Thursday, ITV1, 10:45pm
Road to Perdition (2002), directed by Sam Mendes, is a cinematic tapestry drenched in moral ambiguity, meticulously sewn together with visual and aural artistry. Set amid the gangster underworld of 1931, it offers a rare portrayal of the Great Depression not through the rural dust and despair but through the glistening violence of mob life in an America desperate for direction. The film follows Michael Sullivan, played with brooding intensity by Tom Hanks, as he traverses the shadowy landscape of vengeance and loyalty, ultimately questioning what legacy he will leave for his son. The elegance of Road to Perdition lies in its pacing—a quiet, steady cadence that drifts toward inevitable violence while giving us a haunting meditation on fathers, sons, and redemption.
Thomas Newman’s score is as integral to the film’s atmosphere as the cinematography itself, with Conrad L. Hall’s work winning an Oscar for the haunting, rain-soaked visuals. Newman’s music underscores Sullivan’s internal conflict and the bleak landscape with chilling precision. His score is a melancholy waltz of muted strings and piano that echoes Sullivan’s isolation, a lone man marching toward a fate he cannot avoid. Tracks like “Road to Chicago” capture the stoic inevitability of Sullivan’s journey, with somber melodies that evoke both mourning and menace. Newman’s music refuses to indulge in the thrill of gangster life, opting instead to illuminate the heavy price of loyalty in a world of moral compromise.
Historically, the film bends some elements for dramatic weight, particularly its idealized portrayal of Depression-era mob life. Yet, Mendes leans into the mythic, crafting a timeless tale that could sit as comfortably in the canon of Greek tragedy as in gangster cinema. This artistic license elevates Road to Perdition beyond mere historical recounting; it becomes a resonant story of paternal bonds and the dark legacies that often shadow them. It’s this timeless quality, framed through Newman’s somber, nuanced score, that gives the film its enduring power—a reminder that every road, even one paved in perdition, is ultimately a journey of the human soul.
- Tom Hanson