I saw The Book of Eli Friday night, in the Gas Lamp district of San Diego, which is a very nice and trendy place with plenty of restaurants, shopping and people to watch. I probably should have walked the area and had some fun, as opposed to attending this movie. I am both a psychiatrist and a licensed minister, and I still left this movie confused. I don’t want to sound too critical, but the dots did not quite connect for me. The town was depressed and it seemed like people were having an open orgy in some scenes, leaving me baffled as to what I was supposed to think and feel about the plot. I don’t think I would have mixed sexual overtones with a seemingly spiritual mission. There was an attempt at some profound message in the film; however, I could not uncover the message. Sure, there was a lot of symbolism but the code was not easy to crack. Now, I have to admit it was Friday night and I had worked all week long. Fatigue could have played a factor in my analysis, or better yet, lack thereof. However, I don’t think being refreshed will make much of a difference for anyone.
The Book of Eli follows the protagonist, Eli, on his journey West, through post-apocalyptic America. He is a man on a mission, protecting the only Bible left, while attempting to get the book to a safe haven. Along the way, he encounters a powerful tyrant, whose main purpose is to retrieve the Bible by any means necessary.
I grew up on Denzel Washington movies, like Devil in a Blue Dress and John Q. He certainly has been, and still is, a household name in most movie goers’ lives. In this movie, I am still trying to figure out the point of the protagonist, Eli. Now the paradox in this movie is that the protagonist did just as much, if not more, killing as the antagonist. It was not quite clear what the true fight was about in this movie. Many may say it was about the last copy of the Bible, I say it was about a fantasy of power. Now the concept of Good and Evil tried to ride out, but when the antagonist just faded away in one scene, I was very disappointed. I was also a little baffled by the Olympic feat of regurgitating the entire Bible from memory. Earlier that day, our protagonist, Eli, had a gunshot wound to the stomach. No medical care or sutures were ever received. He gathered himself and began walking, west, which was supposed to be a metaphor itself. Not, likely so in real life. Medically (secondary hemorrhaging), he should have died while going, “WEST”.
I am not sure whether this movie was the equivalent to a Spike Lee Joint, supposed to make us think or more like a Tyler Perry movie, ridden with some hidden meaning about life experiences. Either way, I did not get it. I was wondering why there had not been much rave or talk about the movie, in the media, and now I know. Denzel, maybe you will get the Golden Globe award for this or your next masterpiece. I wish you well, but I just did not get anything from this film.
Enough Said,
Dr. O
