Friday, April 20, 2012

R is for Road to Perdition (#391)

Road to Perdition (2002) is still one of the more intriguing gangster movies I've seen, mostly because its real interest is the human side, which in these films usually means you're a Corleone trying to survive attrition.  Well, this time the name is Sullivan and of all people it's Tom Hanks in the lead role, and his godfather is Paul Newman.  Both are excellent in the film, as are Jude Law and Daniel Craig (if it seems like Craig is in a lot of my selections, it's coincidental except for Quantum of Solace; otherwise it's a testament to his versatility and overall skill).  From director Sam Mendes and featuring some of the best cinematography you're likely to ever see in film, Road to Perdition is a gem that could use a little more exposure.

Star Trek bonus!

R is for Riker, William T.
(from Star Trek: The Next Generation)
The first officer who was repeatedly offered his own command but chose to stick with his family (even though he and Deanna Troi had some pretty bad commitment issues), Riker is one of the reasons Picard's crew and Next Generation ultimately proved such a worthy follow-up to the original series.  For one thing, he was in many ways a reincarnation of Kirk, and yet never came off as a carbon copy.  If anything, his studied cool in most situations helped set the tone of his series almost as much as his captain.  Jonathan Frakes went on to direct his castmates in two of their movies, including the excellent First Contact, and appeared in all three subsequent TV shows in one incarnation or another.  This guy, in fictional and real-life form, is arguably the MVP of the modern set.

A-to-Z Challenge!

7 comments:

Michael Abayomi said...

Excellent pick. I really enjoyed watching this.

MOCK! said...

Another movie I will not get to see because my local video store is no more...and this one is based ona graphic novel!!!

SpacerGuy said...

Remember 'Skin of Evil' this episode has got to be one of Rikers finest moments. 'Data, something has got me!'

Tony Laplume said...

I prefer to overlook some of Riker's early seasons histrionics. Pay no attention to the man before his beard really grew in. Understood?

Cathy Olliffe-Webster said...

Road to Perdition? AWESOME with a side of Awesome Sauce.

Kate OMara said...

Love him, Hate him...Beard on, Beard off... so goes my relationship with Riker. In the end, Love him. :)
Kate

Tony Laplume said...

I love that at least in one movie he was able to go beardless again. Even if the situation were a little goofy. It finally made him and Troi remember that they truly had feelings for each other, though. And then they got married!

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