. Still have to pay £1.30 extra for 3D though, but I was looking for my niece how much it is, and I was gobsmacked £9.60 for an adult to see a 3D film?

 

[Starkers]

Re: The Book of Eli (Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman) Grading & Discuss

Bloody hell Bob, 63 films!! I have a Cineworld Card and I saw about 24 last year! So long as you get to see 2 a month it still works out cheaper though, and I am going to try and make more of an effort this year. As one of my friends puts it, even if you only see two films a month you at least don't feel so ripped off when you see an awful film. I've certainly gone to see films I wouldn't have bothered with otherwise, and its always handy for a cheap night out.