The Book of Eli

It's been thirty-one years since "The War" created a hole in the sky causing fire to burn all of earth including the buildings and the humans. Most of the population was wiped out but many were also lucky enough to hide underground and survive. Now people have to survive under harsh conditions where water is rare and expensive, bandits constantly patrol the roads for helpless travelers, and Christianity is almost completely forgotten. The loss of this religion is the thing the lone traveler, Eli(Denzel Washington) is trying to turn around by protecting a very important book that has been in his possession for some time. The book is the last of its kind and people will kill to have in their possession(particularly the antagonist, Carnegie, played by Gary Oldman). So with the present, constant threat of ones trying to steal the book, Eli must get through obstacle after obstacle and reach the end of his quest to restore hope to the broken world through the Bible.

"The Book of Eli" follows the loner Eli as he tries to make his trek across the battered United States and reach the west(California). As he rolls into an inhabited town he meets the town's self proclaimed leader named Carnegie. Carnegie is searching for the book that Eli posses and wants to steal it and use it as a weapon. He believes that the book's power can have an influence on other's thus encouraging people to build more towns(which Carnegie would also rule). Eli(though once is friendly towards Carnegie) turns into Carnegie's enemy when it's found out the Eli has the book that is so desperately wanted. Carnegie tries to play nice at first offering Eli food, lodging, and women(which Eli refuses.) But when Eli doesn't give in, the guns and threats start to roll in which is great because Denzel Washington kicks some major butt in this film.

The action wasn't the main element which took over the film. This is a good thing because it keeps things like slow-mo sequences or too much action from distracting us from the message of the film. When there was action though, it was incredibly entertaining. Denzel used a few different weapons like several types of guns and his most used weapon: a huge, very sharp machete. The fights happened very quickly both literally and the fact that Denzel moved at the speed of light. Even though there was blood, the filmmakers did a god job of covering it up with shadows and quick camera angles. Because of this, the movie isn't overly gory. The camera angles and movements were also enjoyable as they moved around a lot (particularly in a rather large fight scene near the beginning) as to capture as much of the scene as possible as opposed to quick shots only capturing one point of view. The good camera work, the quick action, and the stunning choreography fused together to create very enjoyable action scenes.

The Hughes brothers(the directors) have provided us with a world that is seemingly hopeless and at the same time getting closer and closer to being restored. Throughout the film we see signs of the world healing from the apocalyptic fire. At first we are introduced to a desert type Earth that is grey, constantly cloudy, and color washed(thanks to the camera style.) All the common things like water, soap, books, even chapstick (which is one of the things Eli looks for) are almost completely absent. Women are treated terribly and are constantly threatened by men who make up most of the remaining population. But later we see "The West" which is green and the skies are blue again and it seems that humanity is starting to put itself back together. This transition from helpless to hopeful gave the film more heart.

Now the biggest thing by far in "The Book of Eli" is the message. This movie has strong religious elements and messages. In fact many Christians could compare the actions and quotes of Eli to that of Paul's in the New Testament. First of all, we realize almost from the first time he takes out his book that it is the Bible, and that the Bible has a power and knowledge that must be reestablished into society. The Bible and God influence Eli strongly throughout the entire film. It was God who spoke to Eli and is telling him to protect the book and to take it into the West. Clearly God is protecting Eli when gunshots from close range mysteriously just miss or when guns don't even stop him from completing his goal. Eli believes that God will protect him until his journey is complete. The Bible which is the centerpiece to the whole film, is also shown as an object of extreme importance not only to Eli but to the antagonist, Carnegie, as well. Both of these men know the Bible's power and truth but they both want/need it for different reasons. Eli must protect it so that Christianity can become present in the world once again and Carnegie wants to use the book as a weapon to rally others to him and expand his nation. Now don't be offended at the thought that "The Book of Eli" is trying to say the Bible is an evil tool because that's definitely not the case. What is does do is show us how some can try to misinterpret the Bible to fool other's and how true that is because scripture is misinterpreted all the time. The main message that I believe "The Book of Eli" telling is that God is the supreme power in the universe and that his power radiates through the Bible and through humans like Eli.

"The Book of Eli" is a remarkable film about a ruined world that needs saving. It needs the Bible to help save it and that's what Eli is trying to do on his quest. He pursues his goal with God at his side the whole way and when it's all said and done Eli tells himself, "I fought the fight, I finished the race, I kept the faith." "The Book of Eli" deserves three stars out of four.

"The Book of Eli" has a running time of one hour and fifty-eight minutes and is rated R for some brutal violence and language.