Before the phenomenon of television zombies captured audiences, films depicting apocalyptic scenarios often featured more nuanced, human themes, exemplified by “The Road.” Those familiar with Cormac McCarthy’s writing recognize that the film adaptation of his Pulitzer Prize-winning novel was far from an uplifting cinematic experience in 2009.
Thanks to its selection for the Oprah Winfrey Book Club in 2007, “The Road” garnered remarkable literary acclaim prior to director John Hillcoat adapting it as the follow-up to his well-received Australian Western, “The Proposition.”
The Boy becomes a beacon of humanity in a fractured, desolate world (Photo: The Road/2929 Productions, Dimension Films, AAA Cinemaa, GMA Films, and Voila Films)Following the release of “The Road,” viewers soon embraced a similar post-apocalyptic theme on AMC’s small screen with “The Walking Dead.” Meanwhile, McCarthy’s next novel wouldn’t arrive until late 2022, coinciding with a new zombie adaptation—HBO’s “The Last of Us.”
Despite the absence of traditional zombies in “The Road,” the film hints at cannibalism as menacing gangs threaten the journey of the Man (Viggo Mortensen) and the Boy (Kodi Smit-McPhee).
While the audience doesn’t witness the gruesome act of cannibalism, within the first ten minutes, the Man instructs the Boy on how to take his own life should “the bad guys” catch up with them during their trek toward the coast. In a parallel to “The Proposition,” we again see an unkempt, bearded figure grappling with a revolver.
The story begins with a flashback showcasing the Man’s life before the world devolved into a bleak, desaturated landscape ravaged by natural disasters.
In this memory, flowers blossom as he tends to his horse, and his sunny blonde wife, the Woman (Charlize Theron), gazes on lovingly. By the film’s conclusion, the Boy has formed a new family, leaving viewers to interpret the deeper meaning behind these events.
The Morality of Survival
A recurring theme throughout “The Road” is the increasingly indistinct boundary between “good guys” and “bad guys.” Initially, this distinction offers a simplistic framework for the Man and Boy to identify themselves against those who pose threats.
After the Man shoots his first adversary using one of their dwindling supply of bullets, he reassures the Boy, stating, “There’s not many good guys left, that’s all. We have to watch out for the bad guys. We have to just keep carrying the fire.”
He elaborates that the “fire” represents hope and spirit, assuring the Boy that they are “still the good guys” and “always will be.” Unfortunately, this promise becomes increasingly difficult to uphold as the demands of survival wear away at the Man’s moral compass, leaving him distrustful and overly self-centered. In contrast, the Boy maintains an innate sense of altruism.
While the Man is understandably focused on his son’s survival, his willingness to lose hope, often resting his finger on the trigger of that revolver, mirrors the desperation seen in David Drayton from “The Mist.” Conversely, for the Boy, being “good” equates to assisting others beyond their small family unit and refraining from inflicting harm on those who have wronged them.
Essentially, the Boy embodies the Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Carrying the fire represents this principle.
When they confront a house filled with cannibals, the situation is dire—bad guys with a basement of captives. Yet, after a tense encounter, the Boy concludes that even though they are starving, they “would never eat anybody,” regardless of their hunger. However, the Man’s overprotectiveness becomes evident when the Boy must plead with him to share food with a frail, elderly man.
Moral Ambiguity and Consequences
Their encounter with Ely the Old Man (Robert Duvall) reveals when the old man expresses that he initially believed he had encountered an angel in the Boy.
At times, the Boy serves as the Man’s moral compass, articulating the better aspects of humanity. “That old man wasn’t a bad guy,” he asserts. “You can’t even tell anymore.”
For the Man, ethics become as unclear as the film’s dim cinematography and the enigmatic cause of the world’s demise. This ambiguity becomes central to his final fate following a fatal confrontation in which he mistakenly identifies two other adults as threats.
