As soon as the trailer for the Hughes Brothers newest flick “The Book of Eli†starts, if you’re a gamer, you smell something eerily familiar. Everything from the landscapes, the look of the characters, the weapons and the overall cinematography screams “Fallout 3,†which for those of you who do not know, is arguably the greatest game of the modern video game era. Set in a post-apocalyptic society, even the story itself seems to be loosely based on the game.
If you’ve never played the game, check out this trailer:
Armed with a more than solid cast of Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman, Mila Kunis, Ray Stevenson Michael Gambon, and Jennifer Beals [who seemingly doesn’t age], “The Book of Eli†may be able to do more than swim in the lukewarm waters of January film releases and do the game justice and restore the Hughes brothers’ receding credibility.
Overall, the film looks action-packed and has Oldman as the villain, a role that many will flock to the theaters to see. Washington looks to be channeling a bit of Will Smith from “I am Legend,†while modifying his badass routine from “Man on Fire,†providing at the least, a decent enough amount of conflict and energy that will without a doubt be needed for the film to thrive. Add in the solid supporting cast and the sex appeal of Kunis and there may be in fact enough brevity for this film to hold its own when it’s released on January 15.
However, the Hughes brothers don’t exactly have the best track record, as they’ve proven before that just because a film they’re directing looks like it’s based on a winner, and has a pair of winners headlining it, that alone doesn’t assure its success.
Their last film together was the 2001 “From Hell,†which in spite of a reputable cast and being based on an amazing original work by comic book legend Alan Moore, garnered mediocre reviews amongst fans and critics alike, who either loved it for its solid cinematography or hated it for its uneven plot development. While Albert hasn’t directed anything since then, focusing on television instead, brother Allen hasn’t had the best run of luck as of late either, directing “New York, I Love You,†which was originally screened at the Hamptons Film Festival last year and ended up bringing in less than $1.5 million at the box office once it was released.
Because of that, it’s obvious that this film will be an important one for both of them.
If you haven’t seen the trailer, check it out here:
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