Tom Hanks has played a variety of hard-to-forget characters across a long career. He plays comedy and drama well, but it’s rare to see him as any action hero. When you think of Tom Hanks, you don’t picture the Terminator, Rambo, or John Wick. However, in 2002 he got a chance to stretch his action legs with the film Road To Perdition. While Saving Private Ryan had action, it always felt more like a drama. Road to Perdition makes Hanks a brutal killer trying to be a good father.
Road to Perdition started life as a graphic novel originally published in 1998. The film is largely based on this novel, but there are some changes predictably. However, it’s decently accurate to the novel and is one of the better adaptions of a graphic novel. Some scenes feel like they are ripped right from the panels.
The film stars Tom Hanks, Jude Law, Daniel Craig, and Paul Newman in his final role. It’s a heavy hitter with lots of talent. The film stars Hanks as Michael Sullivan, a mob enforcer for Paul Newman’s John Rooney. Sullivan was an orphan raised by Rooney and stands as a surrogate son to the jealous Connor played by Daniel Craig. Sullivan is a brutal and efficient enforcer. In fact, he’s the man a lot of other men fear.
On the Road to Perdition
The movie is a tale of vengeance. It’s tough not to get into spoilers, so if you haven’t seen the movie, watch it and come back. Connor and his goons kill Sullivan’s wife and younger son. His older son barely escapes, and Sullivan and he go on the run.
Along the way, they rob mob banks, dodge a hired hitman, and eventually bond as father and son. The hired hitman is played by a very creepy and awesome Jude Law, who stands as Sullivan’s foil. Everyone’s performance in this film is outstanding.
Hanks is this quiet killer that does feel imposing. Newman is always charming, but you can see his love for Hank’s character and his disdain for his own son Connor. Daniel Craig plays Connor so well I almost forget he’s an actor because I despised the slimeball in the film. Hell, even the kid actor Tyler Hoechlin does a fantastic job.
Sam Mendes directs the film, and you can feel the ooze of the Academy award winner. Road to Perdition looks beautiful, and the cinematography is fantastic. One scene stands out in particular to me. It’s the night ambush, and if you’ve seen the movie, you know. The combination of rain, the darkness, and the muzzle flash played with the silence to make the scene stand out.
Style and Substance
The film combines a lot of style with a great story. It’s dark but not grim and moments of levity exist. The film is very stylized but in a subtle manner. Road to Perdition is not a John Woo action flick, but you can’t say it doesn’t have its own grounded style.
Road to Perdition might be a story about vengeance, but it’s also a story about the consequences of violence and the relationships between fathers and sons. It shows two fathers and three sons cling to their familial relationships as their lives are torn apart. It’s not a movie with a happy ending.
Period Piece, Period Guns
As a period piece, we get the clothes, the style, the cars, and of course the guns. The film took place in 1931, and we get guns that fit the bill. The M1911A1 is a star of the movie in its own right. The weapon is Sullivan’s choice of handgun. Road to Perdition utilizes period-correct M1911 pistols as well. There are no slip-ups with Novak sights, ambi safeties, or any of that jazz. Just plain old classic Colts.
Harlen Maquire, the hitman, played by Jude Law, uses a Savage 1907. Savage’s little pistol was quite innovative for its time and would be an easy to conceal option. We see a variety of period-correct revolvers and a couple of lever guns.
We also get a little Winchester M1897 action. This riot gun configuration lacks the trench gun’s heat shield and bayonet mount but keeps the shorter barrel. It’s still a big gun, but Harlen conceals it under the massive coats that were worn at the time.
Finally, we get lots of M1921 Thompson love. It’s Sullivan’s preferred weapon, and in 1931 it would be a premier piece of firepower. He keeps the gun in a very cool custom case and tends to prefer drum magazines.
Blasting Away
Road to Perdition isn’t a hyper-realistic film, but it’s not a crazy gun-blazing kind of movie either. It’s grounded, but you can tell that the folks directing didn’t have a lot of inherent knowledge about guns. While most of the movie is fine, there is one silly scene.
In the hotel where Sullivan tracks down Rance, he’s ambushed by Harlen with the aforementioned shotgun. They get in a close-range shootout where their cover consists of a trunk and a couch. Both seem to have no problems soaking up round after round. The trunk appears to be made of metal, so let’s say it’s strong enough to absorb some shotgun lead.
Sullivan holds the lid up as it takes multiple blasts without issue. That seems like an impossible feat and a great way to break your wrist after the first blast. Other than that, there is some faked recoil that’s overexaggerated.
A lot of the violence is done off-screen, and it’s rarely a gunfight, more of a quick and dirty deed.
Fathers, Sons, and Violence
Road to Perdition isn’t your traditional action flick, and it seems to put real consequences behind the violence. It’s a great flick, and it’s not just a dumb action movie. There are lots of cool guns and period correct pieces from a firearms perspective, which lends to the style of the film and helps capture that Great Depression-era gangster motif. If you haven’t seen it, put it on your watch list.
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