Road to Perdition

Road to Perdition is another film with my favorite theme. As Lord Vetinari used to say, if we can't eradicate crime, at least make it organized. The film had a great atmosphere, Tom Hanks' performance was excellent as usual, Jude Law was as pleasant as a bucket of slime and Paul Newman gave as fine a performance as Tom Hanks, as expected. I have only two gripes. It was crystal clear how it was going to end. I’m also not sure how it was possible that after the bullet hit the window, blood splattered the glass, but the projectile somehow mysteriously disappeared. (07/22/2017)

I thought my taste was only oriented towards horror and Asia, this film confirms that my favorite subgenre is also gritty gangster films. Once again, an excellent cast, I've never had my fingers crossed for Tom Hanks like I did here, and as soon as the psychopathic Jude Law appears on the scene you wish him the worst from the first second. I definitely have to highlight the amazingly dark retro style, the intelligent story and the awesome soundtrack, even a tear dropped towards the end. Everything is actually flawless, nothing can be faulted. (11/27/2014)

Road to Perdition is a very nice film with excellent acting and cinematography. But that’s where the praise ends. In order for it to be a gangster flick on the level of Coppola’s The Godfather, it would have had to focus more attention on the relationship between Paul Newman and Tom Hanks. And no humor should have intruded on the gloomy atmosphere. As it is, it’s more like Eastwood’s A Perfect World, scented with the perfume of American Beauty and ending with an overwrought climax. And the formulaic nature of the plot doesn’t do it any favours either. The phrase “he was my father” was on the tip of my tongue before young Sullivan even said it. (11/14/2002)

Or: How Even the Most Direct Road to Perdition Can Lead to Movie Perfection. A visually indescribably atmospheric watch. Precise acting, perfect camerawork and faultless and inventive directing. Sam Mendes filmed so far the most faithful adaptation of a comic book to come to the movie screen so far. Although the storyline is simple, that’s where its strength lies. It could be criticized for being a wonderful shiny load of nothing about father and son finding a way to each other, but that’s not the feeling I get from this. Quite the contrary, for one thing, the scene in the rain is now in my top ten best scenes ever. It just has everything. From emotions, through marvelous production design, immense atmosphere to the actors. And the entire movie is like that, just perhaps not so intense all the while. And that’s pretty good, don’t you think? (02/04/2007)

The best film of Sam Mendes and an absolute top in the gangster genre. The atypical casting of Hanks as a dark hero is an ideal counterpart to Newman's tragic boss, and his journey, fearlessly mowing down enemies led by perfectly slimy Law, is additionally captured by an amazing camera (see the unforgettable arrival in Chicago) and supported by impressive music. An underrated film. (12/20/2005)