Road to Perdition is Sam Mendes' (American Beauty) sophomore turn at cinema. It stars Tom Hanks as Mike Sullivan, Paul Newman as Mr. Rooney, and Jude Law. Going into this movie I knew very little about the plot. "Hey, a Tom Hanks movie- sounds like fun!" Ok, I did know it was about 1930's gangsters, but would never have guessed Tom Hanks was one and Paul Newman was the gangster/father figure who betrays him. I did know it was about a father and son but didn't realize how great a violent, gritty, angry, and sad movie could develop into a lesson on parent/child relationships. The themes of this film weren't pretty- but the film was elequent all the same. There was a reason the late Conrad L. Hall won the Best Cinematography Oscar for 2002. The atmosphere and sense of place was stamped clearly on every frame of the film. I don't think the story developed as deeply as it could have, but I was enjoying the ride none the less. 6/17/03 Home