The Book of Eli (2010)

The Book of Eli (2010)

7/10

Starring

Denzel Washington

Gary Oldman

Mila Kunis

Directed by The Hughes Brothers

We see it happen many times, the critics and many are wrong about a movie on the first look. The Book of Eli to me is one of those movies which will be much appreciated much later. It ended up doing magnificently well in DVD/Blu-ray sales and rentals, upon the release though the movie was not a box office hit as it grossed $157 million on a $80 million budget.

Standing out as one of the best post-apocalyptic movie I have seen. Given a western setting the book of Eli is set after the aftermath of a nuclear disaster. The damage turned a one-time beautiful world like we see outside to a wasteland where we must deal with cannibalism because of lack of food, and people willing to trade anything because of lack of water.

This adaptation of a post-apocalyptic world is one I very much enjoy, not that I look forward to the end of the world, but the movie placed much fun in the path of the lead character’s journey to deliver a book into the hands of the world.

The Book of Eli stars Denzel Washington as a wanderer tagged Eli who is on a journey based on a call by his faith in God. He is too go west and deliver a King James Bible to the right persons.

For this journey he decided to stay focus and not allow the things happening to people around him or happening in his surroundings be a hinderance. To make it easier for him, he possesses a set of skills in fighting and a mastery in the use of a knife. With these skills he journeys on killing anyone who stands in his way and hunting with ease to keep himself fit.

On his path, he came to a town where he was made to stay the night, the person who runs the town is named Carnegie (Gary Oldman) a man who is hell bent on getting his hands on a Bible.

In his custody is the life of everyone in that town he manages the water and everything else.

He also owns slaves, and Claudia and her daughter Solara (Mila Kunis) happen to be one. Certain train of events led Eli to Solara and when Carnegie found out that Eli had a Bible, he started hunting him down. Making Eli flee with Solara as a companion and Carnegie giving a chase.

You can pull a sting in this movie though and see everything shake, but that string I want to believe was left there so we can see the effect of what happens when you choose to look the other way.

If Eli had helped a couple who were being attacked by some hoodlums instead of looking the other way, everything in this movie would not have happened as it did.

The movie doesn’t stop packing a punch until it ends, and when you think it is all over or you think you know what will happen next, get ready to see enough WTF moments.