The Road

Name: The Road
Genre: Adventure, Drama, Thriller
Released: November 25, 2009
Duration: 111 min
Rating: 64
Cast: Charlize Theron, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Viggo Mortensen

2009

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 33 Critics

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 322 Ratings

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7.5

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7.5	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 322 Ratings

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The Road

Movie Details & Credits

Dimension Films | Release Date: November 25, 2009

Starring: Charlize Theron, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Viggo Mortensen

Summary: Based on Cormac McCarthy's beloved, best-selling and Pulitzer Prize winning novel, Academy Award nominee Viggo Mortensen leads an all-star cast in the big screen adaptation of The Road, the epic post-apocalyptic tale of a journey taken by a father and his young son across a barren landscape that was blasted by an unnamed cataclysm thatBased on Cormac McCarthy's beloved, best-selling and Pulitzer Prize winning novel, Academy Award nominee Viggo Mortensen leads an all-star cast in the big screen adaptation of The Road, the epic post-apocalyptic tale of a journey taken by a father and his young son across a barren landscape that was blasted by an unnamed cataclysm that destroyed civilization and most life on earth. (The Weinstein Company) … Expand

Director: John Hillcoat

Genre(s): Adventure, Drama, Thriller

Rating: R

Runtime: 111 min

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Awards & Rankings

32	#32 Most Discussed Movie of 2009
32	#32 Most Shared Movie of 2009

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Critic Reviews

USA Today - Claudia Puig

While the film is not as resonant as the novel, it is an honorable adaptation, capturing the essence of the bond between father and son. Read full review

Empire - Dan Jolin

One of the most chillingly effective visions of the world’s end ever put on screen -- and a heart-rending study of parenthood, to boot. Read full review

Film Threat - Elias Savada

It is compellingly enervating and a marvel in the filmmaking process. Read full review

The New York Times - A.O. Scott

Engrossing and at times impressive, a pretty good movie that is disappointing to the extent that it could have been great. Is this the way the world ends? With polite applause? Read full review

The A.V. Club - Scott Tobias

Aas grim as The Road gets, Hillcoat goes a little soft at the wrong time. Someone like Michael Haneke would have no trouble embracing this material’s uncompromising dreariness. Read full review

Boston Globe - Ty Burr

Everything about the film is a welcome rebuke to the happy-face apocalypse of “2012,’’ a movie that turns mass extinction into the Greatest Show on Earth. In The Road, what has been lost is recognized as infinitely precious; what’s left is bitter and our due. Read full review

Village Voice - J. Hoberman

Pale by comparison to an action thriller like "Children of Men" or gross out eco-catastrophe like "Land of the Dead," squandering its ready-made zombie scenario. Read full review

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User Reviews

Angel1711

Feb 3, 2018

Defintely worth watching, not as brutal as mad max, which i was relieved of, yet pretty gripping, poignant, i felt a very real terror throughout the whole movie, absolutely real experience, i literally yelled "shut up" at the boy in one of the scenes.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

QTip

Dec 7, 2009

Captures the tension and conflict of the book perfectly. Incredibly relatable, sad, inspiring, and terrifying all at the same time. I don't understand what all the criticism is about.

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CHEESEDBEEF

Oct 8, 2014

Excellent movie with good pacing. Characters depict what it would really be like for a father & son struggling to survive the apocalypse. No mutants, cyborgs, or sci-fi creatures like in I am Legend, or the Fallout game series, this is pure survival. Acting is superb and will have youExcellent movie with good pacing. Characters depict what it would really be like for a father & son struggling to survive the apocalypse. No mutants, cyborgs, or sci-fi creatures like in I am Legend, or the Fallout game series, this is pure survival. Acting is superb and will have you feeling for the characters from beginning to end. A lot of suspense leaves you hanging on the edge of your seat. This movie will leave you wondering if the decisions the main character chooses are right or wrong, or if right or wrong has a place in the wasteland that unveils itself over the course of the movie.. overall this is the only movie I have seen that depicts how hard and realistic it would be to live through an apocalypse.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Sandy

Jan 23, 2010

Thank god for a quiet apocalyptic movie that DOESN'T have zombies in! Thoroughly convincing world created, focusing on the purpose of survival, not blockbuster destruction or exaggerated horror. It's enough to allude to the grimness of the vision without rubbing our noses in it. Thank god for a quiet apocalyptic movie that DOESN'T have zombies in! Thoroughly convincing world created, focusing on the purpose of survival, not blockbuster destruction or exaggerated horror. It's enough to allude to the grimness of the vision without rubbing our noses in it. For those that want gratuitous horror, look elsewhere. Good playing by Viggo Mortensen and Smit-McPhee.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful

averygoodcritic

Dec 6, 2013

As someone who has not read the novel, I was extremely impressed by John Hillcoat's work. It effectively portrays the unending love between father and son in a world where there is no room for emotion, and even provoked thoughts of my relationship with my own father. Visually and audibly theAs someone who has not read the novel, I was extremely impressed by John Hillcoat's work. It effectively portrays the unending love between father and son in a world where there is no room for emotion, and even provoked thoughts of my relationship with my own father. Visually and audibly the film thrives. Muted colours and the use of silence create a depressing atmosphere whilst retaining a tangible tension. Mortensen's portrayal as the paternal figure who refuses to give up really carries the piece! However, I found 'The Road' a touch too slow at times and a repetitive formula seemed to occur-stop, scavenge, sleep... If you are only looking for a graphic, action packed film where everyone is armed and no one thinks twice about killing, 'The Road' is not for you. If you are looking for something moving and more subtle, with greater underlying issues about mortality, give this film a go!… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Steve

Nov 29, 2009

Bleak, gritty, discouraging to be sure, but mostly just slow and dull.

1 of 1 users found this helpful

Avalord

Feb 11, 2019

Utterly depressive. I cannot understand all those positive reviews. If I had done simply nothing for the two hours. I would have least not feel that kind of exhausted!

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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