Cannibalistic threats loom as father and son trek toward the coast (Photo: The Road/2929 Productions, Dimension Films, AAA Cinemaa, GMA Films, and Voila Films)Before this, the Man crosses a moral line, breaking the unwritten good-guy code with the Thief (played by the late Michael K. Williams) by coercing him into undressing at gunpoint after the Thief attempts to steal his belongings.
Initially, the Thief brandishes a knife, but as he relinquishes his defenses, viewers recognize that he, too, is starving and terrified—mirroring the plight of the Man and Boy. As the Thief begs, “Please, mister… you ain’t got to do me like this,” the Man not only reclaims his possessions but also strips the Thief of his dignity.
“You didn’t mind doing it to us,” the Man replies. “I’m gonna leave you just the way you left us.” In doing so, he places the Thief in a more precarious situation, leaving him naked and shivering on the road.
Even as the Boy advocates for the Thief’s well-being, the Man dismisses his concerns, stating, “He’s going to die, anyway.” Protecting his son overshadows any compassion he might feel for a stranger, reflecting his profound loss of empathy, which will eventually lead to his downfall.
The Unraveling of Hope
Towards the end of “The Road,” the Man succumbs to his injuries from an arrow wound that exacerbates his deteriorating health. Throughout the narrative, he exhibits paranoia about being followed by others, and when an archer shoots him in the leg from a nearby building, the Man retaliates by firing a flare gun through the window, killing the archer.
Similar to his previous encounter with the Thief, the Man’s actions stem from a heightened response rooted partly in self-defense and partly in a diminished capacity for basic human empathy, a consequence of the harsh realities of survival. The harshness of the world has eroded his innate kindness, leaving him suspicious of anyone who is not part of his family unit.
The misunderstanding arises when the archer and his companion mistakenly believe that the Man and Boy are trailing them. In this grim world—characterized by shades of grey devoid of color—fear drives everyone to lash out, resulting in misjudgments that blur the line between good and evil, causing individuals to become what they despise.
Certain elements of “The Road” may border on excessive. There are moments that unintentionally resemble a parody of a film focused on poverty, where actors display exaggerated emotions set to weepy music, each portrayed as grimy and destitute, despite their real-life success at film festivals.
This reaches a peak when a snaggle-toothed Guy Pearce appears as the Veteran, unveiling himself, Molly Parker’s “Motherly Woman,” and their two sons as the good guys who have been following the Man and Boy all along.
Accompanied by a dog, it’s suggested that this dog is the same one the Man and Boy previously heard outside the underground shelter, where they had once feasted on canned goods like royalty.
The Cost of Misunderstanding
Believing that danger was closing in, the Man chose to abandon the shelter, despite the Boy’s more optimistic perspective, stating, “You always think bad things are going to happen. But we found this place.”
In a tragic misinterpretation, the Man allowed his fears to overwhelm him, forfeiting a generous food supply that could have restored his frail health.
While threats existed, so too did benevolent figures—other angels—who were watching over them. Earlier in the film, the Boy had spotted one of the Veteran’s sons, expressing a desire to connect.
In “The Road,” character actor Garrett Dillahunt makes an appearance as the gang member whom the Man first shoots. Dillahunt had auditioned for the role of Josh Brolin in another Cormac McCarthy adaptation, the Oscar-winning “No Country for Old Men,” where he finally played a sheriff’s deputy alongside Tommy Lee Jones.
Although “The Road” may not stand on equal footing with “No Country for Old Men,” it still possesses its own merits. While it may not achieve the same level of excellence, it does offer a conclusion that, despite its bleakness, carries an unexpectedly hopeful message, contrasting sharply with the darker ending of “No Country for Old Men.”
The dialogue evokes similar imagery of a person carrying fire, symbolizing hope and continuity. In a poignant scene, a father treats his son to a Coke in the midst of the world’s end.
On a dilapidated overpass, Viggo Mortensen, known for his role in “The Lord of the Rings,” removes the Man’s wedding ring, laying his wife’s memory to rest before his son finally lays him to rest, symbolizing the passing of hope into the next generation.
