Road to Perdition
Directed by Sam Mendes
Starring Tom Hanks, Paul Newman, Jude Law, Tyler Hoechlin and Jennifer Jason Leigh
Rated R for violence and language

Not many directors get their start in film by being nominated for five Academy Awards and winning Best Director and Best Picture. But Sam Mendes defied all odds with his film debut, American Beauty. And based on the reviews of his new film, Road to Perdition, he might be well on his way to a repeat performance. But I've said this before, most film critics are idiots. They see a film like this where the director puts together some nice compositions, a few well framed shots, a cast of big name actors who have won some Oscars and they give it 4 stars (or 5 or 2 thumbs up or whatever they do). But don't be fooled by the silly film critics who have not had any film study training, Road to Perdition is just an okay film. Mendes shows the talent to be able to make a really good film, but there are just way to many errors in framing, editing and with the story to make this a true success.

Sam Mendes started out as a stage director, but has shown the ability to understand how film works as a medium. He just doesn't have it down yet. The overall compositions are good. The film is filled with nice subtle tones and really captures that old-timey look that the film is trying to have. Mendes also does a nice job with lighting. He is able to keep the right things lit in almost all of his nighttime or otherwise dark shots so as to keep the darkness of the setting while still allowing the viewer to see the action. Mendes also shows the ability to do some nice framing with the camera, but often the actors step over the boundaries
between themselves and other characters when they shouldn't. There are also times when things in the foreground block the things they should be framing in the background. Mendes also doesn't truly understand editing yet. Often he lets shots linger too long when a cut should have been made to a different shot. One example comes near the end of the film when Tom Hanks arrives back to his hotel room and his shot has Hanks walking towards the screen to get to the room his son is in on the right side of the frame. When he turns to go into the room, there should have been a cut, but instead the shot lingers and Hanks then blocks out Tyler Hoechlin. I also don't like the way Mendes uses reflections. He likes to have his characters sit behind a glass pane with a strong reflection from outside on the glass. It makes the actors hard to see and distracts the viewer. For all the problems that Mendes has, he does understand what to do with a camera, he just hasn't put it all together yet.

The performances in this film are nothing to talk about really. Hanks, Law and Newman are all okay. The same can be said about Tyler Hoechlin. The story and screenplay don't really allow for much acting to go on. There really isn't much dialogue and the story is rather slow. And to call this film a crime drama really isn't honest. This is really more of a roadtrip movie with guns. The film isn't about criminal activity, its about the coming of age of Tyler Hoechlin's character while on the road, which is exactly how a roadtrip movie usually goes.

Road to Perdition, while being a slightly better than average film, screams Oscar. The only thing that could slow down this film on its way to more Oscars for Sam Mendes is the fact that there are still several more big films on tap for the year from big name directors like Martin Scorsese (Gangs of New York), Steven Soderbergh (Full Frontal and Solaris), Steven Spielberg (Catch Me If You Can) and M. Night Shyamalan (Signs). But if Mendes wants to get in good graces with me, he's going to need to correct the flaws he has in this film. And he's also going to need to stop bookending his films with the same shots with a voice-over narration from the future. I know it may seem like I'm nitpicking over the flaws of this film, but when a film is supposed to be well made, it is my responsibility to really look at how well made it is. Mendes' new film shows potential, but has some issues with the story and some flaws with the way its shot that keep it from being a better film.

Rating 60%